The Social Hub will bring a new hotel model to Edinburgh.
A new hybrid hospitality and community destination is set to challenge traditional hotel concepts in Edinburgh, bringing together student housing, hotel rooms and extended-stay accommodation alongside co-working facilities and public spaces.
Following its venture in Glasgow, The Social Hub is expanding east, transforming the former Fountain Brewery site in Fountainbridge into a 580-bed development. Plans include a restaurant, café, rooftop bar, clubhouse, theatre and gym, creating a mixed-use destination designed to bring visitors, residents and the local community together.
Once operational, The Social Hub is expected to create up to 100 jobs, support more than 280 roles, and boost Edinburgh’s economy by £15.5 million. Research from RealWorth has shown that the group’s facilities generate at least five-times the economic and social value of standard hotels – rising to more than eight-times in Rome - by supercharging local connections, enhancing community wellbeing, and fuelling learning and entrepreneurship. The building is also expected to achieve BREEAM Excellent, underlining its high environmental sustainability standards.
Charlie MacGregor, founder and CEO of The Social Hub, said: “Glasgow has shown the power of our model to bring students, neighbours, entrepreneurs, and visitors together.
“Now we want to spark that same energy in Edinburgh – a place woven into the life of the city, where connection and creativity don’t just happen, they thrive, and where social impact becomes part of everyday life.”
Edinburgh’s Fountain Brewery was established in 1856 by brewer and businessman William McEwan in Fountainbridge, an area whose plentiful water supply and access to the Union Canal and railway made it an ideal location for brewing. The brewery quickly grew into one of Scotland’s most successful, with McEwan’s beer gaining popularity across the UK and overseas, including in Australia, South Africa and India. By the late 19th century, it had become one of the largest breweries in Britain under a single owner.
In 1931, McEwan’s merged with William Younger & Co to form Scottish Brewers, which later became part of Scottish & Newcastle in 1960. The Fountainbridge site was significantly redeveloped in the early 1970s, creating a major, highly automated brewing complex. However, changing market conditions eventually led to its closure in 2004, bringing nearly 150 years of brewing to an end.