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Kinclune Estate – Scottish Enterprise Area

Our Family

Kinclune House and Estate is owned by the Osborne family. The leadership team consists of husband and wife Rowan and Marguerite Osborne, who are semi-retired from the business but still play an active role in key decision-making.

Their daughters, Virginia Osborne-Antolovi and Aylwin Pillai, both play active roles in the business. Virginia lives and works full-time on the livestock side of the farm, managing the sheep, cattle, and ponies. She has trained in Wildlife Tourism in preparation for developing the activities and experiences side of the business. Aylwin, a former lecturer in environmental law at the University of Aberdeen, lives in Aberdeen and also works full-time for the estate, overseeing the property side of the business. In 2019, Aylwin completed the Scottish Rural Leadership Programme.

 

Also involved in the business is Virginia and Aylwin’s brother, James, who lives and worls in Edinburgh but takes an active role in planning the farm’s diversification.

Our Location

Kinclune House & Estate is located approximately 6 miles north-west of Kirriemuir in Angus. The estate sits 900 feet above sea levels and enjoys fantastic views of the Vale of Strathmore.

Kinclune House & Estate one of the Monitor Farms representing the Scottish Enterprise area.

Agritourism

Kinclune House is a listed baronial mansion, complete with a tower and turret, and was fully refurbished between 2022 and 2023. The house, along with the Osprey Annex, is currently used as a luxury, exclusive-use holiday let, a small intimate event venue, and for special occasions. The estate also features Grieves House, which accommodates up to six guests and is currently available as holiday accommodation.

Over £1 million has been invested in Kinclune Steading, transforming it into a wedding venue with a capacity of up to 120 guests. Other agritourism initiatives, such as guided walks and wildlife tours, are also in development.

Our Farm

Kinclune is an extensive, LFA unit of almost 800 acres. It is family-run, breeding native Highland Ponies, Aberdeen Angus & Limousin cattle and Lleyn sheep. The core farming business consists of a beef-suckler herd of cows and a small sheep enterprise.

As an organic and nature-friendly estate, Kinclune is passionate about farming in harmony with the environment. The estate recognises that its farm environment and biodiversity are valuable assets, which they aim to harness to ensure the long-term economic and environmental sustainability of the family farm.

Monitor Farm Focus Areas

During the programme, the Kinclune Estate will focus on

  • Support to enter new business areas and achieve excellence, including accommodation, events, farm tours, and activities
  • Increasing farm revenue and ensuring long-term sustainability
  • Succession planning and family mediation, particularly overcoming resistance to change and risk aversion
  • Creating a business management structure for separate but interlinked businesses
  • Employing and managing staff – the business is currently heavily reliant on family as the workforce, which is unsustainable and likely to cause burnout
  • Integrating agritourism with a working livestock farm, including addressing health and safety for farm tours and farm stays
  • Developing both the farm and the agritourism business in ways that are environmentally sustainable