More history

Before More Partnership, there was Iain More Associates. And before Iain More Associates, there was one amazing man: Iain More, himself. Iain retired in 2008 but his ethos still defines and differentiates the firm. He worked with most of us (as a colleague or consultant) and remains an inspiration to us all.

Behind Iain’s “dour Scotsman” exterior, there is a fundraising expert with extraordinary warmth and intelligence. Behind the eccentric logo (a 19th century etching designed to represent ‘inspiration’), there was incredible ingenuity and professionalism. Behind the human being, there is a giant of philanthropy – who helped to shape fundraising in Europe, at least as we know it today.

We could go on forever about how wonderful Iain is because we love him dearly. But instead here is a brief chronology of the company that still bears his name.

1978
Iain More returns to his native Scotland from Oregon, USA, with an American wife and American ideas about the power of philanthropy.

1989
Having spent 11 years heading up development at the University of Edinburgh and INSEAD, Iain creates Iain More Consultants.

Mid-1990s
Iain starts to bring in a few experts to support projects that need specialist advice (in strategy, IT or telephone fundraising).

1997
Anna Mundell, an Italian fundraiser based in Milan, becomes the first full-time consultant to join Iain More Consultants.

1998
Rachel Hall, based in London, joins Iain and Anna.

1999-2001
Claudia Bailey, Stephen Hausey, Simon Pennington and Rebecca Rendle join the team and having more than doubled in size we re-launch as Iain More Associates.

2008
By now, there are two (and a year later three) people called Ia(i)n working for the firm, which creates much confusion and misspelling. Several people suggest it should be called More Ians. Iain finally retires – after several attempts and several retirement parties. He and his wife, Pam, move from Dundee to Edinburgh, where they devote their new-found spare time to friends and culture. We’re lucky that Iain is still happy to provide us with occasional advice and support.

2011
The firm now has 15 partners, a staff of two at head office in Dundee and several other specialists who work as required on specific projects. It’s time to rebrand as More Partnership to reflect both a changing organisation and its enduring values.