And again, with the Gold Brothers...

[Chas]

I'm not defending the Gold Bros in any way, but I'm curious as to what the city council could possibly do about it? What would it look like if they did "care two hoots about the Royal Mile"? Would it involve shutting down an obviously profitable business, or artificially propping up businesses that aren't doing so well?

There's one single reason that the Gold Brothers are successful: they sell stuff that people want to buy. We purists may not like that business model, since it has a lot of other ramifications on the industry and traditions, but those cannot really be considered legal reasons to thwart a successful (and legal) enterprise. The Gold Bros are bringing money into the city's coffers and bringing tourists to the area which will spend money elsewhere as well (especially if they've saved money on their tartan tat purchases). If this business model were run by anyone other than the Gold Brothers (like, perhaps, a more traditional Scottish family), I would imagine that most folks would be congratulating them and saying it's good for everyone.

I agree with Tobus.

The Gold Brothers pay taxes - a lot of taxes. They provide employment for a lot of people, in Scotland.

Taking the moral high-ground is all very well, but I've not noticed it putting bread on the table.