The Loch Lomond Group is an independent distiller and blender of some of the finest and rarest scotch whiskies in the world, with a heritage amongst the oldest in the industry.
The group has a rich heritage dating back to the early 19th century with a portfolio that includes Loch Lomond Single Malt, which is distilled and matured near the southern shore of this famous loch, Glen Scotia, a Campbeltown malt from the Victorian ‘Whisky capital of the world’ and Littlemill Single Malt which was Scotland’s first licensed distillery. They also produce several high quality blended whiskies including High Commissioner, as well as Glen’s Vodka, the No. 2 vodka brand in the UK market, and Ben Lomond, a premium Scottish gin.
In 2014, Loch Lomond Group acquired the Loch Lomond Distillery Company from the Bulloch family along with its rich history dating back to 1772 from the creation of Littlemill Distillery. The company’s production spans three sites across Scotland housing around half a million casks. It operates its Loch Lomond malt and grain distilleries at Alexandria in Dunbartonshire, Glen Scotia distillery in Campbeltown, Argyll, and also has its own bottling plant in Catrine, Ayrshire - one of the largest independent bottling plants in Scotland. Its current annual production is in excess of 36.5 million bottles of whisky, vodka, gin, rum and brandy.
Since the original buyout, the company has invested significantly in growing its portfolio of brands, distillery and bottling infrastructure, global distribution platform, and management team. The business now generates about 70% of its revenue from more than 100 international markets, versus less than 10% at acquisition.
To accelerate the growth of the business, a high-profile five-year partnership was agreed with the R&A in 2018. The partnership includes sponsorship of both The Open Golf Championship and the AIG Woman’s British Open and globally showcases the full range of Loch Lomond Whiskies as “The Spirit of The Open”. Known as “The One”, The Open is the most international of the major championships with qualifying events across five continents. The Championship is also broadcast to 600 million households in almost 200 countries. There is an incredibly strong alignment between the world of whisky and golf, two of Scotland’s most iconic gifts to the world and this sponsorship demonstrates Loch Lomond Group’s commitment to becoming a premium global brand.
In the past six years, a particular emphasis has been placed on new product development with Glen Scotia expanding the portfolio to include a 25-year-old and 45-year-old single malt. Loch Lomond Whiskies also boasts a 50-year-old single malt along with premium limited edition whiskies for The Open which have been produced with multiple high profile ambassadors from the golfing world, including Colin Montgomery, Darren Clarke, Paul Lawrie and Christie Kerr.
Nine Twenty Engineering & Manufacturing are proud to be supporting the Glen Catrine site with recruitment as part of their ongoing plans.
Nyomi in our team visited the site to meet with Bottling Manager Kevan Knox, who is looking for a Production Team Leader to support him in driving production in the busy bottling hall. During their discussion, Kevan explained his background in the drinks industry and outlined the type of person who would work well in the business.
“While functional skills and experience are important, it will be the successful candidate’s soft skills that will differentiate the potential for delivery in the role. The successful person will be leading a team of different personalities so strong listening skills are a must. The ability to build relationships within the team and across the wider business, plus the ability to lead the team into improved ways of working will be key to success. Of course, we need people who have experience of leading teams in a production environment, but we are open to other types of manufacturing backgrounds if the person is right for us.”
Kevan is also looking for someone who has the capability and desire to take over from him at a point in the future as part of the succession plans on the site, so there are excellent career opportunities within the business. Someone who has a strong character, is tenacious and resilient and is ready to commit the next stage of their career in supporting the site to the next level, would be fit extremely well in the fast moving business. This is an exciting opportunity for the right person and the successful candidate will have the autonomy to shape and drive their areas of responsibility forward.
If you like what you hear and would like to find out more about the Production Team Leader role, you can apply now here.