Distillery in profit three years after reopening

Glenglassaugh Distillery in Aberdeenshire has reported a turnover of £1 million in 2011 and was able to achieve a £100,000 profit.

The distillery which was unused for two decades has turned a profit three years after being refurbished due to the volume of sales of exclusive single cask bottling and its small cask ownership scheme. The position has been further boosted by strong sales in overseas markets, particularly in Russia, Asia, Germany and US.

Glenglassaugh Distillery – the most coastal distillery in mainland Scotland – was opened in 1875. It was mothballed in 1986 by the then owner Edrington Group, and bought by a group of private investors in 2008.

The announcement comes after Glenglassaugh launched the first bottling of single malt Scotch whisky which has been distilled on site since the refurbishment in 2008.

Glenglassaugh Distillery managing director Stuart Nickerson said, “It had been expected that it would take at least seven years and possibly as much as 10 years for Glenglassaugh to turn a profit. That estimate was based on the performance of other distilleries which had recommenced production after a period of mothballing.

“However, none of the models we compared ourselves with had such a long gap between closing and reopening as Glenglassaugh, so that in itself makes the achievement even more surprising and exceptional. There are two distinct areas which, we believe, have enabled this to happen. The first is the extent of overseas sales and the fact that we are selling into 25 different countries. Glenglassaugh already had a loyal following in parts of Europe, but we built on that by working with specialist importers in our target markets.”