Reid's of Caithness lands new airline deal
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A Thurso business is celebrating after winning a lucrative contract which will see its product available on international flights. Reid’s of Caithness has landed the deal that will see four types of its shortbread travelling onboard Virgin Atlantic Airlines, which is a ‘great honour’ for owners Gary and Tracy Reid.
The business already serves travel providers such as United Airlines, American Airlines, LNER and private aviation company NetJets.
Mr Reid commented on the news, saying: “For us to get to this stage shows the standard of our brand, and we are absolutely delighted.
“Our first order came in on the ninth of January and a second order closely followed, we are looking forward to having our products travelling on Virgin Atlantic’s premium cabins.”
This deal is yet another element of growth for the food manufacturers who also expanded their distribution reach to an extra eight countries last year, including: Costa Rica; France; South Africa; Saudi Arabia; Kuwait; South Korea; Malta; and Iceland. Reid’s of Caithness is available in supermarkets and convenience stores throughout the globe.
“We often get people sending us pictures of our products when they are travelling! We had one girl send us a picture of our biscuits from New Zealand”, commented Mr Reid.
“But none of this would be at all possible without the great team of staff we have, who ensure these products are all made to tight deadlines, and of such a high quality that can be exported and sent to airlines and trains.”
For the team of over 40 full-time staff, this growth comes at a poignant time as the business is celebrating 10 years in its current state-of-the-art facility that allows them to do the work that it does.
Mr Reid explained: “We would have to travel far to find another factory like we do here in Caithness. We moved here in February 2013, and it allows us to be able to provide the high-standard product that has got us where we are today.
“We are the only business in the region that has a SALSA accreditation which means we could be audited at any point, and have to adhere to strict health and safety food regulations.”
However, Reid’s of Caithness' success has not come without hard work and graft, with the last decade having been particularly challenging for them.
“Throughout 2016 and 2017 we had the butter crisis, where we saw prices rise to over £6K per tonne of butter”, Mr Reid said.
“After this we had challenges navigating Brexit, and then Covid came along. We had all our stock ready to go for the year, and then we were left with lots of surplus we couldn’t sell when lockdown started.”
Instead of letting the excess stock go to waste, Reid’s of Caithness sent over £60K to Fareshare in Glasgow where it was distributed throughout Scotland to support people in need.
This was made possible with the generous help of David Steven Jr of D Steven & Co, who delivered the products free of charge for the business.
Now, like other businesses and individuals in the region, Reid’s of Caithness is being hit by inflation and soaring energy costs. It has faced a 200 per cent increase in electricity, going from £2.5K per month to £10K per month - this is with the current government help.
Mr Reid said: “You work hard to better yourself, but because of the increase in costs all you can do is pay the bills at the moment.
“Those who manufacture food are struggling. We can’t buy big amounts of stock and hold onto it like other industries, so we are having to take the hit in increased costs. We can’t put that on the client.”
Amongst the busy-ness of running an globally-renowned exporting business, Gary and Tracy do get to spend some down-time with the most important people in their life. Their family.
“We have a 13 year old Mia and a four-and-half year old Ethan, and our dog Buddy - we go on lots of walks!
“My mum is still here too, and she has been with the business since it started in 1966, so we enjoy spending time with her.”
