David Sands Group joins SPAR Scotland

C J Lang & Son Ltd, SPAR wholesaler in Scotland, said convenience retailer David Sands Group has joined SPAR Scotland.

Colin McLean, chief executive, announced the development at the at the SPAR Scotland 2022 tradeshow which took place in Aviemore on 22 September, adding that he was incredibly pleased to have one of Scotland’s most successful convenience retailers join the SPAR symbol group.

“Over the past four years our business has changed dramatically, and we are now attracting the very best Scottish retailers to join SPAR Scotland because of our competitive wholesale package,” McLean said.

“With our value proposition; SPAR own label; depth of range across chilled, ambient & frozen ; our new SPAR Scotland brand positioning; and all delivered by our best-in-class delivery proposition. We are delighted that David and his team have decided to continue the next part of their journey with SPAR Scotland and would encourage others to take a fresh look at what we can now offer.”

“Two genuinely Scottish family businesses, with a proud heritage working together to drive the future of independent Scottish convenience retailing with SPAR Scotland. It is great news to have such a high-profile convenience store group join us,” he added.

David Sands commented: “Moving towards a SPAR Scotland partnership with C J Lang & Son Ltd gives us the opportunity to develop our business into the future as well as provide the local communities where our stores are situated with an even better service. Having the support of the SPAR brand means we can offer shoppers a wider range of products.

“Our vision is to continue to develop a solid business not just for today but for future generations and we believe that SPAR Scotland is the only symbol group who can supply all that required support and more.

“We spent a long time debating on our next relationship. We visited C J Lang’s depot in Dundee, several SPAR stores, met the team and the newly refurbished SPAR Market store in Crosshouse. We have been extremely impressed with the proposition SPAR Scotland has to offer. The team understands what our customers want and how we want to make sure we deliver on their needs. The customer is at the heart of what we do and it’s great to see that SPAR Scotland shares these same values.”

David Sands is a family-owned, fifth-generation business that has over 200 years of grocery retailing in Scotland. Originally founded in 1812, the business has gone from strength to strength. Since 2013 David Sands announced the launch of the “David’s Kitchen” brand of convenience retailing/foodservice local stores.

Keith Fernley, MD David’s Kitchen Ltd, said: “We’ve been impressed by their overall package and their delivery proposition and this gives us a solid platform to invest in our business for the future.”

Today the company has a total of four stores operating around Scotland, including the award-winning Pinkie Farm store in Musselburgh.

Dan Brown, MD at Pinkies Farm, said: “We’ve seen the changes over the past few years in SPAR Scotland and we are very excited to be joining them on the next stage of their journey.”

McLean added: “We are delighted to welcome David Sands business into the SPAR Scotland family. Independent retailing is about providing a service to local shoppers, and ensuring communities can have access to fresh, local products at value prices and this is what SPAR Scotland is all about.

“David and his colleagues have built a hugely successful award-winning business, and their growth has been very impressive over the years. They know their customer base and their business, and we wish them every continued success for the future with SPAR Scotland.”