Retailer Scotmid Co-operative started 2019 in style, by opening a new state-of-the-art store in Drumnadrochit, a village on the western shore of Loch Ness.
The store, part of a five-unit complex, previously operated from a smaller site nearby Balmacaan employing 13 people. With the expansion, the store increased its workforce to 27.
Hundreds of customers attended the official opening on 25 January, which featured a quartet of pipers and the Inverness Caledonian Thistle FC mascot, Lionel Nessie.
Among those attending were Rosemary MacKenzie, 91, the widow of one of the co-founders of the old store in Balmacaan Road, and her son Ken, former chief officer of the Scottish Co-op. The MacKenzie family had sold meat and groceries in the Glenurquhart area since 1850.
Local resident and north regional committee member Angus Maclean cut the ribbon welcoming customers to the new store.
The building’s architecture was tailored to provide a spacious lay-out with energy-efficient refrigeration to reduce environmental impact. Refrigeration will be controlled by a central plant and run on a natural refrigerant (CO2) rather than polluting HFCs.
Maurissa Fergusson, Scotmid’s head of property and development, said: “We are thrilled to be able to open the doors to our new Drumnadrochit store, which represents the future of Scotmid.
“Our core purpose is to serve our local communities and to improve people’s everyday lives and the introduction of this new store certainly achieves those objectives.
“Our aim is for this store to be right at the heart of Drumnadrochit – serving a key role in the lives of local people.”
Kevin Plant, Scotmid’s head of food, added: “We’re incredibly excited about opening this new store at Drumnadrochit – it looks fantastic and we’re certain local people will enjoy what’s on offer.
“We’ve expanded our Food to Go range available in-store and we believe our members and customers will be really impressed with the new look and improved offering available.”
