Phillip White is to join Elgin-based whisky specialist Gordon & MacPhail as its new Chief Executive in April. The announcement comes as the family-owned business revealed sales growth of 24.3% to £46.5m during the financial year which ended February 2023.
White will join just as as Managing Director Ewen Mackintosh retires from the company after 33 years.
White will now lead Gordon & MacPhail as it moves into its next chapter of development, focusing on the international growth of its own brands including Benromach and The Cairn.
White brings with him a wealth of leadership experience most recently from his position as Managing Director of Kent Frozen Foods and Medina Foodservice. He has led a career spanning marketing, sales and distribution within the food wholesale and spirits sectors, including 10 years with Bacardi and Brown-Forman.
Commenting on the appointment, Neil Urquhart, Chairman at Gordon & MacPhail, said, “We are delighted to be welcoming Phillip to the Gordon & MacPhail team and believe he is the right person to lead the business, thanks in part to his excellent leadership qualities, and experience working with global brands, UK retail distribution and the wider spirits industry.
“This is an exciting time for the company, as we look forward to executing our ambitious plans to continue building our brands internationally, developing our workforce and embarking on a significant capital investment phase to prepare the business for future growth while remaining true to our values.”
Phillip White added, “Taking on the role of Chief Executive at Gordon & MacPhail is an honour. The company has grown significantly, particularly over the last few years, and I look forward to working with my colleagues, to continue building a successful family business committed to inspiring enthusiasts around the world to discover, appreciate and enjoy the finest single malt whiskies and highest quality spirits.”
Gordon & MacPhail’ sales success to February was buoyed by the successful release of Gordon & MacPhail Generations 80 Years Old, the company’s oldest single malt to date while Benromach continued to be a significant contributor to the company’s success with sales and volumes increasing 14.5% and 9.5% respectively.
In 2022 Gordon & MacPhail opened its second whisky distillery, The Cairn, in the Cairngorm National Park. Part of the organisation’s focus on securing the long-term future of its brands and investing in the future of the whisky industry, the distillery was operational in May 2022 before opening its doors to the public in October 2022.
And last year it announced that from 2024 it would no longer be filling casks from other distilleries for its G&M label as it has done for 128 years, instead it is to focus on its own Scottish distilleries – Benromach and The Cairn Distillery. However the company retains extensive maturing stocks so whiskies carrying the Gordon & MacPhail name will continue for decades to come. The company also revealed the appointment of CASK Liquid Marketing as its UK distributor for Benromach.
Gordon & MacPhail also owns Scottish Gin brand, Red Door and last year companies newest distillery – The Cairn – became a a 5-star visitor experience offering tours, tastings, and a tapas style menu of the finest Scottish produce is a major attraction for the area.
The company will wait until the mid-2030s, to release the first single malt whisky to be distilled at The Cairn. Meantime, a range of blended malt whiskies has been created under the brand name CRN57, to provide customers the opportunity to gain a sense of the flavours that will be found in The Cairn in years to come.
Meanwhile this year the Gordon & MacPhail Whisky Experience will open on the site of the companies original premises in Elgin. lt will offer guided tours, interpretative displays, a ‘liquid library’ and tastings of the world’s rarest single malts.