Demijohn Celebrates 20 Years in Business

Demijohn will celebrate an impressive 20 years in business with a music, food and drink festival, called Glenlair Feastival, within its new home at Glenlair Steading on Sat 17th August 2024.

Live music, Demijohn Cocktails and a number of local artisan food producers will gather in Glenlair Steading to entertain and feed Feastival goers from 12pm to 6pm.

The Demijohn Store at Glenlair Steading will be open for tastings, purchases and refills all day from 10am to 6pm.

Glenlair Feastival is the first of its type in Galloway, a high quality family friendly music, food & drink festival which is hoped to become an annual event.

From its humble origins in Edinburgh’s Grassmarket in July 2004, Demijohn has grown to be a trusted name in food & drink within the UK and has an international reputation far and beyond the Great British Isles borders.

20 years ago the concept of a “liquid deli” was something that might only be found in Italy with its famous cantinas. Founders and entrepreneurs Angus and Frances Ferguson have not only created a chain of liquid delis around the UK but they have educated many people into the taste and provenance of their handmade, ecofriendly food and drink products.

Celebrating 20 years this year, with 7 outlets, including their thriving international online mail order business, they are one of Scotland’s SME success stories.

The Demijohn Store at Glenlair Steading is a quirky shop and is more like visiting a rural winery than a deli. Lined with over 70 large glass demijohn containers filled with interesting and unique alcoholic and non-alcoholic aperitif and digestifs, it is a magnificent spectacle as well as a riot for one’s tastebuds. Their selection of oils and vinegars, for dressings and ingredients, is second to none and a dream for any culinary recipe.

Customers are encouraged to try before they buy, prior to their choice of bottle being filled in-store, from a range of beautiful Italian glass bottles or varying sizes and shapes.

Product sourcing has been of immense importance to the Company, to ensure clean, fair sustainable production standards and first class quality. Where possible products are developed jointly with small artisan producers either locally or from elsewhere within the UK. In order to satisfy popular demand, the Demijohn Staff annually head to the hedgerows to help pick elderflower on Glenlair Farm for their Elderflower Vinegar and sloe on the Solway Coast for their Sloe Gin.

A key part of Demijohn’s success over the years, has been their environmentally friendly bottle refill policy.

Demijohn bottles can be refilled at any Demijohn outlet saving their customers more than a cup of coffee on a new purchase while being kind to the environment.
Recently a new mail order refill service has been introduced, allowing all customers wherever they are in the World to refill their empty Demijohn glass bottles and benefit from the savings.

Demijohn opened at Glenlair Steading in August 2023, near Scotland’s food town of Castle Douglas. Demijohn has brought its original and distinctive ecofriendly method of retail to a beautiful and special part of rural South West Scotland to operate as both a visitor attraction and 21st century mail order hub for the first time.

Angus Ferguson, Owner of Demijohn said: “Our successful journey from Victoria Street in Edinburgh to Glenlair Steading in Galloway over the last 20 years has been nothing short of remarkable considering the bumps in the road we have had to face from recessions, inflation and the Pandemic. Our Demijohn products now sell around the World via the internet and our ecofriendly retail model is more relevant than ever. There is a very good reason to celebrate our 20th birthday at Glenlair Feastival in August!”

South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE) has provided support to Demijohn to develop their steading, as well as providing business guidance and advice.

SOSE Business Advisor Alan Barr said: “Congratulations to Angus, Frances and the Demijohn team for reaching 20 years in business, which is a significant achievement. “It has been really enjoyable working with them, and their enthusiasm, positivity and laser focus on customer service has been hugely impressive.”

All products are available to order online for collection or mail order delivery via the Demijohn website: https://www.demijohn.co.uk/

Early Bird Tickets for Glenlair Feastival start at £10 per person and are available via the Demijohn website: https://www.demijohn.co.uk/collections/tastings-events/products/glenlair-feastival-sat-17-august-2024

- Ends –

Note to Editors:

Demijohn:

Demijohn was founded in Edinburgh in 2004 by Angus and Frances Ferguson and is now based at Glenlair Steading on their family farm in South West Scotland. They source unusual, delicious artisan liqueurs, spirits, oils and vinegars from around the UK and Europe and sell them in a wide range of refillable glass bottles via their international mail order service and farm shop concession stores. Each bottle can have a free handwritten personalised message added. Gift wrapping is also available.