JW FILSHILL, one of Scotland’s oldest and most respected independent food and drink wholesalers, has appointed experienced marketer Katie Dempster as group marketing manager, covering for Sue Man who is on maternity leave.
Katie joins the award-winning independent wholesaler from Matthew Algie, the Glasgow-based coffee roaster, where she spent three-and-a-half years, latterly as marketing and innovation manager responsible for trade marketing for hospitality businesses across the UK.
Based in Glasgow, Katie reports directly to Craig Brown, chief sales and marketing officer at JW Filshill, who said: “We are delighted to welcome Katie to the Filshill family in what is our 150th anniversary year.
“Katie’s experience and enthusiasm is a perfect fit for Filshill and having worked for Matthew Algie, a company in the food and drink sector that is 160 years old, gives her a strong understanding of how important our culture and family values are.
“She is eager to learn about the independent convenience sector, working with colleagues and customers to help drive the Filshill, KeyStore and Eldorado brands. In addition, her experience in the coffee sector will bring innovation ideas for development within our KeyStore retail estate.”
Katie, who holds a BA Honours in Marketing from Strathclyde Business School and completed an International Study Abroad programme at Nagoya University of Commerce and Business in Japan, said: “I am keen to build relationships with Filshill’s customers and suppliers.
“My experience working with independent hospitality outlets puts me in a good position to help KeyStore owners market and promote their businesses across traditional and social media platforms including TikTok, which has proved particularly successful for many of our customers. Enhancing supplier brand activation in front of our KeyStore customers will be a key focus.”
To mark its 150th anniversary in 2025, Filshill, which relocated to a purpose-built 120,400 sqft distribution centre at Westway, near Glasgow Airport, in March 2023 has been involved in a raft of activity based around the theme Delivering Success that champions sustainability, innovation, community, and wellbeing.
The family-owned wholesaler has also raised substantial funds for six charities as part of the anniversary celebrations: CHAS (Children’s Hospices Across Scotland); Dementia Scotland; Cancer Research UK; MND Scotland; SSPCA (Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals); and GroceryAid. Each charity was presented with a cheque at Filshill’s 150th anniversary gala dinner and celebration in Glasgow last month.
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