Former whisky site will house new SLG cutting plant in Paisley
Leather manufacturer Scottish Leather Group has confirmed that its new dedicated cutting plant in Paisley will be in part of a factory that whisky brand Chivas formerly ran in the town.
Local government body Renfrewshire Council will buy most of the site, which covers almost 100,000 square-metres in total and is already in consultation with the public about what it should use the space for. However, one part of the former whisky plant, the North Hall, is being purchased by Scottish Leather Group.
It will use the site to cut and package automotive leather upholstery sets for its clients in the car industry. In opening the new cutting plant, Scottish Leather Group will create 100 new jobs.
Chivas whisky is distilled in Speyside in the north of Scotland but, in 1957, the company decided to build a new bottling plant and corporate headquarters in Paisley. It opened the Paisley site in 1964. The North Hall was an additional bottling plant that Chivas opened in 1981. Multinational group Pernod Ricard acquired Chivas in 2001 and announced its intention to leave the Paisley premises at the end of 2016.
On confirming that Scottish Leather Group would set up its new cutting plant in the North Hall, Pernod Ricard paid tribute to the leather manufacturer for its plan to create 100 “highly skilled jobs” there. It said: “The site has played an important role in the local community for many years, so we’re pleased this sale will allow it to continue to leave a positive economic and cultural legacy in Paisley.”
Scottish Leather Group’s chief executive, Iain McFadyen, who is Paisley native, said: “We are extremely pleased to have secured the North Hall part of the Chivas site, which will allow us to expand our operations in Renfrewshire.”
The group already has a wet-end tannery in Paisley, as well as a second wet-end tannery and a separate finishing plant at nearby Bridge of Weir. The group also runs a tannery in the east end of Glasgow.
