Mackie’s Of Scotland — case study 
© The following case study has been approved by Mackie’s of Scotland. 
History 
Mackie's Of Scotland has been farming in the North East of Scotland for four 
generations. 
The family-owned company has Maitland (Mac) Mackie as Managing Director and his 
sisters, Karin as Marketing Director and Kirstin as Development Director and all are 
entrepreneurial innovators. 
Doctor Maitland Mackie (1884-1975) started the business, his son diversified from 
dairy farming into milk retailing, and Mac Mackie’s father began making ice cream. 
Ice cream 
‘Mackie’s of Scotland’ as it is today was born in 1986 when the business changed 
from traditional farming and milk retail into ice cream production. A small investment 
in real dairy ice cream manufacturing used cream surpluses arising from the 
increased demand for semi-skimmed milk. The shift to year-round ice cream 
consumption stimulated sales of high quality premium ice cream and Mackie’s sales 
reaching £2.5 million in 1993. The continued growth in sales is a major achievement 
as powerful competitors were already well established in the high-quality indulgence 
ice cream market. 
1993 saw farm buildings converted into a modern ice-cream dairy capable of 
producing 10 million litres of ice cream each year. Mackie's only make premium 
quality ice cream with fresh milk and cream, the most popular product in the Mackie's 
range is 'Traditional', a smooth creamy ice cream with no added flavours. In 1994 the 
decision was taken to sell the milk retail business and concentrate on producing 
luxury real dairy ice cream. 
The years since have been busy with the development of many new high quality 
premium products. The ‘Highland range’ of ice cream was launched with flavours 
including Drambuie, Toffee Fudge and Vanilla. A state-of-the-art New Product 
Development Kitchen was created (see Appendix A), where innovative products with 
distinctive Scottish characteristics were created. Developments included Ice Cream 
Truffles and the launch of ‘Mackie’s with More’ ice cream dual brand range products, 
Walker’s Ginger Chocolate and Baxter’s Vintage Marmalade flavours. (Walker’s and 
Baxter’s are iconic Scottish food brands). A soft scoop ice cream for children, with 
sorbet products were launched in 2001, and other new products/flavours being 
regularly launched. The company have launched over 200 new products with limited 
edition seasonal flavours proving popular. 
Mackie’s have their own herd of over 300 Holstiens, a popular milking breed of cow 
who produce the fresh whole milk used to make the ice cream. Mackie’s describe the 
‘dairy difference’ between this fresh dairy ingredient in comparison to other ice 
creams made with other fats from vegetable oil. The process from milking to ice 
cream can be completed in less than 24 hours. 
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In 2002 a family-owned Korean company contacted Mackie’s leading to creation of 
some ‘Mackie’s of Scotland’ branded ice cream parlours in Seoul, South Korea. 
Organic produce is popular in Korea and Mackie’s products were enthusiastically 
received in product tests. The first temperature-controlled shipments by sea arrived 
to coincide with the Korean World Cup Games in 2002. 
The partnership ended and Mackie’s now sells their products, all branded as 
Mackie’s of Scotland, direct to wholesalers and supermarket chains, providing 
opportunities throughout Asia. Sales are now well established in Korea, Malaysia, 
Taiwan, China and Mackie’s had export sales of almost £2m in 2019. 
Mackie’s prides itself on its new product innovation and in 2004 launched Mackie’s 
Ice Cubes using the farm’s spring water. Initially called Icy Glen they were 
subsequently rebranded as Mackice. Other innovations include a Low Fat Chocolate 
Iced Desert suitable for diabetics and an ‘Indulgent’ range with new flavours being 
regularly added including Salted Caramel and Madagascan Vanilla. Demand was 
stimulated by carefully crafted advertising such as the 2012 ‘Simply Creamy’ 
campaign, as well as using targeted price promotions. 
Production capacity was expanded to 15 million litres a year and 2018 saw demand 
reach 11 million litres. Mackie’s became the number one take home ice cream brand 
in Scotland being available nationally in multiples such as Tesco, Asda, and Ocado 
as well as through independent outlets. Ocado is a major British online supermarket 
and online sales have been growing rapidly. In the year to May 2019 annual turnover 
rose to £16.7million with pre-tax profits at £2.18 million (see Appendix B). 
The firm developed strong links with their consumers and been quick to adopt social 
media platforms as a means of interacting with and informing its customers. The 
company website is fun and informative and seeks customer views through the ‘Have 
your say’ page. Consumers are regularly involved in testing products and voting for 
new flavours and chose Indulgent Chocolate Orange as a limited-edition flavour ice 
cream. Product testing at the Royal Highland Show, and a consumer poll with the 
‘Friends of Mackie’s’ email club (see Appendix C), saw Caramel Biscotti became a 
limited-edition flavour. Mango and Passionfruit flavour was added in 2018 as part of 
the ‘Celebrate the summer’ campaign. 
Mackie’s regularly uses fun in its communications and the ‘Extra Posh’ product range 
tubs pictured cows wearing tiaras (jewelled crowns). For the 30th anniversary of 
making ice cream, special anniversary tubs were produced. 
In 2017 the Ice Cream Parlour, ‘Mackie’s 19.2’ opened in Aberdeen. 19.2 represents 
the number of miles from the farm to the parlour which is ‘Sophistication dipped in 
fun’. The interior contains an illuminated multi-coloured cow and neon lit Italian ice 
cream counter. The parlour showcases, tests and gathers feedback on new 
handmade ice cream flavours and other innovative products. 
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Crisps 
In 2009 Mackie’s launched a range of potato crisps after establishing a joint venture 
company with the 4th generation Taylor family who owned the Taypack potato 
growing and processing company. 
Mackie’s at Taypack is licensed to use the Mackie’s of Scotland brand name and has 
its own distinct website. The slogan ‘From plough to pack’ emphasises product 
quality through the stages of Ploughed, Picked, Perfected and Packed. Traditional 
crisps with three core flavours were launched, alongside new flavours with a unique 
Scottish identity — like Haggis and Cracked black pepper. Products are sold through 
major Scottish outlets and the company regularly attends trade fairs. There is a 
strong focus on new products such as ridge cut crisps, lentil waves and popcorn. 
In 2010 the firm received the Scotland Food & Drink Excellence Award, with Scotch 
Bonnet Chilli Pepper potato crisps winning Product of the Year. Second and third 
Excellence awards were subsequently gained along with a Great Taste Gold Award. 
Growth in international sales and expanded sales through Asda stores in England 
and Northern Ireland led to a move to a larger factory. 2015 saw the firm listed in a 
government initiative as one of the UK’s ‘50 Food Stars’. Sales continued to grow 
domestically and internationally with rapid expansion in China, moves into Europe, 
the UAE and Asia, and by 2017 the firm exported to 25 countries. That year they 
secured the Export Business of the Year prize and the International Growth Award 
delivered in partnership by private sector group Opportunity North East (ONE) and 
Aberdeenshire Council. Later that year the firm’s products gained an important 
listing with Ocado. 
Chocolate 
In 2014 Mackie’s launched a range of chocolate bars with four flavours similar to 
some of the ice creams, including honeycomb, dark mint, traditional milk and dark 70% 
cocoa. Initially production was trialled with an established producer in Arbroath 
before establishing their own farm based factory capable of producing five million 
bars per year. 
Mackie’s is well established in serving the growing indulgence product segments and 
high quality chocolate fits well with their quality ice cream and crisps. Exports have 
been helped by working with an established food distributor in Singapore and sales 
of chocolate grew by 63% in the year to May 2019, with exports a key driver in that 
growth. 
Ethical production 
The Mackie’s family is very proud of their environmental credentials in farming the 
land and producing the freshest high quality products. 
The company vision is to ‘be a Scottish global brand from the greenest company 
in Britain created by people having fun’. 
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They aim to be self-sufficient in energy with zero fossil fuel use, and in 2005 installed 
a wind turbine with a further three producing some 3MW. Solar panels installed on 
buildings and a 4 hectare site of panels installed in 2015 produce 1.8MW. The family 
established a Scholarship for Renewable Energy at Aberdeen University, delivered 
guest lectures at Abertay University and has offered work placements for students. 
An innovative refrigeration system, to be an exemplar low carbon refrigeration system 
began installation in 2020, replacing all old refrigerants with ammonia (a natural gas, 
with zero climate warming potential), powered by the energy efficient biomass boiler 
and absorption chiller — and on completion this will help Mackie’s in their aim to be 
self-sufficient, as it will reduce CO2 emissions and energy use by up to 80%. A 
biomass boiler also heats the office and farm buildings and solar panels are on roofs 
of the byre. 
Mackie’s arboretum contains 112 different tree species, providing a beautiful space 
that can be enjoyed by visitors and staff. A further 48 hectares were planted to 
provide habitats for wildlife, and grass strips sown around fields to create wildlife 
corridors and help protect waterways from fertiliser. Wetland areas and a pond 
encourage a diverse wildlife population. Mackie’s has its own water source and all 
water used is recycled and reused on the land along with the plentiful fertilizer 
produced by the cows. 
In 2010 Mackie’s started making their own ice cream tubs saving some 50,000 food 
miles per year as the tubs were previously imported. The firm actively encourages 
the recycling of its tubs and recycles card, paper, batteries and plastic at the farm. 
Cow welfare is very important, and happy cows produce more milk. The cows are 
milked by a voluntary access milking system – milking themselves on average three 
times a day. Each cow wears a collar which also measures the cows activity levels. 
The cows are housed with its own lying space complete with mattress, and feed is 
available at all times with fresh food added twice per day. A vet visits every week and 
an innovative ‘Moo-sic’ (music) experiment saw country music played to the cows 
resulting in a positive impact on the animals’ behaviour. 
Participation in the TV ‘Eat Well for Less’ series allowed Mackie’s to highlight the 
qualities of real dairy ice cream that led to their highly successful ‘Taste the Dairy 
Difference’ brand message. 
The people 
Mackie’s employs over 70 staff and the company vision recognises the contribution 
of its loyal, flexible and energetic workforce. The company signed up to pay the 
‘Living Wage’ in 2015 and also the ‘Scottish Business Pledge’. The Living Wage is 
set at a higher rate than the legally set minimum wage. The Scottish Business 
Pledge is a values-led partnership between Government and business that is based 
on boosting productivity and competitiveness through fairness, equality and 
sustainable employment. Mackie’s places staff training, youth development, family 
friendly shift patterns and reward programmes at the core of the business. 
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Mackie’s was one of the first food companies in Scotland to be awarded Investors in 
People status in 1997. This marked a big change in Management style from a 'dae fit 
yer telt' culture (do as you are told), to one of continuous involvement of all staff in 
setting and achieving goals. Mackie’s remains a family firm and regular consultation 
and discussions with employees are an essential means of maintaining its inclusive 
and fun company culture where all employees are valued as part of the wider 
‘Mackie’s family’. 
Employees commonly stay for many years and Mackie’s celebrates their 
achievements and runs a business performance related bonus scheme. Making work 
fun and having happy staff is a core value and their ‘Faces of Mackie’s’ campaign 
was an example which showcases employees in their roles through photographs. 
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Appendix A 
New product development kitchen and the taste panel 
The New Product Development Kitchen, officially opened in October 1996 by the 
Chairman of Tesco, provides ideas for the Growth programme and is a crucial 
resource, which enables the firm to maintain the quality of the ice cream and 
chocolate. The work of the kitchen is both technical and creative and plays a crucial 
role in looking for new products and flavours that fit Mackie’s Values. 
The kitchen is equipped with mini plant for ice cream production which replicates the 
ice cream dairy. The Kitchen is sufficiently large enough to be used as a production 
area to test out new products. The aim is to find at least one great new product each 
year as well as undertaking ‘Blue sky’ thinking regarding new products to expand the 
current product mix. Recently the company has established links with Abertay 
University Innovation Centre to help further develop the capacity to produce 
successful new products. 
In 2013 Mackie’s created its Sweetie (sweet) Kitchen to help produce its own 
Honeycomb (puff candy) that is used in its second most popular ice cream flavour – 
and they now make over 60 tonnes a year. The Sweetie Kitchen also produces its 
own Butterscotch as well as experimenting with other sweet treats that can 
potentially be used in its ice cream and chocolate products. 
Mackie's have a taste panel that meets at least once a week in the New Product 
Development Kitchen and undertakes an important role in developing new products 
and maintaining quality. Members of the Panel are staff volunteers selected by 
passing tests, which require a high sensitivity for flavours and aromas. Products with 
potential are then tested by food services customers and panels with a wider 
membership. 
Mackie’s also uses informal taste Panels - groups of staff volunteers who may not 
have passed the taste tests or not completed their training but whose opinions are 
still highly valued. 
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Appendix B — Mackie’s of Scotland - Income statement/Profit and loss account - for the period to 31st May 
 
 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 
 £ £ £ £ £ £ £ 
Turnover 10,284,432 11,147,549 11,433,324 12,155,090 12,217,787 13,854,382 16,665,316 
Cost of sales (5,961,799) (6,820,882) (6,828,565) (6,479,834) (6,744,884) (8,233,223) (9,976,945) 
Gross profit 4,322,633 4,326,667 4,604,759 5,675,256 5,472,903 5,621,159 6,688,371 
Distribution costs (397,739) (442,030) (447,034) (493,149) (474,275) (530,994) (696,564) 
Administrative expenses (3,828,790) (3,204,297) (3,400,958) (3,998,759) (3,969,848) (3,949,956) (4,151,286) 
Other operating income 148,657 142,405 75,779 60,471 44,860 41,225 37,450 
Profit on sale of tangible assets 133,178 59,173 573,328 250,185 27,587 146,000 242,288 
Reversal of exceptional bad debt 
provision - - 400,000 - - - - 
Loss on disposal of investments - - (14,000) - - - - 
Operating profit 377,939 881,918 1,791,874 1,494,004 1,100,227 1,327,434 2,120,259 
Interest receivable and similar income - 767 48,926 92,672 86,787 75,956 65,144 
Interest payable and similar expenses (33,377) (22,339) (19,968) (98,920) (33,029) (23,990) (8,852) 
Fair value movement on investments 250,183 220 - - 1,414 (2,815) (318) 
Profit before taxation 594,745 860,566 1,820,832 1,487,756 1,155,399 1,376,587 2,176,233 
Tax on profit (47,944) (58,197) (313,244) (283,817) (118,018) (280,160) (450,649) 
Profit for financial year 546,801 802,369 1,507,588 1,203,939 1,037,381 1,096,425 1,725,584 
© ‘Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0'. 
Adapted from companieshouse.gov.uk. 
8  
Mackie’s of Scotland — Statement of financial position/Balance sheet – as at 31st May 
 
 2015 2017 2019 
 £ £ £ 
Non-current Assets    
Tangible assets 8,253,985 10,394,881 10,431,230 
Investment properties 141,286 141,286 1,528,917 
Investments 21,444 96,944 93,811 
Biological assets 563,100 580,370 606,944 
 8,979,815 11,168,481 12,660,902 
Current Assets    
Inventories 1,276,820 2,062,631 1,835,799 
Biological assets 318,369 168,026 235,924 
Trade Receivables 3,822,463 3,138,231 3,844,344 
Cash at bank and in hand 664,559 3,221 822,812 
 6,082,211 5,372,109 6,738,879 
Trade Payables (3,356,900) (2,666,155) (2,983,076) 
Net assets 2,725,311 2,705,954 3,755,803 
Total assets less current 
liabilities 
11,705,126 13,874,435 16,416,705 
2015 
Non-Current Liabilities 
Provisions for liabilities 
Net assets 10,725,696 
Capital and reserves 
Called up share capital 
Share premium account 
Capital redemption reserve 
Retained Earnings 6,279,091 
Total equity 10,725,696 
2017 
£ 
(584,382) 
(395,048) 
262,288 
3,869,252 
315,065 
2019  
£ 
(571,624) 
(365,795) 
12,937,016 
262,288 
3,869,252 
315,065 
8,490,411 
12,937,016 
£ 
(173,489) 
(496,191) 
15,747,025 
262,288 
3,869,252 
315,065 
11,300,420 
15,747,025 
© ‘Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0'. 
Adapted from companieshouse.gov.uk. 
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Appendix C 
Friends of Mackie’s and the public 
Mackie’s believes in celebrating the simple things in life and that its products are 
delicious, simple treats that can be enjoyed by all ages. The company believes in 
having fun whilst making ice cream and also wants the general public to have fun. 
The ‘Friends of Mackie’s’ email club encourages the public to have their say about 
Mackie's products and anything else the firm does to make improvements. The club 
allows the company to keep members informed about new products, farm activity 
and other company developments. Members receive exclusive offers and surprises 
along the way including taste test opportunities and dream flavours of ice cream 
and chocolate gifts for a lucky selection of fully registered friends each month. 
Mackie’s places great importance on its communications with the public, and as in 
everything it does it aims for the 50,000 members of the ‘Friends of Mackie’s’ to 
have an interesting and enjoyable experience. 
Mackie’s holds regular promotional events, an example being the ‘Summer of 
Simple Pleasures’ campaign that anyone can enter through the company website. 
There is a new prize each week, each with a link to the simple things in life, from 
cooking, eating, music, flowers and the outdoors. Mackie’s views ice cream as one 
of life's simple pleasures and each prize comes with a summer's worth of ice cream 
with the final week of the summer offering a lifetime supply of ice cream for the 
lucky winner. 
Mackie’s welcomes public comment and interaction through its website and several 
social media platforms, inviting comment, ideas, product reviews and likes and 
dislikes. The company places customers, the wider public and employees as being 
at the centre of everything they do. 

1. Assess(key point) the impact(key point) of Mackie’s interaction(key point) with its customers and the wider public  on its marketing efforts. At least three resonses attacth with key points