Margiotta has invested £300,000 into upgrading its headquarters, as the family-owned grocer targets further expansion of its partnership with Waitrose.
The Scottish c-store chain has installed 950 solar panels at its main site in Newbridge, which will now power its warehouse, head office and refrigeration units.
Margiotta said the investment, which has come via HSBC equipment finance, would enable the business to lower its energy costs while reducing its carbon footprint. The retailer intends to sell any surplus electricity back to the national grid during the spring and summer, bringing in additional income.
The work would enable Margiotta to accommodate the expansion of its third-party partnership with Waitrose, as well as increase the number of own-label products it stocks in its stores.
“We have been working hard to reduce our carbon footprint while expanding the business,” said Iain Wells, finance director at Margiotta Group.
“The solar panels at our new headquarters will make a significant difference in the long run as they will reduce our costings and make us more self-sufficient. HSBC UK has been our bank of choice for 10 years and it has helped with much of our expansion over that time.”
Margiotta is one of a number of independent chains to hold a third-party agreement with Waitrose, which has targeted expanding its domestic and international tie-ups as part of its strategy to return to growth.
Margiotta has more than doubled the number of Waitrose products it stocks on its shelves, from a core line of 600 to more than 2,000 currently, in the three years since the partnership began.
MD and founder Franco Margiotta told The Grocer in February the chain was adding more lines “week by week” and was also looking to expand the number of independent local farmers and suppliers the chain works with in Scotland.
Margiotta currently has 11 stores across Edinburgh and East Lothian. A 12th site, a new food hall in the Shandon area of Edinburgh, is set to open in April.
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