MacLennan Distribution buys Waltons of Oban

Oban-based MacLennan Distribution has acquired local haulier Waltons of Oban, making it the largest employer in the west of Scotland town.

The company said the absorption of the transport firm also meant it had the largest number of vehicles of any logistics company in the area, strengthening its ability to provide services to customers throughout the Western Isles and beyond.

Stewart MacLennan (left), MacLennan Distribution director, said, “We are delighted to announce this expansion and development of our company, which will allow us to better support those living and working in Oban and the surrounding islands.

“From our first inception as a company, the local community has been at the heart of everything we seek to achieve.

“Now, as the largest employers in Oban, we are doubling down on that commitment by providing a variety of job opportunities to local people.”

Eric Walton, former owner of Waltons of Oban, which holds a licence authorising seven HGVs, said he was proud of the services it had provided for 20 years: “I am relieved that our work will continue long after my retirement under the ownership of MacLennan's, another long-standing local family business, born in the islands we serve,” he said.

“I have every confidence that our legacy will continue and thrive, bringing food to the islands and remote areas of Argyll and Lochaber that many suppliers won’t go to.

“Securing the future of all our 19 staff, under local ownership, and continuing our Wiltshire Farm Foods meal delivery service are perhaps the most satisfying of all.”