ScanCat picks Glasgow

Danish contract caterer ScanCat last week set up shop in the UK, choosing Glasgow as its base.

Heading the operation as general manager is Brian Graham, former executive head chef at Gleddoch House hotel in Langbank, just outside Glasgow. Mr Graham told Caterer the firm had picked Glasgow as its base as a result of market research and favourable operating and start-up costs.

ScanCat was launched in 1991 as an outside and industrial caterer, and now has 17 contracts in Denmark, with a total turnover of about £2.5m.

Mr Graham said he hoped to gain the first UK contract by March, with further contracts being added every three months. "The long-term aim is to expand outwards from Scotland, but I'm happy to concentrate on this part of the world for the time being," he said. ScanCat also intends to resurrect the Danish Food Centres previously operated by the Danish Agricultural Council in cities including Glasgow, Manchester and London.

The company's founder and chairman, Erling Wegeland, is a former consultant to the centres, which comprised delicatessens and small restaurants and closed about five years ago, apparently for political reasons.

Mr Graham left Gleddoch House this month after four years, saying he felt highly optimistic about the new venture.