All jobs lost as family-run Scots business closes doors after 47 years
Turriff Agri Parts Ltd (TAP) is set to pull the shutters down after 47 years.
Managing director George Mearns launched the business in 1979, with support from his brother-in-law, James Murray, as a silent partner.
Eileen Brown stepped in as director 21 years ago and has helped run the firm since, and George's daughter, Sarah, who started working there at 16, was a "fundamental part of the business."
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The management team are now preparing to retire and broke the news to the firm’s 10 employees on Friday that they'd be shutting up shop.
George, 77, told the Press and Journal: “It is becoming harder to run a business now because all the costs involved have increased so much over the years.
“Myself and the other directors have reached an age where we want to make life easier and now seems the right time to go.”
Eileen, 61, added: “When we took on the premises at Thainstone in 2005, we had strong footfall coming through the door, but the change in rules and sales at Thainstone during the pandemic was a huge blow to our business.
“As paying tenants who were not advised of the changes, we suffered greatly.
“The Saturday machinery sales, which were previously held on site at Thainstone but are now online, could bring us in £3,000 of sales in just one morning.
“There was a big decline in footfall entering or visiting the Thainstone Centre.
“Sadly, the customers who previously came into our shop at Thainstone cannot justify travelling to our Turriff site, so we have lost custom because of that too.”
Founded in 1979, TAP Ltd grew from a small agricultural supplier into one of the north-east’s most established equipment specialists.
The Turriff-based firm initially focused on farming spares and consumables before expanding into sectors including haulage, fishing, and oil and gas, and signed a dealership agreement with Kärcher UK within weeks of opening.
TAP’s diversification continued with the creation of Aberdeen Pressure Washer Centre in 1980, aimed at building its presence in commercial and industrial markets. A decade later, the firm added a private water supply division covering drilling, pumping and treatment services – an area that remains a key part of the business today.
Further growth came in 2005 with the opening of a branch at Inverurie’s Thainstone Centre, this depot made the company the only business in Scotland to operate two official Kärcher centres.
The Thainstone branch closed last year.
The directors confirmed that the TAP branch in Turriff, which underwent a major refurbishment in 2017, will be up for sale or rent.
