Glasgow Distillery Company: Glasgow Distillery Company by Stand

Every Scotch whisky brand needs to be distinctive and stand out in a highly competitive marketplace, so, when the Glasgow Distillery Company (GDC) invited Stand to help them create a brand for their exciting new single malt blended whisky it knew it'd be able to let its imagination run wild.

With over 30 years’ experience branding some of Scotland’s most iconic whiskies, Stand knows that building a strong and authentic brand story is paramount to long term success, so the team set about identifying an authentic Glasgow story that would communicate the exciting and unique nature of GDC’s soon to be launched blended whisky and resonate with an adventurous whisky drinking audience.

Its research uncovered a story the team felt perfectly captured the restless spirit and adventurous nature of GDC’s new liquid. A story that would give GDC ample opportunity to build an exciting dynamic new brand around in the years ahead. That story was the Glasgow malt tax protests of 1725, which saw a tax imposed on Scottish malted barley, a tax that threatened to destroy the very foundations of whisky distilling in Scotland.

What became locally referred to as ‘the Glasgow Malt Riots’ captured the passionate spirit within the city at that time as Glaswegians joined forces to protest against the tax and stand up for their rights. Excise men were chased from the city as residents stood firm to protect their livelihoods. The tax was soon scrapped, paving the way for what has become one of Scotland’s most important industries today.