25 years as the home of country clothing

Despite the initial doubts and challenges of retail, The House of Bruar has grown to become a top destination shop for luxury country clothing and a great day out

Sometimes there is no greater motivation to achieve something than being told you can’t. When Mark and Linda Birkbeck took over the site of what had previously been a quiet country pub in rural Perthshire in 1995, many believed their ambitions were too large and the new business would fail.

Fast forward 25 years and The House of Bruar is Scotland’s leading luxury country clothing retailer and has become a destination shop people will travel miles to experience.

Welcoming over two million customers through the doors each year, The House of Bruar boasts a 600-seat restaurant, food hall, delicatessen, butchery, homewares and cook shop, fishing department, as well as expansive menswear and ladieswear departments which house the largest collection of cashmere clothing anywhere in the UK.

Much of the success of the business is attributed to being able to recognise that in 1995 the market and target customers bolstering it needed a refresh. ‘I think people felt that it was very different to the old woollen mills that would have been in existence then,’ says The House of Bruar’s managing director Patrick Birkbeck. ‘The woollen mill was a tried and tested model and we broke away from that. There weren’t things like food halls and farm shops which is hard to believe now when everyone’s got one.’

Another key reason behind Bruar’s viability is the founders’ willingness to adapt to a constantly changing environment. ‘The way the business operates and the needs of the business have changed hugely as has the way customers operate along with the world landscape and we’ve moved with it. We will continue to fight hard to make sure that we never lose our principles.’

Over the years, navigating the changes internet shopping has brought has been essential in ensuring all retailers can survive. While they continue to invest in their mail order catalogue business and digital marketing, The House of Bruar prides itself on the highquality experience they offer to customers who choose to visit the 11-acre site. ‘We believe in retail, we believe in people coming in to the store and having the experience and that’s where we invest a lot of money and time. From all sorts of miniscule details like having clean shelves to spending a lot of money on our cloak rooms to all the fixtures and fittings, the period furniture that we have all round the shop and the boats we’ve had made especially. In the restaurant, rather than coming to get a plate of smoked salmon, we’ll carve the salmon for you. We really do believe in the theatre and the experience of shopping.’

With a core staff of 270 – increasing to around 350 during the peak season in November and December – The House of Bruar is an important employer to the area with a number of staff who have been with the company since the beginning. It’s one of the reasons why celebrations for the company’s 25th anniversary will include a party for staff. There are plans to host a number of special events throughout the year, the details of which will be confirmed and as the business follows advice regarding the current Covid-19 situation.

Priding itself on sourcing only the products they believe in and using constant innovation and creativity to keep their own brand updated and unique, The House of Bruar strives to match first class service with first class goods.

Rather than become complacent, Patrick recognises that to be successful for another 25 years will require a lot of hard work. ‘It’s just about building our brand, building our service and just making sure we are getting better and better and that we’re improving on every element which is difficult and takes a lot of effort and tenacity. But that’s what we’ve got to do.’