Rothes Keystore reopens under new ownership after months of refurbishment
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A ROTHES shop that was owned by the same woman for more than half a century has reopened after a fourth-month long refurbishment.
The Keystore in Rothes, which was run by Cathie Longmore for 52 years, celebrated its official opening day on Saturday, July 22, having reopened its doors at the start of summer.
The store was purchased by 27-year-old Bradley Ogg, who is from Aberlour but is staying in Rothes, in November 2022, and he opened the shop after months of refurbishment works.
Mrs Longmore was invited back to cut the ribbon and declare the shop open, much to the delight of many locals.
"I opened the shop up in May but it wasn't advertised or anything," Bradley said. "It was a nice touch having Cathie to cut the ribbon for the official opening day.
"Everybody knows her and she is well-respected in the community. That went well with locals who were happy to see her – and Cathie was happy to see them too.
"We didn't know how the day was going to go, to be honest, but we got a good turn out and there were lots of new faces.
"The business has progressed since the official opening and sales have been going up every month."
Bradley has been helping his dad run a shop in Aberdeen since leaving school but decided, despite still being relatively young, to take the plunge and buy his own shop.
"I wanted something a bit closer to home, where my friends are," he said. "There aren't many shopkeepers my age and it's a bit of a gamble to do it.
"But I have always known this as a good shop, and my dad has too. Cathie wanted to keep it through Covid but eventually she decided to get rid of it.
"After getting the keys in November I was chomping at the bit to get it open, but it took a bit longer than expected because it needed to be gutted out.
"We had to rewire the whole shop, get new lighting, shelving and freezers. But now it's open I'm glad that I've done it right."
Bradley's plans don't end at simply running the shop – he is hoping to expand it in size and reduce the need for people to leave Rothes for shopping.
"I've applied for planning to double the size of the shop," he said. "We want to offer more products and a more extensive range of stuff to stop people having to go to Elgin.
"The problem at the moment is with the flood alleviation scheme, but we are hoping that is something we can overcome as soon as possible."
