MAISON Dieu Coffee Roasters, the Angus-based company set up and run by footballers John Souttar of Rangers and Euan Spark of Brechin City, has secured a hat-trick of wholesale deals.

The coffee roaster, which sells online and direct to consumers from its Brechin base, has marked its inaugural year in business by signing its first customer in Edinburgh, Fitzroy Café.

New customers also include Café Noir and the Billing Aquadrome holiday park in Nottinghamshire – Maison Dieu’s biggest deal to date. It is the first time Billing Aquadrome, part of Royale Resorts, will have introduced speciality coffee to its customers.

Maison Dieu said it is one of only two coffee companies in Angus that roasts its own beans on site. Its expansion comes after the company established itself in its native Angus, as well as Tayside and the north-east of Scotland. More than 100,000 cups of coffee were sold by the company in its maiden year.

Mr Spark, who is also a footballer and plays for Brechin City, said: “The partnership Fitzroy marks our expansion into the central belt, a significant growth milestone for is. Billing Aquadrome is our first customer south of the border and particularly significant is that this is the first of any of the Royale Resort to move away from using from big chain named coffee.”

Mr Souttar, who joined Rangers from Hearts in the summer, co-founded the business with his brother Harry alongside Mr Spark and his wife Kayley in November 2021. Maison Dieu operates a popular takeaway window serving home-baked cakes and toasties at its roasting premises in Brechin, employing local high school pupils as baristas. But it sees the biggest growth potential in the wholesale and online sales markets.

He said: “We couldn’t have asked for a better first year in business, it’s been non-stop. Euan and I underwent intensive training courses to learn about roasting beans, how to become a proficient barista and sustainability within the industry. Since then, we’ve worked closely with cafes and business in the area showing the work that goes into making specialty coffee. From supplying our coffee beans to training, we are on a mission to educate about great tasting coffee.”

Mr Spark added: “Enjoying great tasting coffee made at home is a necessity, not a luxury for many people. Buying specialty beans online, that are roasted and can also be ground, right here in Brechin and delivered direct is an area that we are seeing a massive uptick in. Our monthly subscriptions are also incredibly popular and have seen a 70% increase over the past six months.

“This is just the beginning for Maison Dieu. We’ve got big plans and expansion is very much a key focus for our year two strategy as we increase our wholesale market share and develop our direct-to-consumer offering.”