When Kelvin Kerr returned to his family business, the company which started life delivering milk across Dundee on a horse and cart was putting out a modest 750 bottles a week.
Now Kerr’s Dairy distributes 100,000 a week across Tayside, Fife and the north-east.
Kelvin started working for the dairy as a youngster, collecting milk money from customers. By the time he turned 14, he was making early morning deliveries before school.
He is the fifth generation of Kerrs to steer the business and currently works alongside his dad, Kelvin Snr.
The firm was founded in 1900 by Sandy Kerr as the Balfield Farm Dairy, using horse-drawn carts to make the morning rounds every morning.
Over the course of the next 125 years, the dairy has ridden the wave of market trends, watched demand surge and fall and moved to various premises across Dundee.
But it was the pandemic, Kelvin Snr told The Courier, and the return of young Kelvin which saw the business grow exponentially to the size it is today.
“The turning point came during the pandemic,” he says.
“As national lockdowns brought back a need for home deliveries, we saw glass bottle sales skyrocket.
“In 2018, the business was delivering 750 bottles per week.
“At the height of lockdown, we shifted more than 80,000 glass bottles weekly.”
The firm now delivers 100,000 bottles a week, across 80 milk runs with a fleet of top-range vans and a staff roster of around 70.
Kerr’s Dairy grows across Scotland
Inspired by the growing public awareness of plastic pollution—thanks in part to documentaries like Blue Planet II—the glass milk bottle returned not just as a sustainable choice, but “a symbol of community values and care for the environment”.
A period of investment kicked off, with a £450,000 funding package secured with RBS, part of which was used to purchase a 4,630 sq ft property on Ash Street.
This became the dairy’s new headquarters in 2021. And another portion funded a fleet of 10 new vans, enabling the company to continue its expansion plans.
Kerr’s ventured north to Aberdeen where they took on 5,000 new customers after opening a new depot in Bridge of Don.
Kelvin added: “We acquired the doorstep delivery database of Müller Wiseman in Aberdeen, bringing in 780 new customers.
“This was soon followed by a major deal to purchase over 4,000 customers from Thomson Dairies. Fifteen of Thomson’s staff transferred to Kerr’s as part of the deal.
“Most recently we added a further 473 customers through an agreement with Mills Milk, which had acquired part of Graham’s the Family Dairy’s operations and collaborated with Kerr’s to avoid postcode overlap.”
Aberdeen expansion
Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire now accounts for more than half their custom, with 14,000 of their growing 25,000 customer list living there.
“This has not only secured jobs but created new ones, with up to 12 additional roles expected to be created in the north-east alone,” he added.
“And it’s not the first time the dairy has looked beyond its base. Before the surge in Aberdeen, we took over the North Street Dairy in Forfar, strengthening our presence in Tayside.”
Kerr’s has now moved from its initial Bridge of Don location to new premises in Dyce’s Kirkhill Industrial Estate, to meet the growing demand of its north-east patch.
As well as milk, the company diversified what it delivers to doorsteps up and down the east coast.
Seasonal products like locally-sourced potatoes and summer-time strawberries have all become part of their product line.
And in winter 2024 they started delivering bags of rock salt, after noticing a gap in the market.
It is all part of continuing a path of innovation for Kerr’s, staying adaptable to customer needs and market demand while remembering its roots in Dundee, Kelvin added.
125 years of Kerr’s
The company has a storied history with the city of Discovery since its humble start at the dawn of the 20th century.
Founder Sandy Kerr passed the reins to his son Johnny, who was responsible for its first transformation.
He sold the original Balfield farmland to Dundee’s local authority, which was turned into St John’s Secondary School.
With the proceeds he built a state-of-the-art dairy on Clepington Road. It was a facility which included pioneering equipment that could fill 4,800 glass bottles an hour and automatically reject damaged ones.
Johnny’s boy Iain then joined the family firm, continuing the tradition under the name John Kerr & Son.
Kelvin Sr started shifts with the family business as a nine-year-old in 1977, eventually becoming managing director in the late 1990s.
The fifth generation of Kerrs then came on board when Kelvin Jr returned after a short time away at the age of 24.
And the family hopes this legacy can continue long into the future, with young Kelvin’s son Kelvin John’s birth coinciding with the move to Ash Street headquarters in 2021.
Kelvin Snr added: “I’m very proud of the fact that we’re still going strong after 125 years.
“And I’m proud of my son, young Kelvin, who has driven the company forward.
“Of course, I would like to thank our customers and staff over the years.”
WestFest, Dundee United and Sam Hickey
Kerr’s Dairy has also been announced as the headline sponsor of WestFest 2025.
The festival, which culminates on Sunday June 1 with its Big Sunday event, sees thousands of people descend on Magdalen Green for a day of music, art and food and drink.
On sponsoring the popular event, Kelvin said: “It underscores Kerr’s Dairy’s commitment to Dundee’s cultural vibrancy and family-oriented ethos.
“Additionally, we’ve launched a schools competition inviting Dundee pupils to design a livery for one of our delivery vans, with the winning design unveiled at WestFest.
“And we are champions for local sport, sponsoring Dundee United’s under-18 retail
football shirts, Commonwealth boxing champion Sam Hickey, and numerous
athletes and clubs across the region.
“What started with milk churns and a horse-drawn cart now spans two cities, a 60-van fleet, and a loyal customer base driven by community values.
“We’re a family business at heart. And we’ll continue to deliver not just milk, but tradition, sustainability and local pride one glass bottle at a time.”
Conversation