A Memorable Destination
Improved Visitor Experience
Suntory Global Spirits estimates that Laphroaig Distillery attracts approximately 29,000 visitors every year. This equates to approximately 80 guests accessing the visitor centre every day, with around 75% joining one of the six daily tours and 25% visiting the bar and shop.
Whilst we are proud of the award-winning welcome that we offer in our visitor centre, we recognise that our current facilities could better reflect our global reputation.
Community Space
Over time, we plan to relocate the visitor centre to a better-suited part of the distillery. This will allow us to improve the visitor experience and we are also exploring the opportunity to create a dedicated museum and café, which would like to a dedicated courtyard space.
We are also exploring the opportunity to create a café, which would link to a dedicated courtyard space. Our vision is to provide a community space that can also cater to celebratory events, especially those which call for the collaboration of Islay’s local businesses, where the economic benefits can be shared.
The visitor centre will be designed to include striking views down to the waterfront, making the most of our beautiful surroundings, whilst creating improved landscaped gardens too.
Respect for our History
The distillery is on a listed site and the team has instructed a heritage consultant to advise on the design. This underlines Suntory Global Spirits’ approach to a thoughtful design that respects and enhances the current building and its surroundings, whilst introducing a modern twist.
Feature windows have been proposed for the stillhouse, creating a sense of arrival and theatre at the distillery, whilst celebrating its craftsmanship and legacy. Fundamentally, the redevelopment of Laphroaig Distillery will retain original features and buildings, but the design will better serve the future of Laphroaig to ensure it is efficient, sustainable, and attractive.
Timeline
After hosting the community event on 23 August 2023 where we captured important feedback from local people, we have spent time preparing a final masterplan. A planning application has now been submitted to Argyll & Bute Council and we await their determination in due course.
Should we achieve planning consent, then we will aim to start construction in Spring 2025. Construction will not impact production and at no point will operations be paused to enable the re-development.