New Managing Director for James Gordon Limited - Castle Douglas  

James Gordon Limited has appointed Ian Brydson as Managing Director from 1 October 2026. Ian now leads both of the company's brands; Gordons Agricultural Equipment and Gordons Construction Equipment and was General Manager at the company since 2023, having previously worked for their main agricultural franchise, CLAAS.  

He succeeds William Mongtgomerie, who becomes Chairman of the family's holding company, Montgomerie Holdings. Founded in 1865 by James Gordon, the business was bought by the Montgomerie family in 1922 and remains in their ownership today. William’s cousin Neil Montgomerie is After Sales Director and Neil’s son Graham is Service Manager at their Castle Douglas Depot. Kevin Fraser, who has been with the company for over 20 years, is Sales Director.

Ian's appointment comes shortly after the opening of their new £1 million depot at Blairgowrie. The site gives Gordons Construction a permanent base in the north of its territory. Gordons took on the Develon (formerly Doosan) franchise in 2017. Since then they have expanded to cover all of Scotland and Cumbria.

A commitment to agriculture

Ian stressed that growth in construction does not come at the expense of the company's agricultural roots. Gordons Agricultural equipment has long established partnerships with key manufacturers. They have supplied and supported CLAAS equipment since the 1960’s, and its core customers are dairy, beef, mixed livestock farms and agricultural contractors.

"We're no less enthusiastic about agriculture than we ever were," he said. "Land is consolidating, so customers are buying fewer, higher-output machines. If a customer used to run three machines and now runs one high capacity unit, a breakdown costs them all of their output, not a third of it. That puts real demand on service, and we have to be ready to react whenever customers need us."

From the tractor seat to the boardroom

The son of a farmer and agricultural contractor, Ian was driving tractors from a young age. His career includes product and sales management roles with CLAAS and Krone UK and two years in the whisky industry with William Grant & Sons.  Ian also completed an MBA at the University of Strathclyde in 2013.

"The MBA gave me a broad view of business as a whole, rather than just the lens I'd looked at it through before," said Ian. "Working in a very corporate environment in the whisky industry taught me a lot about change management and people. You learn as much from the things that didn't work as the things that did"

Investing in people

Gordons employs around 100 people and has a loyal workforce.  

"Nothing works without good people and we are lucky we have a lot of them," said Ian. "It's getting harder to recruit good people, and we have to take that seriously. We're looking at structure, succession and career development. I want us to stand out as the most attractive place to work in the industry."

Gordons has apprentices at their agricultural and construction depots. It is now expanding the scheme to include parts apprenticeships and has taken on its first IT apprentice.  

Technology without losing the human touch

On the future, Ian sees new technology as an opportunity for customers and for Gordons. "People want greater efficiency, and there isn't the same availability of labour," he said. "What CLAAS and Develon can offer customers in automation, digital information and operator assistance is staggering, and our team is well trained in it. But I never want to lose the people element of this business. It's the people and the characters you meet that make it such a joy to work in."

That long view runs deep. Gordons still holds a bill of sale from the 1892 to one of their farming customers and Gordons are still serving that same farm today.

William Montgomerie , Chairman of Montgomerie Holdings, said,

"Ian has strongly contributed to the growth of Gordons since he joined us as General Manager in 2023. He is passionate about our business having been brought up in agriculture locally and hold a strong interest in construction equipment. With the expansion of construction, exciting plans for agriculture and a strong team in place, this is the right time for Ian to lead the business into its next chapter."