History of Rutherford - Agriculture & Automotive Engineers in the Scottish Borders
History
Rutherford is the brand name of J Rutherford (Earlston) Limited.
Rutherford opened in Earlston in 1911 as Millwrights and Agricultural Engineers. From that day to this the company has been family owned. Today Mrs Ann Rutherford and her daughter Mrs Jane Millar, who is Chief Executive, own the business. Hopefully Jane's son, Nick, will follow his mother to maintain the family connection.
John W Wilson, as Managing Director, is responsible for the daily running of the company. He joined us in 1976 and became Managing Director in 1999. John heads up a management team of 6 who are responsible for the various departments within our diverse operation. The company employs over 50 staff many of whom have been with us since leaving school. Staff loyalty to the company is very strong and some have over 40 years service. The company ethos is to provide employment and security to staff and give them the opportunity to develop their careers.
Head Office
Rutherford's Head Office is at Rhymers Mill in Earlston, which comprises a main office building, Agricultural workshops and Parts department, and also our Car workshops. Our Car Showroom and Esso Forecourt are on the A68 road adjacent to the ancient Rhymers Tower. We have two further agricultural branches; Swinton Mill, situated between Duns and Coldstream that opened in 1996 and our East Linton branch on Dunbar Road where we have traded since 2001.
The Head Office building at Rhymers Mill has a showroom on the ground floor for trailers, ATVs and smaller agricultural items. The first floor houses our offices and administration staff who are headed by Office Manager Henry Jaffray. We also have a meeting/training room available to allow product presentations and 'in house' training.
SEAT Dealership
Rutherford has been in the car business since the 1950s and has been a SEAT dealer since 1988, which makes it the longest standing dealer in Scotland. SEAT is part of the Audi Volkswagen group of companies and in itself has become a strong manufacturer, building some half a million vehicles each year.
Rutherford have nine dedicated members of staff in the car division and this business has grown year upon year; we now sell 400 new and used cars per annum. The car sales team works from our recently redeveloped showroom; Bryan Moore, After Sales Manager, is in charge of the service department and he is also based in the showroom.
Agricultural Engineering
The core business for Rutherford is agricultural engineering and the dealerships held cover a large spectrum of the machinery business; these include CASE IH tractors and combines, Lely grass equipment and Welger balers, Arctic Cat ATVs, Kawasaki ATVs and power products, WestMac Rabe cultivation equipment and Belair feeders. Within the agricultural side of the business we are also distributors for Ifor Williams trailers covering the South of Scotland, this department is branded "Rutherford Trailer Centres" with displays at all branches. We have recently formed a new department called "Rutherford Ground Care" to handle Yanmar Compact tractors, Snapper Garden Machinery and many other ground care machinery products. Keith Robertson heads up the sales operation as Agricultural Group Sales Manager with Derek Campbell, who is responsible for the after sales departments and branches, as Agricultural Group After Sales Manager.
Filling Station
The filling station and forecourt at Rhymers Tower has been an Esso dealer since 1962. Here we have a staff of seven who are headed up by Forecourt Manager Michael Spink.