Oban seafood stand back after tartan makeover

A SEAFOOD vendor who was ordered by the courts to stop trading on Oban seafront until he changed the look of his seafood stall has come back with flying colours.

Gordon MacGillivray has painted his shack tartan after a court order compelled him to change its green paint job. Picture: Moira Kerr

Gordon MacGillivray was told to replace the green paint on his trailer by the Court of Session after seafood stall competitors, who have a long-established green unit on the seafront, complained.

John Ogden, 66, and Marion Ritchie, 40, argued that tourists searching for their well-known green seafood shack on Oban’s Railway Pier, would become confused with two green stalls selling similar produce.

And they won their case when Lord Pentland agreed that the colour of Mr MacGillivray’s stall was confusing tourists.

Yesterday, Mr MacGillivray, 43, revealed he had now painted his in his clan tartan. He also admitted the Court of Session case had cost him “thousands” as he had to pay some of his rivals’ costs as well as his own.

Clutching a bottle of Scottish Parliament whisky signed by the First Minister, Mr MacGillivray, who re-opened his stall on Saturday said: “I wrote to Alex Salmond to see if he could come and open the stall.

“He couldn’t make it, but I am delighted because he sent me a signed bottle of whisky from the parliament.”

The re-opening took place as Mr Ogden and Ms Ritchie were away on holiday. Speaking from Tunisia yesterday, Mr Ogden, who has had the stall for over 20 years, said: “Conflict and

contention tends to be good for business. It’s good for Oban, It’s good for tourism and it’s good for seafood.”

As he prepared to return to Scotland last night Mr Ogden, who will open the stall for the season next week, added: “We are raring to go.”