Aberdeen Rich List 2025

GROUP 7

 

9. Alistair Locke – Abbot Group | Motor Fuel Group | Distilleries

​

Estimated Wealth: £350m

​

Alistair Locke began his career in investment banking with Citigroup in 1974, specializing in shipping and oil. Gaining a deep understanding of the industry, he made the leap into entrepreneurship by founding his own company in the Far East, where he structured finance packages for investments in ships and rigs. His company was eventually acquired by merchant bank Henry Ansbacher.

Holding a degree in History and Economics from the University of Oxford, Locke went on to become the founder and former chairman of Abbot Group, a Scottish oil services company based in Aberdeen. The company, which provided drilling services to the oil and gas industry across Africa, the North Sea, and Sakhalin Island, Russia, was sold for £906m in 2008.

Further diversifying his portfolio, Locke is also the Founder and Chairman of Motor Fuel Group, the UK’s largest owner of petrol station forecourts. His entrepreneurial success earned him the title of Entrepreneur of the Year in 1999. In 2019, Locke and his stepson Alex Christou co-founded Glenrinnes Distillery, launching Organic Speyside Vodka and Organic Speyside Gin, adding to his growing business ventures.

 

12. Douglas Craig – Craig Group | Shipping & Offshore Services

​

Estimated Wealth: £300m
 

The Craig Group story began over 80 years ago when trawler skipper George Craig Sr launched a small fleet of three coal-fired, steam-powered deep-sea trawlers operating out of Aberdeen. What started as a modest fishing venture has evolved into one of Scotland’s most enduring and successful family businesses.

Today, the company is helmed by Douglas Craig, George’s grandson, who has guided the group through a remarkable transformation. During the height of the North Sea fishing boom in the 1970s, the Craig fleet peaked at 23 vessels, fishing in the waters off the Faroe Islands, Iceland, and the north-east Arctic, alongside contemporaries like Sir Ian Wood.

As the fishing industry waned and the oil and gas sector surged, Douglas made the bold decision to pivot. The Craig Group transitioned its fleet to serve the energy sector, offering emergency response and rescue services to offshore oil platforms. This strategic shift cemented the company’s relevance and ensured its growth in a changing economy.

Now, the Craig Group boasts a turnover of over £120 million, with more than 1,000 employees across the globe. In the past decade, the company has invested over £250 million to build 22 cutting-edge vessels. With operational hubs in Houston, Cape Town, Ghana, and Poland, the Craig Group remains a global force in offshore marine services.

From humble beginnings to international reach, the Craig family’s legacy continues to thrive under Douglas’s leadership.

 

26. Ian Suttie – Property and Oil

​

Estimated Wealth: £90m

​

Ian Suttie has sadly passed away since this article was written. Ian Suttie is arguably one of the most controversial figures on the Aberdeen Rich List. He began his career as an accountant before founding the Oil & Gas services company Orwell Group, which he sold to Weatherford International, a US giant, in 2001 for $250 million.

In 2005, Ian was cleared of tax fraud after testifying in court that he had never looked at his bank balance and did not realise he had accumulated £180,000 in interest, including £21,000 owed to the Treasury.

More recently, Ian has been involved in a very public legal battle with his brother, David, over the ownership of a car number plate (21S). The dispute has cost the brothers more than £1 million in legal fees, though they currently co-own the plate.

At one point, Ian was listed as the richest person in Scotland, though much of his fortune was tied to speculative assets rather than realised value. He once owned the Kraken Oilfield, which was believed to contain $10 billion worth of recoverable oil and gas. The Kraken was the largest undeveloped oil field in the North Sea still in private hands at the time. However, after the 2014 oil crash and a lack of appetite to develop the field, his company, First Oil, went into liquidation with significant debts. This led to a £172 million loss for his lenders, BNP Paribas. Enquest and Cairn Energy subsequently took over his stake in the Kraken.

 

33.Marshall Family – Marshall Trailers & Agricultural Innovation

​

Estimated Net Worth: £65 Million
 

In the spring of 1952, Charles Marshall, an 18-year-old apprentice joiner from Kintore, returned home from national service with a vision. Having witnessed the Army's struggle to move equipment without purpose-built vehicles, and growing up around farming, he saw an opportunity: to create a tractor-towable farm trailer.

With a rough sketch and some ingenuity, he sourced parts and assembled his first trailer—selling it locally and quickly gaining attention. Demand soared after he placed a small ad in Farmer’s Weekly in 1953, which generated over 120 telephone orders. With no means to fulfill them all, Charles quickly scaled up by developing a production process.

That same year, he purchased a croft with an old cattle byre for £2,450, and in 1956, due to rapid growth, he constructed a 12,000 square foot factory on the same land that still serves as the Marshall Trailers headquarters.

By 1965, the company was producing over 1,600 trailers annually. Through the 1970s, they introduced new designs, including trailers for slurry transport and larger agricultural loads, reaching customers as far away as New Zealand.

In 1980, Charles Marshall Jr. joined the business, helping carry the company into a new era. After the founder’s passing in 2016, the firm has remained under family leadership.

Today, Marshall Trailers manufactures over 5,000 trailers per year, making it one of Aberdeenshire’s most pioneering and influential agricultural manufacturing companies. The Marshall family now owns extensive landholdings near Kintore, including golf courses and farm shops, forming a diverse and valuable business portfolio.

While the full extent of the group’s wealth is difficult to determine, Marshall Trailers alone reported sales of £10 million in 2022, with several other companies under the family’s control generating similar revenues.

 

Rich List Number

Name

Net Worth

 

44

Ricky Simpson – Bars, Nightclubs, Property

£35M

 

29

Johanna Basford – Publishing & Bestselling Author

£90M

 

19

Leslie Benzies – Rockstar Games Visionary | Grand Theft Auto Creator | Video Game Industry Icon

£178M

 

14

Martin Dickie – BrewDog Co-Founder, Brewing Pioneer

£290M

 

7

Klaas Zwaart – Oil & Gas | Motor Racing | Investments

£560M

 

63

Colin Lawson – Transport Logistics

£18M

 

55

Stewart Proctor – Tech Industry – Motor Racing

£22M

 

50

Dan Millard – Oil & Gas Inspection and Integrity Services

£28M

 

45

Stuart Clarkson – Bars – Property Development

£32M

 

6

Dave Cormack – Software & Football

£600M

 

66

Steve Judge – Space Solutions

£10M

 

58

Considine – The Aberdein Considine Family

£20M

 

47

Eddie Anderson – ARR Craib – Transport and Logistics

£30M

 

43

Adrian Taylor & Family –Taylors Industrial Waste

£35M

 

36

Stewart Milne – Housebuilding | Property Development

£45M

 

41

Robert Kidd – Oil & Gas Rental Equipment – ITS (International Tubular Services)

£36M

 

29

Peter Tait – Fishing

£82m

 

16

Roy Macgregor - Global Energy Group

£360m

 

10

Nicky Walker – Walkers Shortbread | Food & Drink

£320m

 

5

Martin Gilbert – Finance, Investment & Consulting

£700m

 

63

Sandy Clark – Finance Expert | Investment Strategist | Corporate Leader

£8m

 

57

Paul Lawrie – Golf

£19m

 

44

Jimmy Buchan – Fishing & Seafood Supply

£32m

 

39

Ian Dunbar – Kirkwood Homes Founder & House Building Pioneer

£38m

 

33

Marshall Family – Marshall Trailers & Agricultural Innovation

£65M

 

26

Ian Suttie – Property and Oil

£90M

 

12

Douglas Craig – Craig Group | Shipping & Offshore Services

£300M

 

9

Alistair Locke – Abbot Group | Motor Fuel Group | Distilleries

£350M

​

Trond Mohn – Framo & One Subsea – Oil & Gas - Inheritance

​
 

Andy Bird – Inoapps Founder & Software Development Visionary

 

Mike Straughen – Executive Leadership | Management Expert | Non-Executive Directorships

 

Eric Evans – Oil Services | Media | International Trade

 

Alan Massie – Carlton Rock – Property Developer

 

Jim Geddie – Oil & Gas – Apex Tubulars – Motor Racing

 

Bob Drummond – Hydrasun | D2Zero

 

Tommy Dreelan – Oil & Gas | Motor Racing

 

64. Scott Martin – CEO Glacier Energy – Accountancy MBOs

 

59. Mark Cavanagh – XPD8 and Oil Plus Ltd – Property Investment

 

Alistair Thomson – Fishing Rights | Land Investment | Property Development

 

Malcolm Allan – House Building Entrepreneur

 

John Ray – Rigblast | Property | Oil & Gas Services

 

Derek Nicol & Stephanie Nicol – Nicol of Skene – Civil Engineering

 

Doug Duguid – Oil & Gas Services & Renewables

 

Tony Quinn – Pet Food, Confectionery & Motorsport

 

James Watt – BrewDog | Brewing | Beer | Investment

 

Glenn Gordon – Whisky – Glenfiddich – Distilling - Inheritance

 

Ean Emslie – Commercial Property Rental

 

Maitland Mackie 3 – Ice Cream & Agribusiness

 

Shaun Ross – Founder of Metrol Technology (Photo Unavailable)

 

Sir Jim Milne – Balmoral Group | Hotelier | Property

 

Tom Cross – Oil & Gas | Parkmeade Group

 

Steve Mackie – Prosource – I.T. Software and Corporate I.T. Services

 

John Heiton – OEG Group | Oilfield Equipment Rental

 

Robert (Bob) Keiller – Oil & Gas Services | Business Consultancy

 

Larry Kinch – Oil & Gas Exploration

 

George Maxwell – Eland Oil & Gas | Oil & Gas Exploration

 

Doug Milne – MTM Construction – Civil Engineering

 

Alistair Langlands – WOODGROUP – Investments & Directorships

 

Graham Wood – Hotels – Bars – Property Development

 

Michael Freeman – CAN Offshore | Oil & Gas Services

 

Steven Ferguson – Ferguson Group, Oil & Gas Logistics

 

Scotoil Graham Davidson Family

 

Mackintosh Plant Hire – Moira, Suzanne, Albert, Gary, and Moira Mackintosh

 

Graeme Bone – Drum Property Group Founder | Prime Four Developer | UK Commercial Real Estate Visionary

 

Conrad Ritchie & The Ritchie Family

 

John Clark – Car Dealership

 

Sir Ian Wood – Fishing & Oil & Gas – Rig Maintenance – Philanthropy