A LOCKERBIE woman has been appointed as the director of strategy for H&H Group Plc.
Laura Millar joined the Harrison and Hetherington team at Borderway in 2017 as livestock schemes manager, and for the past two years she has been head of communications, marketing and strategic projects.
Now in her new role as the first ever director of strategy, Laura will take responsibility for the delivery of the full range of long term strategic projects.
Based at Borderway in Carlisle, she will bring her expertise and her deep-rooted understanding of the agricultural industry to bear on the development of sustainable strategies that will help make the business fit for the future and extend the value and relevance of the company’s services to a growing customer base.
CEO Richard Rankin said: “Laura’s skills and commitment will undoubtedly keep us in the forefront of innovation and expansion as we broaden our influence and role in the future of the rural sector.”
Brought up on the family farm in the Scottish Borders, and now married to Dumfriesshire dairy farmer Donald, Laura has livestock farming in her DNA. While achieving a BA in rural business management at the Scottish Agricultural College, she served as secretary of the Agricultural Society at the University of Edinburgh, and laid the foundations for a career in agriculture working with the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society and completing an internship with the Scottish Government Rural Payments and Inspection Directorate.
In 2013, Laura was selected as a delegate for the Marks & Spencer Cranfield Agri Leaders Programme, and for the Royal Agricultural Society of the Commonwealth Next Generation programme in Singapore in 2016.
Laura is passionately committed to the success of the livestock farming community, and her aim is to ensure that Harrison and Hetherington can offer the industry the support needed to navigate the challenges of rapid change.
She said: “In recent years, the livestock industry has been confronted with unprecedented challenges that fundamentally affect the viability of the sector for every farmer and landowner. Now, more than ever, it’s essential that we help buyers and sellers achieve the best possible value for their stock.
“My overall responsibility will be to develop and deliver the strategies that will achieve the strongest connections to the widest possible markets, locally, nationally, and globally.
“Harrison and Hetherington has been at the forefront of cutting edge marketing in our sector, however I know that there are so many more opportunities we can offer customers, and I am thrilled to be given the chance to help take the both the company and the industry I love to new levels of service.”
