United Wholesale managing director Asim Sarwar has pledged to campaign more for retailers and suppliers on training and legislation in his upcoming role as Scottish Grocers Federation (SGF) president.

Mr Sarwar, who is currently acting as vice-president, will succeed Dennis Williams in October. He told RN his main aims are to help retailers improve range and training alongside tackling issues surrounding minimum unit pricing (MUP) and the deposit return scheme (DRS).

“I want to network with Scottish retailers who aren’t SGF members. I’m passionate about raising knowledge on how best to retain staff alongside legislation. I’m also looking at an initiative to improve their range,” he said. 

“We will also be lobbying in government on the issues of MUP and DRS to ensure the costs and logistics to suppliers and retailers aren’t a nightmare.”