McGhee’s rises to the top in Worldpanel research

McGhee’s is icing on top of the cake on footprint data

BAKERY firm McGhee’s has moved into the top position in Worldpanel by Numerator‘s 2026 Brand Footprint report as the most chosen Scottish FMCG brand in Scotland.

The Glaswegian bakery firm has taken the number one spot and moved ahead of household staples including Irn-Bru and Graham’s The Family Dairy with a massive boost for its consumer reach points (CRP) measurement. This measures both household penetration across Scotland as well as purchase frequency from consumers.

Aisling McGhee, commercial director at McGhee’s, said: “It’s incredible to think that the roll of my great-grandfather baked for his neighbours is now Scotland’s most-chosen brand.

“We’re proud to be part of so many Scottish households and grateful to all our customers – from regulars at the local shop to families right across the country.

“Today’s recognition is a tribute to our whole team, whose hard work and passion have made this possible. We’re not stopping here: we’ve got big plans for our 90th year and beyond.”

McGhee’s rose up to the top with 16.63million CRPs and 49.5% household penetration across the country. This meant that McGhee’s is a frequently purchased brand and used daily across Scotland meaning it is more frequently purchased and seen by shoppers across the country.

Additionally, Worldpanel highlighted that those brands with many small routes into the home will accumulate more chances to be chosen over others, which is the case with McGhee’s in this research.

Whilst sitting in third place with this research, Irn-Bru still had plenty of success bubbling upwards across Scotland over the course of 2025-2026. While a household penetration of 42.4% across the country saw McGhee’s overtake the beloved soft drinks brand, Irn-Bru still held on to the highest spend per buyer of any Scottish brand at £49.64.

This means that while Irn-Bru is present in fewer homes when compared to McGhee’s or Graham’s, its consumers return to the shops to purchase it often and ensure they have a steady stock in the house for them.

And Worldpanel has highlighted the importance of how Scottish brands are often built around specific Scottish food habits such as morning rolls, haggis or weekend breakfasts. Such habits has spelt success for McGhee’s and butchery brand Simon Howie, which sat in fifth position for CRP, with these occasions helping to cement success for these brands.

Lesley Ann Gray, strategic insight director for Scotland at Worldpanel by Numerator, said: “Scotland’s Brand Footprint shows national scale and local habit sitting side by side in the same basket.

“McGhee’s taking the top Scottish spot, Irn-Bru’s loyal base, Simon Howie reaching more than half of Scottish homes – each tells the same story from a different angle.

“Local brands win when they own an everyday routine and keep finding new reasons to be part of it, but the product must continue to earn the next buy.”

Worldpanel’s top 20 Scottish Brands in Scotland by CRP is as follows: