converted and rebranded under the "Express" or "Superstore" format. Planned Wm Low store expansion At the time of the Tesco take over, a number of new Wm Low Stores were earmarked for development. These were ultimately launched as Tescos but had been planned by Wm Low. This included Aviemore, Cupar, Falkirk and Dunblane, opened between 1995 and 1996. Distribution centres The Wm Low warehouse in Gateshead was closed in March 1995. The head office and Distribution Centre at the Dryburgh Estate in Dundee became the Tesco Customer Service Centre and one of two Scottish Distribution Depots for Tesco. Wm Low Dryburgh Distribution Centre was built in the mid 1970s by Wm Low with an expected 25 years life span. In 2006, Tesco announced the closure of the Dundee depot to create a brand new centre in Livingston on the site of the former NEC factory, which would also replace the current distribution centre already based in Livingston (now open as of October 2007). The adjacent customer service centre was unaffected by the closure. The warehouse at Dundee was demolished in 2019. Store portfolio The following is a list of Wm Low stores in existence immediately prior to the takeover by Tesco. Scotland Banff, Bathgate, Blairgowrie, Bo'ness, Campbeltown, Carnoustie, Coatbridge, Craigmarloch, Crieff, Cumbernauld, Dalgety Bay, Dalkeith, Dingwall, Dumfries, Dunbar, Dundee (two), Dunfermline, Edinburgh (two), Elgin, Forfar, Forres, Fort William, Galloway, Govan (Paisley Road West), Grangemouth, Greenock, Haddington, Helensburgh, Inverness, Inverurie, Keith, Kilmarnock, Kirkcaldy, Kirkintilloch, Kirriemuir, Lanark, Linlithgow, Milngavie, Monifieth, Montrose, Oban, Perth (two: one on Victoria Street in the city centre and one on the Crieff Road; the original store was on South Street), Rosyth, St Andrews, Stranraer, and Wishaw. In 1999, Tesco agreed to swap the Carnoustie, Dunbar and Kirriemuir stores with Lothian Borders & Angus Co-operative Society to gain a larger superstore in Galashiels. England Consett, Driffield, Gateshead (Rowlands Gill), Goole, Ilkeston, Jesmond, Loughborough, Northallerton, Sleaford, Thirsk, Whitehaven, Workington. Typhoid outbreak On 6 and 7 May 1964, the Aberdeen branch delicatessen used a tin of Argentinian corned beef that had not been processed properly (and was infected with typhoid). Due to the fact that the meat was sliced using a communal deli slicer, approximately 500 people were diagnosed in Aberdeen in 1964 with suspected typhoid. William Low was never successful in the city again with their branch closing in the city three years later. References and footnotes External links