ONE of the city's luxury delicatessens has seen sales soar despite the impact of the credit crunch.

ONE of the city's luxury delicatessens has seen sales soar despite the impact of the credit crunch.

Liquid deli Demijohn, based on Byres Road, has witnessed a surge in sales during the last month.

Sales for November were up 30% compared to November last year, while mail order sales have grown by 40% during 2008.

And the strength of the performance is leading to an expansion of the business.

Owner Angus Ferguson is to open his first English deli in Yorkshire next year, adding to his Glasgow store and Edinburgh outlet.

Angus said: "Every day there is doom and gloom about Scottish business.

"We are fortunately bucking the trend completely and have had our best year yet in almost five years of trading.

"Our research has shown that in hard times people like to treat themselves or their friends with high quality, good food and drink.

"We unveiled our new website in September and this has made it easier and far more attractive for customers to shop online.

"The secret of our success is low overheads.

"The biggest area for growth has been among our new gift boxed sets."

Angus, a former Black Watch soldier, launched Demijohn in 2004.

The idea was to treat alcohol, wines, oils and vinegars like other produce.

Concentrating on smallholders, the products aren't pre-packaged.

Instead, vessels are clamped to the wall filled with different concoctions and after a taste to see if it suits, customers then choose their own size of bottle which is filled, sealed and packaged on site.

Angus said: "Before I joined the army I had done a lot of travelling.

"During a trip to Italy I came across this little shop where the wine was sitting in large vats and if you wanted some you just filled your own bottle. I thought it was a great idea."

Concentrating on sourcing produce from producers whose yields are too small to attract the interest of the supermarkets, Angus and his wife Frances spend half their time out visiting suppliers and coming across some peculiar concoctions, such as orange gin and English wine vinegar.

Their brand has become so strong that VisitScotland promoted it as one of the country's best quirky shopping destinations.

Now the plan is to open a shop in England before looking at sites in Ireland.