Vango founder Alastair Moodie has died

The founder of leading UK camping brand Vango has died.

Alastair Moodie passed away on Sunday 27th September after a short illness.  

Mr Moodie set up Vango in the east end of Glasgow in 1966 and ran the business from a windowless office under the stairs, which later became known as the Vango cupboard.

The first major success for Vango was the Force Ten tent and during the 1970s and ‘80s the brand made its name with high-spec, technical products for daring mountain expeditions.

Mr Moodie retired in 1996 after 30 years at the helm but in 2016, he joined in Vango’s 50th birthday celebrations. He said at the time: “In the beginning it was just me. I didn’t have any high-finance ideas. I hadn’t even thought of ‘marketing’. I was just trying to design and make tents that people would want to camp in.”

Current Managing Director, Stephen Newlands, said “I highly respected Alastair Moodie on both a professional, and personal basis, he will be sorely missed.  

“Although he had retired, he kept up to date with what was going on and was proud of his achievements. 

“Our thoughts are with his family and we send them our very best wishes at this difficult time.”