Round-up | NEWS
Homebase acquires Bathstore
HOMEBASE HAS acquired Bathstore and will take control of 44 stores and open a concessions in Homebase stores within the next 18 months.
Aqualla sets up new R&D team as UK expansion exceeds expectations
NORTHERN IRELAND-BASED brassware manufacturer Aqualla has set up a new R&D department as it steps up its push into the English market. Heading
up the newly-formed
R&D department is Trevor Reith, who joined the company this February. He is supported by a dedicated technical support team comprising new recruit Kevan Savage and existing team member Patrick Murray. Reith (pictured above on far left
The sale has secured the jobs of 154 employees at the 44 rescued stores. The remaining 91 stores, said a statement from administrators BDO, will be closed but will continue to trade for a number of weeks until display stock is sold off. Britain’s
largest bathroom retailer went into
administration on June 26 after “several months of diffi cult trading”. Homebase will also take control of Bathstore’s website, intellectual property and stock, in a move that will considerably strengthen its bathroom proposition for customers.
Homebase said it plans to open a signifi cant number of Bathstore concessions in its own stores over the next 18 months. The bricks-and- mortar retail offer will be supported by Bathstore’s strong digital business, which will continue to trade independently from the Homebase website. Ryan Grant, BDO business restructuring partner, said: “In a diffi cult situation, we have been able to secure the future of the Bathstore brand and the transfer of 44 stores to Homebase to maximise realisations for creditors and protect as many jobs as possible.”
Damian McGloughlin, chief executive of Homebase, said: “We are absolutely delighted to welcome Bathstore into the Homebase family.
next to MD Steven Allaway and Kevan Savage, far right) has extensive engineering experience and a back- ground in manufacturing, while Savage is a fully qualifi ed plumbing and heating engineer.
The R&D team will work closely with marketing manager Julianna Andrews to further enhance the company’s reputation in the industry. The new R&D team is housed in Aqualla’s 21,000sq ft facility in Newtonards, County Down. Said managing director Steven Allaway: “Product development has been vital in the growth of the company and this investment is a major step forward for Aqualla. “These appointments will allow us to launch new products. We have always listened to the views of both end-users and installers when developing our products and that will take on added importance with the new appointments.” Commenting on the move, Reith
With a reputation for quality service and excellent products, Bathstore complements Homebase’s reinvigorated range.
“Since the launch of our turnaround plan just over 12 months ago, we have been focusing on reintroducing the popular ranges and products that our customers have been crying out for. Through strong cost management and improved shop- keeping we are committed to making Homebase the best place to shop for everything you need for your home and garden projects. “As a result of the hard work of the Homebase team, our turnaround is ahead of plan. While we still have a signifi cant amount of work to do, the customer response to our new ranges has been very encouraging and we are on track to break even this year against a loss of over £100 million last year.”
One former Bathstore store in the Pompey
Centre, Fratton, Portsmouth, has been taken over by the original franchisee and rebranded as Wash Bathrooms.
Meanwhile, Ian Penney has been appointed as a Bathstore director. He will be part of the Homebase senior leadership team, reporting into CEO McGloughlin. He was previously group category director for kitchens at B&Q parent Kingfi sher.
for the South-East of the UK. Mersh and Kidd join Padraig Carter, area sales manager for Ireland, director and co-founder Noel Daly, and Stuart Latimer, area sales manager for Northern Ireland. When kbbreview spoke to Daly in December last year, he said the company was “excited” to be introducing the brand to England and
added: “With the recent formation of the R&D department this means Aqualla can continually evolve the growing product portfolio with new and innovative products based on market and customer feedback. “For me, I aim to facilitate all our
new products from concept through to launch and keep Aqualla customers happy with the quality and range of products we can offer.”
Aqualla is pushing ahead with its ambitious plans to expand its sales in the UK and to this end appointed Pete Mersh as UK sales director at the end of last year. This July, Mike Kidd joined the team as regional sales manager
said he believed there was space for a “customer-centric” mid-to-upper segment brand.
Allaway updated us on the company’s progress: “We have exceeded our expectations in the UK and have taken on 85 retailers in the North of England. And our new regional sales manager for the South- East, Mike Kidd, has already signed up 35 more. What is helping us is our USP of supporting bricks-and- mortar retailers with a strict no-online policy. Retailers are supporting us and investing in displays in their showrooms, so we are supporting them by not being online.”
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1101_Abode_Strip_Ad_Brass_KBB_REVIEW_AW.indd 1 September 2019 · kbbreview
18/06/2019 12:01 5
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