TRAILBLAZERS W
Williams & Co
Williams & Co, who have been trading as a plumbers merchant since 1972 were voted one of Britains’s 1000 most inspiring businesses for three years in a row, and in 2018 one of Europe’s 1000 most inspring businesses, by the London Stock Exchange.
Starting in Hampshire, the company has expanded rapidly across the south and beyond and now operates from four warehouses and 38 trade counter locations across England.
Wolseley UK
Wolseley, the second largest merchant distributor in the UK, is the UK business of the world’s largest heating and plumbing distributors, Ferguson. In the UK principally operates serving the trade market through 551 branches and four distribution centres. There are two businesses under the Wolseley brand serving the trade market. Blended Branches is the largest business within the UK, generating 82% of the revenue. This business provides plumbing and heating products, air conditioning and refrigeration products and the associated pipes, valves and fittings to customers in the residential and commercial sectors. It also provides specialist above ground drainage products. The business operates under the Wolseley brand with a number of smaller brands including William Wilson.
Infrastructure is a specialist in below ground drainage serving the civil infrastructure and utilities markets. The business is estimated to have a market share of about 20%. The UK business mainly serves RMI markets, and has relatively low exposure to the new construction market.
According to Ferguson’s half-year statement, released at the end of January 2020, revenue in the UK declined 4.7%, primarily as a result of a deliberate move away from low margin sales, though this was partially offset by 2.1% of growth
WOLSELEY UK
2 Kingmaker Court Warwick Technology Park Gallows Hill, Warwick, Warwickshire, CV34 6DY
www.wolesley.co.uk Tel: 02083120896
Number of Branches: 550
Wolseley UK Chief Executive Officer: Simon Oakland Chief Commercial Officer: David Haydon
Managing Director Commercial Building Services & Cooling: John Hancock,
Managing Director Infrastructure: Keith Dorling,
from acquisitions. Inflation added a further 1% increase.
The key repairs, maintenance and improvement markets were subdued, although gross margins were ahead due to the group mproving the product mix to include more higher-margin items. The underlying trading profit of $30 million was $2 million lower than last year, however performance in the second quarter improved with trading profit of $15 million, up $2 million year-over-year.
THe group aims to demerge the Wolseley business from the woder Ferguson group and this process is, the group stated in March 2020, on track with the transaction expected to be completed within the current calendar year.
Gareth Davis, who was chairman of Ferguson plc for nine years, has agreed to be Chairman of the demerged Group once completed. He is in the process of forming a
April 2020 A supplement to Builders Merchants Journal
Board for the new company which will be called ‘Wolseley Group plc’. In January 2020 Simon Oakland was appointed as Chief Executive Officer of Wolseley UK after a short period as the interim. He was formerly CEO of Ferguson’s Canadian business and Head of Corporate Development.
WOLSELEY UK THE NUMBERS
15/16 Turnover £m Gross profit £m
Operating profit £k Net profit £k Staff
THE RATIOS Stockturn Gross margin %
Operating margin % Net margin %
Sales/employee £k Profit/employee £ Return on capital % BMJ INDEX
15/16 6.0
23.7 (0.2) (0.2) 305
(686) (0.7)
16/17 6.4
23.7 2.0 1.6
312
6,202 6.2
17/18 6.3
22.8 (0.4) 3.7
308
(1,082) 10.9 14
1,865.9 443.1
(4,200) (4,559) 6,126
16/17
1,887.0 447.5
37,492 29,909 6,045
17/18
1,768.0 402.3
(6,202) 65,197 5,734
North Plumbing & Heating Regional Director: Chris Taylor-Hone
Central Plumbing & Heating Regional Director: Adam Caulfield South Plumbing & Heating Regional Director: Graeme Fotheringham Director Managed Services Paul Whyman,
Managing Director William Wilson Robin Mackinlay, Members of: BMF (William Wilson)
% CHANGE
16/17 1 1
n/a n/a -1
16/17 6 0
n/a n/a 2
n/a n/a
17/18 -6
-10 n/a 118 -5
% CHANGE
17/18 -1 -4
n/a 133 -1
n/a 74
WILLIAMS & CO THE NUMBERS
Turnover £m Gross profit £m
Operating profit £k Net profit £k Staff
THE RATIOS Stockturn Gross margin %
Operating margin % Net margin %
Sales/employee £k Profit/employee £ Return on capital % BMJ INDEX
16/17 4.6
22.9 5.2 5.0
300
15,484 22.6
17/18 4.7
23.3 4.2 4.1
293
12,408 17.8
It will deliver to any mainland UK
location.The company has a strict trade-only sales policy and will not sell to retaill customers.
18/19 4.6
23.7 3.3 3.1
282
9,333 13.3 145
16/17 64.4 14.8
3,329 3,241 215
17/18 73.3 17.1
3,102 2,995 250
18/19 80.3 19.1
2,660 2,498 285
WILLIAMS & CO • WOLSELEY UK BUILDERS MERCHANTS: A-Z WILLIAMS & CO % CHANGE
17/18 14 16 (7) (8) 16
17/18 1 2
(18) (19) (2)
(20) (21)
18/19 9
12
(14) (17) 14
% CHANGE
18/19 (1) 2
(22) (24) (4)
(25) (26)
13 Standard Way Fareham PO16 8XB
www.tradeonlyplumbing.co.uk Tel: 01329226080
Number of Branches: 38 Number of Employees: 300
Chairman: Mick Williams Managing Director: Ray Stafford
Members of: BMF
39
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