TRAILBLAZERS Highbourne Group
HIGHBOURNE GROUP THE NUMBERS
2021 Turnover £m Gross profit £m
Operating profit £k Net profit £k Staff
THE RATIOS 2021 Stockturn Gross margin %
Operating margin % Net margin % Sales/head £k Profit/head £
Return on capital % BMJ INDEX
4.3
23.3 3.7 3.7
374
13,774 25.0
2022 3.9
25.7 2.5 2.4
366
9,181 16.5
2023 4.4
23.2 1.3 1.3
418
5,596 9.9 29
Highbourne Group operates in the UK plumbing, heating and renewable energy market. Its brand portfolio includes some of the sector’s most known and respected names: City Plumbing Supplies and PTS, The Bathroom Superstore, The Underfloor Heating Store, DHS, National Shower Spares, Plumbworld, Plumbnation.
Highbourne Group has over 370 branches across its brands, and 3250 employees, serving the trade, contractor and consumer markets.
In May 2024, the company launched 10 new Plastics Supercentres nationwide. These will stock large volumes of essential products, and are
Howarth Timber Supplies
HOWARTH TIMBER SUPPLIES THE NUMBERS
21/22 Turnover £m Gross profit £m
Operating profit £k Net profit £k Staff
THE RATIOS 21/22 Stockturn Gross margin %
Operating margin % Net margin %
Sales/employee £k Profit/employee £ Return on capital % BMJ INDEX
3.8
31.1 5.0 4.9
254
12,637 30.1
22/23 3.9
30.4 3.5 3.4
245
8,529 19.1
23/24 3.9
31.4 0.7 0.7
230
1,661 3.7 (10)
140.4 43.7
6,988 6,882 553
22/23
143.6 43.7
4,998 4,894 586
23/24
138.7 43.6
1,003 946 604
% CHANGE
22/23 2
(0)
(28) (29) 6
% CHANGE
22/23 3
(2)
(30) (30) (4)
(33) (37)
23/24 1 3
(79) (80) (6)
(81) (81)
23/24 (3) (0)
(80) (81) 3
HOWARTH TIMBER SUPPLIES
Prince Edward Works Pontefract Lane Leeds, LS9 0RA Tel: 01135327030
www.howarth-timber.co.uk
Branches: 37 Showrooms: 15
Employees: 585
Chairman: Nicholas Howarth Managing Director: Nicholas Howarth Other Directors: Andrew Howarth, Allister Turner
Buying Group: Fortis, NMBS BMF Member Yr end: 31/03/24
April 2025 A supplement to builders merchants journal
The UK’s largest privately owned timber company, family- run Howarth Timber Group encompasses a network of 37 timber and builders’ merchant branches geographically spread across the country, with dedicated manufacturing divisions supplying windows and doors and highly specialist timber engineering products and services.
It is part of the Howarth Timber Group which also includes: Howarth Timber (Windows and Doors) Ltd, Howarth Timber Engineered Solutions Ltd and Arbor Forest Products Ltd.
21
1,252.8 291.4
46,100 46,100 3,347
2022
1,324.2 340.3
33,200 31,600 3,616
2023
1,388.4 321.8
18,600 17,900 3,324
HIGHBOURNE GROUP • HOWARTH TIMBER SUPPLIES BUILDERS MERCHANTS: A-Z
% CHANGE
21/22 6
17
n/a n/a 8
% CHANGE
21/22 (9) 10
n/a n/a (2)
n/a n/a
22/23 13
(10) (47) (46) 14
(39) (40
22/23 5
(5)
(44) (43) (8)
A number of existing City Plumbing branches are being upgraded to Commercial Hubs, and the aim is to support the unique needs of the light commercial sector with planning and specification support, as well as efficient delivery to site. In March 2025, the company opened a new City Plumbing Supplies branch in Longwell Green, Bristol, which includes The Bathroom Showroom and a dedicated renewables area. The site, which replaces the former City Plumbing Supplies branch in Brislington, is on the Longwell Green Trade Park off Aldermoor Way.
designed to meet demand for high-volume plumbing and drainage products, including Wavin soil, waste, and plastic plumbing solutions. The initiative was inspired by customer feedback indicating the difficulty of sourcing enough plastic supplies from a single visit. Towards the end of 2024, the group launched a new division, Commercial at City Plumbing, to serve professionals working in the light commercial sector. Dave Griggs has taken the role of managing director of the new division. Matt Trott is head of commercial plumbing & heating, and Kevin Flint has been appointed as head of commercial sanitaryware.
Touchscreens also give customers direct access to the company’s air source heat pump kit builder.
HIGHBOURNE GROUP
Highbourne House Eldon Way,
Crick Industrial Estate, Crick, Northampton, NN6 7SL
www.highbournegroup.co.uk
Branches: 361 Showrooms: 290
Branches Added/Closed in 2024: opened
CEO: Dave Evans: CFO: Robbie Bell
City Plumbing Supplies: Operations Director: Darren Redwood, Managing Director - Energy Efficiency & Electrical: Hemal Morjaria, National Sales Director Maxine Wiltshire-Frost Managing Director - The Bathroom Showroom: Steve Smith Managing Director Commercial at City Plumbing: Dave Griggs
Approximate turnover for 2024: £1.4bn BMF Member
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80
