NEWS EXTRA
their businesses better, which makes Fortis better. It’s cohesive thinking.”
While much of the conversation focuses on member value, Berry is clear that suppliers must also benefit.
“We have to ask: are we adding value to our suppliers?” he says. “And more importantly, how can they add value to Fortis? How can they differentiate their relationship with us from their other relationships?”
Credibility and scale Fortis’s scale gives it leverage, but Berry stresses that leverage must be matched with credibility. “Suppliers need confidence,” he says. “Strength of balance sheet matters. They need to know they’ll get paid on time. They need to know they’re dealing with businesses that take the relationship seriously.”
Fortis’s turnover gives it access to senior decision-makers at supplier organisations - managing directors, commercial directors, and sales directors - rather than purely area sales managers. “That opens doors,” Berry says. “But only if those people want to speak to us. Turnover gets you in the room. Commitment keeps you there.”
He asks a question that he believes captures the Fortis philosophy: “Are you better with
£2.5 billion turnover and 75% commitment, or £5 billion and 10% commitment? I think the answer is clear.”
For Tipper, the strength of Fortis lies not only in its scale but in the calibre and character of the businesses within it.
“Fortis members tend to be the leading local merchant,” he says. “There are exceptions, and there are certainly excellent merchants outside the group, but for a supplier, it’s a compelling offer. You’re dealing with the people who will genuinely make a success of selling your product.” Tipper is unapologetically direct about the group’s position in the market. “It sounds arrogant, but right now, I think we are the best route to market,” he says. “Not because we shout the loudest, but because of who we are and how we operate.”
What sets Fortis members apart, Tipper argues, is the long term orientation.
“We’re all multi generation businesses with a purpose beyond profit,” he says. “We all have a good life, but we work hard, probably 60 hour weeks, easily. We’re not doing it because we’re planning an exit. That attitude creates a philosophy where you think beyond yourself. It shapes how you treat your staff, how you behave in a buying group, and how you view your responsibilities.”
This long term mindset, Tipper believes, creates a sense of collective purpose that distinguishes Fortis from other groups and from smaller independents that may be more likely to sell at some point in their lifecycle.
“That’s not a criticism by any means, they’re good businesses,” he adds. “But our hope is that when those businesses do sell, they choose a buyer who shares their values.”
For Berry, the value for Fortis isn’t in chasing ever bigger numbers, but in having enough weight to be taken seriously. “Going for numbers for numbers’ sake is vanity,” he says. “What matters is credibility. As long as we have the turnover that gets us into the right conversations, that’s enough. The real work happens once you’re in the room.” BMJ
10
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net April 2026
The Building and Timber Conference: Commercial Focus, Mutual Respect
The biennial Building and Timber Fortis Conference at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, is a major event in the merchant calendar, and Berry is keen to emphasise its purpose.
“We’re determined that it covers its costs,” he says. “We kept costs the same from 2014 to 2022, and even then the increase was minimal. We’re not trying to extract money from suppliers. We’re trying to give value for money – and value isn’t just money. It’s respect.”
Over two days, more than 4,000 meetings take place between suppliers and Fortis members.
“There’s a commercial focus here that I don’t think exists in any other buying group,” Berry says. “Because we all run our own businesses. Every penny counts. We treat suppliers the same way we treat our own partners.” Preparation, a proper preparation at that, is non-negotiable. “If a supplier turns up without preparing, they’ve got a serious issue,” he says. “That used to happen occasionally. Now it’s rare. Everyone knows what this is about. Everyone takes it seriously.”
The result is an environment where both sides come with clear agendas – opportunities, stock discussions, strategic alignment – and where the people in the room are genuine decision-makers.
“It’s a very positive business environment,” Berry says. “Serious people, serious conversations, real outcomes.”
As the market continues to see shifts, consolidation, new entrants, and fluctuating demand, he says he believes Fortis’s structure gives its members a point of difference.
“In a challenging market, having a group of well-established, individually large businesses working together is a real advantage,” he says. “It creates a framework where we can grow market share, support each other, and offer something other groups can’t.”
For Berry, the strength of Fortis lies not just in its scale, but in its mindset, one that’s rooted in commitment, collaboration and long-term thinking. “Fortis is a tool,” he says. “A tool to help us run better businesses. A tool to help suppliers reach the market. A tool to help us all be stronger for the future. That’s what matters.” BMJ
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