BUILDERS MERCHANTS: A-Z BRADFORD & SONS • BROWNS Bradford & Sons
BRADFORD & SONS THE NUMBERS
2022 Turnover £m Gross profit £m
Operating profit £k Net profit £k Staff
THE RATIOS 2022 Stockturn Gross margin %
Operating margin % Net margin % Sales/head £k Profit/head £
Return on capital % BMJ INDEX
6.6
30.6 4.2 4.0 251
10,517 23.4
2023 7.0
31.5 3.4 2.8
249
8,451 12.2
2024 7.0
31.7 3.1 3.0
256
7,862 13.4
(26)
Bradfords has been a part of the South West community for 250 years, and is on its ninth British monarch. Founded in 1770 by William Bradford, it is still a 100% family owned business Jabez Bradford, William’s grandson, opened the first office on a line at Yeovil Hendford, on the same site its Yeovil
branch and head office occupies today. Bradfords opened a new branch in Barmstaple at the end of March 2025, designed to be a one-stop shop covering building materials, garden & landscaping products, bathrooms, plumbing & heating, and plant & tool hire. It employs 18 new members of
staff, including two apprentices. Bradfords CEO David Young said: “North Devon has always been a key location for Bradfords, and with the opening of the Barnstaple branch we can now serve the whole of the region more efficiently.”
It followed that in July with the
224.0 68.5
9,392 8,903 893
2023
222.2 69.9
7,538 6,112 892
2024
219.5 69.6
6,738 6,629 857
BRADFORD & SONS
% CHANGE 2023 (1) 2
(20) (31) (0)
% CHANGE 2023 7 3
(19) (31) (1)
(20) (48)
2024 (1)
(0) (11) 8
(4)
2024 (1) 1
(10) 10 3
(7) 10
98 Hendford Hill Yeovil
Somerset, BA20 2QR Tel: 01935 842245
www.bradfords.co.uk
Branche: 46 Showrooms: 17
Branches Added/Closed in 2025: 1 Employees: 870
Chairman: John Colley CEO: David Young COO: Lee Harwood
Approximate turnover for 2025: £229m BMF Member: Yes
Financial year end: December 31 2024
opening of its first ever standalone Tool and Plant Hire depot in Newton Abbot, Devon, reflecting the growing appetite for plant and tool hire from independent merchants.
In November 2025, the company announced that it reached an agreement with the h&b buying group to leave at the end of 2025. Young said that the move away from h&b will give the Bradfords group an extra degree of flexibility and autonomy, which will support its continued future development.
TRAILBLAZERS
Browns
BROWNS THE NUMBERS
2022 Turnover £m Gross profit £m
Operating profit £k Net profit £k Staff
THE RATIOS 2022 Stockturn Gross margin %
Operating margin % Net margin % Sales/head £k Profit/head £
Return on capital % BMJ INDEX
14
16.5 14.3 1.8 1.4
660
11,762 20.1
2023
16.6 14.3 1.5
0.6 569
8,602 7.0
2024
16.9 14.1 1.4 0.5
574
8,090 5.9
(121) A supplement to builders merchants journal April 2026
55.4 7.9
988 774 84
2023
47.2 6.7 714 282 83
2024
44.8 6.3 631 213 78
BROWNS
% CHANGE 2023 (15) (15) (28) (64) (1)
% CHANGE 2023 1
(0)
(15) (57) (14) (27) (65)
2024 (5) (6)
(12) (24) (6)
2024 2
(1) (7)
(20) 1
(6) (15)
123a Old Nottingham Road Derby
DE1 3QQ Tel: 01332292911
www.brownsbm.co.uk
Branches: 3 Employees: 75
Managing Director: Jerry Wheeler Directors: Joe Wheeler, Neal Myers, Paul White
Approximate turnover for 2025: £53.1M
Buying Group: NBG BMF Member: Yes
Financial year end: December 31 2024
Browns Builders Merchants has been present in Derby in some shape or form for over a century. The Nottingham Road depot is on the original site of the old Browns foundry.
Browns is a family run, independant builders merchant, with some of its staff having worked at the company since it formed in 1990.
The company is a partner of NBG, and has played a significant role in the Category Management Teams.
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