NEW MILTON SAND AND BALLAST
“We are still very much independent; we
produce and sell our own materials, making us the ultimate one-stop-shop which is what a builders’ merchant should be.”
NBG that we were committed to the buying group philosophy of buying better by sticking to the deals.”
After that initial chat, a number of existing NBG Partners also made contact and took the time to visit the company for further talks. Froggett says: “We took a view after that second meeting that NBG was the right place for us. Partnership is a really big thing for us. It’s how we have always viewed our dealings with the Suppliers we work with, so that ties in very well with the whole NBG ethos.” Froggett says that one of the attractive things about NBG from an NMSB point of view was not just the one Partner/one vote aspect, but also the fact there is a requirement to play your part fully. “The way NBG works means we really can get involved and bring our point of view to the fore. You can join committees, sit on Category Management Teams and attend regional meetings to discuss how the industry is. You are asked at the outset whether you are prepared to put the time in; we are lucky in that we have a lot of people in the company with many years’ experience who wanted to be able to put that time in. I think NBG makes it an easy process to get involved in.” Someone from NMSB now sits on three committees: Brick and Block, Civils & Landscaping and Lightside.
The transparency that is an intrinsic part of NBG’s make-up is something that appealed to NMSB. “We might not be as large as some of our peers, but our views are seen as just as valid,” Froggett explains. “We get the opportunity to contribute; the expertise that
January 2025
we have in our own business means a lot to us and we appreciate that it is valued by our peers in NBG.”
NMSB has seen definite membership benefits, Froggett says, most notably how the rebates have improved. “I sit on the committees and go to the meetings and the information available on rebates is terrifically helpful. Our Partner status has got us accounts with some Suppliers that we had never traded with before. So it did open a few doors for us.”
Inevitably, when a company joins a new buying group, there is some shuffling of Suppliers. “We did find that there were a couple of Suppliers we use that NBG didn’t — hopefully, they will get the chance to become part of a deal in due course. There were also a couple that we had to drop in order to be compliant, but that is inevitable. We think we are well into the 90%+ on compliance on most things.”
He adds: “The community aspect to NBG is also really helpful. I have met a whole new raft of people through NBG, and that opportunity to get new ideas and share some of your own is really valuable. It is a benefit to others across our company as lots of different people can get involved in the meetings.”
Part of the plan is to grow and expand the business and Wright believes that NMSB’s Partnership with NBG will really help to do this. “It was another reason for us to join; we wanted to be in a community that could support us with our growth plans and we could gain from expertise and experience from other merchant Partners,” she says.
The plan, Wright continues, is to have more depots, though the focus at present is on getting the current operation right. “When it is, we will go looking for another depot. Our plans from a group level are to grow substantially over the next five years. It’s been tough this last year, but there are still some positives in that. We are a diverse group because we have a sporting and agricultural part to our business as well, which sees us doing a lot of work with golf courses, racecourses and sports pitches — all of which comes through the merchant side. That includes turf and specialists soils and is a part of the business that hasn’t really been affected by any type of recession so far. The merchant business is definitely part of our ambitious growth plans. In terms of market penetration, we want to go further afield, maybe more into Hampshire and up into Wiltshire.” One of the questions that a potential new Partner is asked at the outset is what their future plans are. Froggett says: “If you join something like NBG, you have to be looking at expansion, at growing your business. It’s the ultimate reason for being there. Yes, we want to make more money, but it’s all about how you can expand your business as well. From the point of view of our builders’ merchant arm, the support we’ve had already from NBG has been really good for the company.”
21
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
