MERCHANT FOCUS: T.H. WIGGANS IRONMONGERY
“DPD recently invested in distribution infrastructure in Carlisle, which made it the perfect location for us to expand,” he explains. “There are a variety of courier companies on this side of the city, giving us access to logistics solutions we could never manage from Kendal.”
GETTING A HANDLE ON NEW MARKETS
Oliver Stanley talks to an architectural ironmonger that’s expanding by taking its offer online.
A
fter serving customers in its Lake District heartland for 50 years, T.H. Wiggans Ironmongery has expanded into a new, national
online market through its new Carlisle-based operation, Trade Door Handles.
T.H. Wiggans Ironmongery was founded in 1976 by Harry Wiggans and Alistair McInnes in Kendal, Cumbria, supplying architectural ironmongery and hardware across the Lake District and its surrounding area. Its flagship Kendal branch features over 1,000 door handles and over 40 doors on display, along with an extensive range of cabinet and window hardware.
To mark its 50th year in business, the company has opened a new Carlisle branch, which will also serve as the hub for its newly launched e-commerce offering: Trade Door Handles.
Company director Keith McInnes says: “Carlisle seemed a sensible move. We were one of the original stockists of Carlisle Brass and Zoo Hardware products, and have a long-standing relationship dating back to the founding of both brands. With Carlisle about an hour’s drive from our flagship, it was a perfect location to open a new branch.” The new Carlisle trade counter and ironmongery showroom offers a range of ironmongery brands including Heritage Brass, Frelan Hardware and From The Anvil, as well as UK manufacturers Kirkpatrick, Croft and Frank Allart.
18 The perfect location
The Trade Door Handles showroom also stocks a wide range of Zoo Hardware and Carlisle Brass products alongside other leading brands. However, it is the proximity to the Carlisle Brass and Zoo Hardware distribution facilities that McInnes believes sets the business apart. The Carlisle branch sits on Kingstown Industrial Estate, just five minutes from two of the UK’s largest architectural ironmongery suppliers and the main northwest DPD distribution hub.
That proximity enables same-day dispatch on Carlisle Brass and Zoo Hardware products ordered through Trade Door Handles, while dramatically reducing the need to hold unsold stock, and enabling same day collection on the full product range for local customers. This model directly addresses a challenge many small retailers face: the cost and risk of holding stock.
McInnes continues: “Like any small business, cash flow is a risk. If we were to take a few thousand pounds’ worth of our most popular lines in, a small business usually couldn’t afford to do that. But because we’re just a few minutes from the Zoo Hardware and Carlisle Brass distribution facilities, we effectively have access to their entire stock. Now, with access to the area’s improved delivery infrastructure, I can offer a next-day delivery service nationwide and access to around £16 million worth of supplier stock. I don’t think many independent businesses can offer next- day delivery nationwide with £16 million of supplier stock on the doorstep.” The company can also draw on established goodwill in the area. A previous architectural ironmongery supplier, More Handles, operated in Carlisle for around 15 years before closing, leaving a gap in the local architectural ironmongery market.
“We’ve taken on the core members of the old More Handles team,” McInnes adds, “and
Company director Keith McInnes
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net July 2026
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