MERCHANT FOCUS: BENCE
F
ounded in 1854, The George Bence Group is now the second-oldest business in Cheltenham. During its 170 years, the independent builders’ merchant has seen six generations of Bences manage and grow the company as it continues to diversify to meet the needs of local trades. Starting as a single-site operation, in the past 25 years the company has expanded to eight branches and 150 employees. Having been in business through three centuries, the group has learned from different generations of merchants along the way. The current managing director is Paul Bence. He says: “As a business, we want to look at what our customers and local community need the most and learn from this, not just focus on what we want to sell. We make sure we know our clients well through our area sales managers who can have personal conversations with our customers and find solutions to any challenges.”
This works the same way with suppliers too. The group has long played a major role in the industry buying society NMBS. Bence says that this gives the group access to a wide range of suppliers, who allow the company to quickly and easily find products that customers need
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BMJ drops in on a builders merchant that is combining its 170- year history with a drive to forge its future in the sector.
170 NOT OUT
and add them to the product offering. These relationships with suppliers allow independent businesses like The George Bence Group to
quickly sort out any product issues, because they have personal relationships with their stakeholders.
Bence says: “We have been a member of NMBS for longer than my career in the business,” he says. “My father sat on the management board, became the longest- standing member and helped introduce the NMBS Conference. I joined the board in 2023, and have enjoyed establishing the needs and wants of independent members and providing a real drive and focus on how we can continue to improve the industry. The board meetings allow us to gain and combine knowledge about the wider industry from people across the whole sector who are as passionate about customer service and product knowledge as we are.”
Future focus
As well as acknowledging its history, the group is also forcussed on how it continues to build into the future. Like many other independent builders’ merchants, the George Bence ethos is that industry knowledge should be shared wider than just the merchant industry, so it goes into local schools and delivers presentations to students. The company also
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net October 2024
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