Essential reading for retailers and suppliers in the home improvement market

News Archive June 2021

Sika Everbuild invests in captivating campaign to support EB25 29 June 2021

Sika Everbuild has unveiled an eye-catching advertising campaign for its innovative adhesive EB25 - and it’s going to be hard to miss the message over the next 12 months. The straight-talking, no nonsense campaign focusses on the core benefit of ...


Toolstation helps young people learn building and trade skills 28 June 2021

Toolstation, one of Britain’s fastest growing suppliers of tools, accessories and building supplies, is supporting the Volunteer It Yourself (VIY) social enterprise as it makes a bid to help more young people learn practical trade and DIY skills and ...


Leyland SDM boosts employee engagement and store efficiency with YOOBIC to support rapid business growth 28 June 2021

Leyland SDM, the decorating and DIY specialist, has digitised in-store processes and colleague communication in partnership with YOOBIC, the digital workplace solution for frontline teams, to support its rapid growth serving the professional trade, ...


Double award delight for HMG at Family Business of the Year Awards 25 June 2021

Manchester based family business, HMG Paints Ltd accept ‘Essence of Family Business’ Award as well as the inaugural ‘Next Generation Ambassador Award’ for 4th generation family member, Rebecca Falder at the annual Family Business United (FBU), ...


Sustainable decking brand invests in technology to aid its stockist partners 24 June 2021

The UK’s leading brand of sustainable composite decking and cladding, Composite Prime, has launched an exclusive online stockist training programme. Following a huge surge in demand for composite decking products experienced by stockists during the ...


BHETA webinar on sustainable packaging 24 June 2021

The overwhelming take out from the British Home Enhancement Trade Association (BHETA) sustainability webinar which majored on packaging was that doing nothing was not an option. The event which took place on June 8th was packed with delegates, who ...


UK REACH major threat to UK manufacturing says coatings industry survey 23 June 2021

The latest survey of British Coatings Federation (BCF) members reveals UK coatings manufacturers are increasingly concerned about the effects of the new UK chemical regulations. Almost 80% of respondents believe UK REACH will impact negatively on ...


What More UK: How we became a zero to landfill company 23 June 2021

Zero to landfill is a tall order, but with careful planning and organisation it's possible. In just one day the What More manages to repurpose 40 tonnes of ‘single use' plastic per day. Here's how they do it. Sending waste to landfill is like ...


Grafton Group plc announce agreement to acquire IKH in Finland 22 June 2021

Grafton Group plc ("Grafton or the Group"), the building materials distributor and DIY retailer with operations in the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands, is pleased to announce that it has signed an agreement with Mr. Ilkka Alakortes and his family to ...


Four more DIY and housewares brands join BHETA 22 June 2021

Olympic Fixing Products and The Dove Factor are the latest names in DIY to join the British Home Enhancement Trade Association (BHETA).Olympic Fixing Products started in 1989 and now supplies a wide range of building and DIY products and specialises ...


Surge in sales for bathroom products 21 June 2021

Toolstation has seen a surge in demand over the past months for bathroom products and research reveals that one-in-ten have had bathroom makeovers.They’ve reported huge rises in the sales of digital showers (up by 182%), shower doors (up by 181%) ...


A. Perry secures hardware when the industry needs it most 21 June 2021

A. Perry, the West Midlands based supplier of hinges and hardware, has now strengthened its supply chain with significant investment in a purpose-built manufacturing facility base in India. The firm, which has been manufacturing since 1925, now ...


Ronseal teams up with Channel 4 to celebrate the Men’s Shed Association and the power of DIY in an emotional documentary 18 June 2021

Ronseal is celebrating the work of the Men’s Shed Association in a powerful new film launching this week. The Shed has been produced by Rumpus Media, for Channel 4 and will be shown across their social channels from 14th June. Launched to mark Men’s ...


Kingfisher announces new planet and community responsible business commitments 15 June 2021

Kingfisher plc, the international home improvement retailer which includes B&Q and Screwfix, has today announced key milestones and new responsible business commitments. These are designed to help customers create greener, healthier homes, to ...


What More UK: Shortlisted for two categories in the Made in the North West Awards 14 June 2021

What More is the UK housewares market and brand leader. The progressive manufacturing company has been shortlisted for two separate categories, the Export Award, and the coveted Manufacturer of the Year (over £25 million category). The Manufacturer ...


Webinar looks to protect children's health from air pollution 11 June 2021

Head of Sustainability for Mitsubishi Electric, Martin Fahey is joining a special webinar at 4pm on Clean Air Day 2021 (17th June) to focus on what companies should be doing to reduce their own impact on the environment. “Like all companies we are ...


On a mission to help the nation to feel house proud - Wickes debuts first TV bathroom ad in a decade 11 June 2021

Wickes has launching a new TV campaign, to showcase its expanding bathroom range. The advert is the home improvement retailer’s first bathroom focused TV ad in ten years and forms part of the ongoing tongue-in-cheek ‘Housebarrassment’ campaign, ...


Kingfisher plc announces new 2025 carbon reduction targets, now approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) 10 June 2021

Kingfisher plc (‘Company’, ‘Group’ or ‘Kingfisher’), the international home improvement retailer whose businesses include B&Q and Screwfix, today announces ambitious new carbon reduction targets consistent with reductions required to keep global ...


Gardening is officially cool say young people  9 June 2021

Think the typical gardening enthusiast is retirement age with a large outside space? Think again. Draper Tools has surveyed the nation’s young people to get their views on gardening and it’s clear gardening is enjoying a renaissance among 18 – 34 ...


8th Global DIY-Summit postponed 8 June 2021

From Global DIY-Summit:Following the current delays that we are seeing in the global vaccination effort, the high number of infections that persist globally, as well as the growing concerns of virus mutations, we have taken the difficult decision to ...


Houzz Collaborates with Dulux Trade to Enhance Houzz Pro Visualisation Tools 8 June 2021

Houzz Pro 3D Floor Planner and Mood Board Tools Bring Projects to Life for ClientsHouzz Inc., the leading platform for home renovation and design, today announced a collaboration with Dulux Trade to embed its unparalleled colour portfolio in new ...


Wickes Group plc - trading update: Strong sales volumes drive trading ahead of expectations 7 June 2021

Wickes Group plc today provides an update on year to date trading performance and profit guidance.Group Sales have continued to perform strongly, with total like for like growth in the 21 weeks to 22nd May 45.7% ahead year on year, 23.1% on a two ...


Midlands-based flooring firm rated 'One to Watch' by organisation that rates the best companies to work for in the UK 4 June 2021

One of the UK’s leading online flooring retailers has been earmarked as ‘One to Watch’ by an organisation that measures the best employers in the country. UK Flooring Direct employs more than 200 people at its headquarters in Hinckley, ...


Rainy Day Trust offers support to colleagues facing debt crisis 4 June 2021

Industry charity Rainy Day Trust is finding yet another way of putting meaning into its strapline ‘If you need us, we are here. If you don’t, we need you!’. The end of May saw the ban on evictions being lifted, meaning that renters could be forced ...


Home improvement trend drives growth at family-run haulage firm 4 June 2021

A rise in home renovations and house moves has seen the UK’s leading haulier of construction materials, boosting turnover and creating jobs, with support from Lloyds Bank. Bimson Haulage said it experienced a significant increase in demand for its ...


Flooring industry counts down to catch up, at CFJLIVE 2 June 2021

The flooring industry is preparing for CFJLIVE - its first official event in over a year - which takes place on Thursday 1 July.The free-to-attend global exhibition is the UK industry’s first ever virtual event, bringing together over 100 global ...


Kingfisher signs new £550m revolving credit facility linked to Responsible Business targets 2 June 2021

Kingfisher plc (‘Company’, ‘Group’ or ‘Kingfisher’), the international home improvement retailer whose businesses include B&Q and Screwfix, announces today that it has entered into a £550m three-year revolving credit facility agreement with a ...


Sailing hotspot house prices for boat owning homebuyers 2 June 2021

With summer fast approaching it’s not just the draw of the beach that makes the UK coastline an attractive proposition, with an estimated 950,000 of us taking to the waves in either a yacht or motorboat. As hobbies go, it’s not the most affordable ...


Bank holiday sunshine boosts footfall in retail destinations by 6.7% 1 June 2021

Latest data from retail experts Springboard reveals that footfall in UK retail destinations rose by +6.7% last week from the week before, but it was the average uplift in activity from Thursday to Saturday of +15.2% that drove the increase for the ...


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