DIYWEEK.net

Tools supplier and distributor, Toolstream has acquired the Nottingham-based workwear and site equipment manufacturer from Travis Perkins, and is “in talks” with other brands, as part of UK expansion plans.

This morning Toolstream confirmed to DIY Week that it had bought Birchwood Price Tools for an undisclosed sum, adding to its portfolio, which already includes the Silverline, Triton, GMC, Task, and Bench Dog brands.

Whilst Toolstream remained tight-lipped on the details of the deal, a spokesperson for the company suggested further acquisitions are in the pipeline. They said: “We can confirm Toolstream is in talks with a number of brands as part of its ongoing expansion strategy. Our recent acquisition of Birchwood Price Took is part of this process.”

Birchwood Tools, which was acquired by the Travis Perkins Group in 2011, is a manufacturer and wholesaler, supplying workwear brands Scruff and Tough Grit, as well as site equipment brands Rhino and Defender.

The company was established as Birchwood Products in the 1970s developing products for the trade. The first Defender products were launched in 1997, followed by Van Vault in 1998 and Scruffs in 2003.

In 2008, Birchwood Products was acquired by BSS PLC and merged with power tool wholesaler Price Tools (Birmingham) to form Birchwood Price Tools. Three years later, the company was acquired by the Travis Perkins Group, accelerating the firm’s growth, giving access to the Travis Perkins distribution network.

Whilst the business still has its head office in Nottingham, in 2015, it relocated its warehouse operation to a new 600,000sq ft purpose-built logistics facility in Warrington. The move, in the summer of that year, was designed to achieve greater accuracy of inventory and availability, together with scope for expansion, and all deliveries are now despatched from the site.

Travis Perkins has yet to respond to a request for comment about the sale of Birchwood Price.