News

Three South East builders’ merchants, Parker Building Supplies, Chandlers Building Supplies, and Fairalls Builders Merchants, have together raised £30,000 for Teenage Cancer Trust throughout 2025. The fundraising total is the result of a year‑long programme of activities across branches, head office teams, suppliers, and customers, from sponsored challenges, charity raffles and …

NorDan UK has announced the acquisition of RED Systems, a UK-based specialist in architectural glazing, curtain walling and façade systems. This acquisition combines NorDan’s expertise in timber and aluminium-clad windows and doors with RED Systems’ façade capability, allowing the business to offer a more integrated approach to building envelope design …

Bathroom manufacturer Bristan is launching a Lifetime Guarantee across its taps, showers and accessories. The lifetime guarantee covers parts, finishes and working components on products sold from April 1, with Bristan promising to repair, replace or refund, supporting customers throughout a lifetime of product use. The initiative also supports a …

Builders’ merchant Travis Perkins has teamed up with Northampton Saints to launch a special campaign marking 25 years as partners. As part of this campaign, grassroots rugby union clubs from Northampton Saints’ designated community region, (which covers Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and North Essex) are invited to apply to …

South West branches of builders’ merchant Travis Perkins came together to host a charity darts evening at the Port of Bristol Sports & Community Hub, raising more than £3,000 for Alzheimer’s Society. Organised by Leonard Pentland, branch manager at Travis Perkins Bristol Clifton, the darts competition was compered by ‘The …

Professor Anand Menon, a leading expert on the UK’s relationship with Europe, will offer a fresh perspective on future relations at the BMF Annual Members Conference in September. Menon, who co-authored ‘Brexit and British Politics,’ is a Professor of European Politics and Foreign Affairs at King’s College London and serves …

Building materials distributor Lords has completed the refinancing of the Group’s existing £75 million lending facilities. The Group’s existing £75 million facilities, with a three bank syndicate which consisted of a £50 million revolving credit facility (‘RCF’) and a £25 million receivables financing facility (‘RFF’), have been cancelled and repaid pursuant …

The latest Builders Merchant Building Index (BMBI) report, produced by MRA research, has been published, highlighting January’s builders’ merchant like-for-like total value sales (adjusted to remove the effect of trading days) were -2.6% lower than the same month in 2025. With one less trading day this January, total value sales …

The January Plumbing & Heating Merchant Index (PHMI) report, produced by MRA Research, has been published. The report shows total like-for-like value sales (adjusted to remove the impact of trading days) through specialist plumbing and heating merchants were up +3.0%  for January 2026 compared to the same month the year before. …

Crown Paints has partnered with professional painters and decorators to front its new ‘Looks like…’ campaign. The trade campaign features decorators at work: Mica Hill of Drip Decorating and Lewis Coomber of L.C.Painters, alongside On The Tools content creators Russell Payne, founder of The Talking Tradesman, and Aimee Stanton a …