 | |
| Company type | Public limited company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Building materials |
| Founded | 1902 |
| Headquarters | Dublin, Ireland |
Key people | Michael Roney (Chairman) Eric Born (CEO) |
| Revenue |  € 2,282.3 million (2024) [1] |
| € 152.6 million (2024) [1] | |
| € 122.0 million (2024) [1] | |
| Website | graftonplc.com |
Grafton Group plc is a builders merchants business headquartered in Ireland and operating in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.
In 1902, William Thomas Chadwick established a builders' merchants and building contractors business in Dublin. It was incorporated as Chadwicks (Dublin) Ltd in 1909. [2] [3]
In 1930, Chadwick acquired a roof tile and concrete block manufacturing business in Dublin. [4] [3] He registered that business as Concrete Products of Ireland Ltd in 1931. [5] [6]
Concrete Products of Ireland Ltd became a public limited company (plc) and incorporated Chadwicks (Dublin) Ltd in 1965, and building materials company Marley increased its holding in the company to 51%. [6] Michael Chadwick bought out Marley and renamed the business Grafton Group in 1987. [6]
In 1988, Concrete Products of Ireland plc changed its name to Grafton Group plc. [3]
In March 1998, it bought British Dredging, a United Kingdom builders merchants including the Selco chain. [7] In February 2003, it bought Jackson Building Centres, another British builders merchants, based in Lincolnshire. [6]
In October 2003, it also bought Plumbline, Scotland's largest independent plumbers merchants. [8] In June 2004, it bought Heiton Group, Ireland’s largest independent plumbers merchants. [9] In December 2006, it then bought Plumbworld, one of the United Kingdom’s largest online bathroom retailers. [10]
In August 2013, it bought Wearside builders' merchant Thompsons, [11] in October 2013, it bought Binje Ackermans, a Brussels based merchanting operation, [12] and in December 2013, Grafton Group opened ten showrooms, and launched a brand new website called Bohen, which focuses on the bathroom, kitchen and bedroom industry. [13]
Then in September 2014, it bought Direct Builders Merchants, a general merchanting business based in Kent [14] and in December 2014, it bought Crescent Building Supplies, a builders' merchant based in Ruislip. [15] In March 2015, it bought TG Lynes, a distributor of mechanical engineering products, [16] in January 2016, it bought T Brewer, a timber distributor based in London, [17] and in March 2016, it bought Allsand Supplies, a general builders' merchant located in Kent. [18]
In January 2022 the company announced the completion of the sale of its merchanting business in the UK to Huws Gray for £520m. Businesses sold include Buildbase, Civils & Lintels, PDM Buildbase, The Timber Group, Bathroom Distribution Group, Frontline and NDI Brands. [19]
The company currently owns four physical "bricks and mortar" businesses, Woodie's DIY, Civils and Lintels, Selco and Jacksons brands. [20] It also has a number of businesses that trade exclusively online. [21]