Saint-Gobain has completed the sale of all its merchanting brands in the United Kingdom – including the builders and timber merchant Jewson – to the Stark group
With the completed divestment and Jewson sale, Saint-Gobain now no longer has any distribution businesses in the United Kingdom.
Saint-Gobain described the divestments as part of a “continued business profile optimisation strategy”.
Over 8,000 employees will join the STARK Group network
The £740m sale will see 600 branches and distribution centres change ownership to STARK which is headquartered in Copenhagen and has operations across North Europe, including several Nordic countries, Germany, and Austria.
It follows the divestment of specialist distribution brands in the United Kingdom over the
last 18 months representing around €650m(approx £576m) of revenues.
STARK Group in the UK will now be known as STARK Building Materials UK Ltd. This new distribution brand encompasses well known names such as builders’ merchant Jewson, Northern Irish brands Gibbs & Dandy and JP Corry, specialist brands Jewson Civils Frazer and Minster, as well as International Timber.
Joining the UK market during a time of potential growth
Group CEO Søren P. Olesen says:
”We are very pleased to have completed this acquisition in great time, having announced the deal in mid-December. We look very much forward to welcoming nearly 9,000 colleagues and many new tradespeople to our customer list in the UK. We have a strategy that successfully focuses on professional tradespeople and the renovation and maintenance market. The UK is an attractive market with solid population growth, one of Europe’s oldest housing stocks, and a huge potential for energy renovations.”
“We are facing a challenging transition year, but we have acquired a company that we can make thrive and grow. The more than 600 branches and distribution centres are in good locations across the entire UK. We will invest in the business, the customers, the employees, and the distribution. We have acquired a company with whom we can continue our growth journey.”
