Wickes is a home improvement retailer and garden centre, based in the United Kingdom and owned by the Travis Perkins Group, with more than 230 stores throughout the country. Its main business is the sale of supplies and materials, for homeowners and the building trade. The company also trades in the kitchen and bathroom market, in which it has extensive ranges from budget take away offerings to bespoke professional designs.
History
Wickes was founded by Henry Dunn Wickes, in Michigan, United States in 1854, and in 1972, Wickes Corporation, along with British builders merchant, Sankeys, opened its first store in the United Kingdom. By 1987, Wickes was trading from 41 locations, and was floated on the London Stock Exchange. In August 1996, serious accounting irregularities were uncovered. In November 1996, Bill Grimsey was appointed CEO, to oversee its recovery from the scandal, that saw its share price suspended and the banks foreclosing. In January 1997, Grimsey launched a rights issue, started an employee share scheme, and turned around the company to the point where it was bought by Focus Do It All, backed by Duke Street Capital, in September 2000. Wickes grew from 131 stores in October 2000 to 172 in March 2004, including the rebranding of 36 stores of Focus DIY. In December 2004, Focus Group sold Wickes to Travis Perkins. The sale was completed in February 2005. In October 2007, Wickes acquired seven stores from Focus DIY, after Cerberus Capital took it over in June 2007 for £1, these stores were in Glossop, Mansfield, Penrith, Bulwell, Plumstead, Dumfries, and Hereford. In May 2011, it was announced that Wickes had purchased thirteen stores from the appointed administrators of Focus DIY, Ernst & Young, saving 345 jobs. By 2017, the company had over two hundred stores in the United Kingdom. In October 2016, The Independent reported that Wickes announced plans to shut stores amid ‘uncertain trading’. In May 2018, the BBC reported that Wickes is to cut a third of its head office workforce in a bid to reduce costs. Parent company Travis Perkins said the cull would affect workers in Watford, Hertfordshire, where it employs three hundred people. In July 2019, along with reports of sales being up 9.7%, the parent company of Wickes, Travis Perkins, announced plans to action a demerger and spin off Wickes in the middle of 2020, quoting Wickes “is well positioned to thrive as a stand alone business” and “will have the autonomy to execute on its strategy and allocate capital to its customer proposition and growth opportunities with a clearer focus.”
Regional Operations
South Africa
In 1994, Wickes embarked on a joint venture in South Africa, with Federated Blaikie, which saw six Wickes branded stores open in Johannesburg and Pretoria. Following the financial troubles the parent company encountered, the venture ended in February 1997. Shortly afterwards, the Wickes name was removed from all stores in South Africa.
Mainland Europe
The Wickes brand ventured into some Northern European nations such as Belgium, France and the Netherlands. However, in December 1996, after financial irregularities were uncovered, Wickes management believed that the only way to survive the troubles was to concentrate solely on its United Kingdom operations. In June 1997, all mainland European operations were sold to the French DIY chain Bricorama.
In April 2009, Wickes started an expansion into Ireland, opening its first franchised Irish store in Limerick. In February 2013, this franchise relationship ended, with the store closed down.
