Wickes
 |
|
| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1972 |
| Headquarters | northampton, England, United Kingdom |
|
Area served
|
United Kingdom |
|
Key people
|
Simon King, Managing Director |
| Products | |
| £70m (approx) | |
| Parent | Travis Perkins |
| Website | www |
Wickes is a British home improvement retailer and garden centre, based in the United Kingdom and owned by Travis Perkins, 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 kitchens and bathrooms, to more bespoke professionally designed kitchens and bathrooms. This company should not be confused with Wickes Furniture, a former United States based furniture store chain, although both companies used a similar red and blue "W" logo.
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 .
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. 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 re-branding of 36 Focus DIY stores. 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.
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Wikipedia