Travis Perkins to close Toolstation Daventry distribution centre - putting jobs at risk

People’s jobs are at stake as a business retailer of tools and building materials plans to shut down its Daventry distribution centre this year in an effort “to simplify the business in what continues to be a challenging trading environment.”

Toolstation, which has more than 550 stores in the UK, is owned by Northampton-based Travis Perkins, a British builders' merchant and home improvement retailer with more than 720 stores across the UK and Europe.

The closure of the Daventry distribution centre located in Parsons Road follows the company’s announcement that they have entered a consultation period.

A Toolstation spokesperson said: “We have reviewed our retail distribution operations, and are proposing to close our Daventry distribution centre in August 2024, to simplify the business in what continues to be a challenging trading environment.”

Toolstation, a growing supplier of tools, accessories, and building supplies, was founded by Mark Goddard Watts, one of the founding family members of Screwfix Direct, in 2003.

The Daventry distribution centre, located in Unit 3, Parsons Road, was opened in 2014 as the second retail distribution centre opened by the company after the Redditch centre.

Currently, the company retains four distribution centres in Daventry, Redditch, Middleton, and Northampton, and more than 550 UK stores and 5,500 staff members as of July 2022. The company also has stores across Europe, in Belgium, France, and the Netherlands.

Toolstation closed its Bridgwater distribution site in May 2023.

A Toolstation spokesperson said: “The capacity in Daventry will be absorbed by our existing Redditch and Middleton distribution centres and still allow us to continue to deliver first-class customer service, react quickly to seasonal demand, and increased volumes, while reducing costs and increasing efficiency.”

Toolstation was bought by Travis Perkins in 2012 after Travis Perkins bought a 30 per cent stake in the firm and invested in expanding their branch network in 2008.

Travis Perkins was founded in London in 1797 and moved to Northampton in 1904. Its head office has been located at the Lodge Way Industrial Estate near Duston, Northampton, since 1980.

The company has approximately 1,400 branches and employs close to 20,000 people across the UK and its Toolstation business in Europe.

Toolstation’s announcement came after multiple layoffs announced by Travis Perkins in the latter quarter of 2023, primarily affecting its Northampton headquarters and central support teams, but also some staff from its branches.

The company is set to undergo changes in 2024, including layoffs, according to Travis Perkins' year-end financial report for 2023 on the London Stock Exchange.

At the end of 2022, Travis Perkins axed hundreds of jobs and shut down 19 branches as wider economic challenges began taking their toll on the construction sector.

A Toolstation spokesperson said: “All colleagues who could be affected by this change have been informed, and we are doing everything we can to support them through redeployment or help them find alternative employment elsewhere. We have now entered a consultation period and will not be able to comment further until this has been completed.”

It has not yet been confirmed how many jobs could be lost.