Builders’ merchant Travis Perkins said the slowdown in construction has had a big impact on profits as it revealed it was forced to cut 400 jobs and shut 19 branches at the end of last year.
The Northamptonshire-based group, which also owns Toolstation, said it had had to take “difficult decisions” to cut costs by £25 million this year.
It made the closures in its general merchant and Benchmarx divisions at the end of 2022, losing around 400 jobs out of its 20,000-strong workforce. The business had about 1,500 branches prior to the cuts.
It came as it reported a 20 per cent cut in pre-tax profits to £245 million for 2022, as a result of a slowdown in the housing market and surging inflation.
The group expects the wider construction market to continuing suffering this year, with new build homes among the worst hit. Although inflation would ease, it said prices would not start coming down immediately.
Chief executive Nick Roberts said: “In the second half of the year we made some difficult decisions in response to the weaker trading environment and we continue to be watchful of market trends, working closely with our customers and suppliers to stay on the front foot.”
Travis Perkins launched plans during the 2020 pandemic to close 165 stores, mainly smaller sites, which saw around 2,500 workers lose their jobs.
It spun off its Wickes retail DIY business in April 2021, then sold its plumbing and heating business a month later to private equity company HIG Capital for £325 million.
