Grafton shares rise on €93m decorating firm buy
Shares in building suppliers Grafton Group have risen over 1.25% after it said it had bought London specialist decorators’ merchant firm Leyland.
Grafton, the owner of building suppliers merchants in Ireland, the UK, Netherlands, and Belgium, as well as the retail Woodie’s chain, paid £82.4m (€93m) for Leyland, which has 21 stores in central London locations such as Notting Hill, Chelsea and Kensington.
Grafton chief executive Gavin Slark said that the purchase was a “unique opportunity” for it to enter the market in some of “exceptional” locations in London. It said the Leyland convenience trading format was “a proven business model in central London that complements the group’s larger Selco branches in greater London.”
Selco is among the UK’s largest builders merchants. In 2017, Leyland generated sales of £47.8m. Founded in 1985, it began supplying local tradesmen with paint and decorating materials.
Analysts were positive about the latest acquisition by Grafton, which has been looking to mainland Europe in recent months for opportunities.
Davy’s Michael Mitchell said: “It increases Grafton’s exposure to convenience-led product in central London, with scope to extend the store network.”
He said Leyland presented further opportunity for infill acquisitions.
Goodbody’s Robert Eason said the acquisition of Leyland will provide a number of growth opportunities for Grafton.
