Wren Kitchens surges towards £1b annual sales mark after 30% growth in 2021
Wren Kitchens generated its strongest growth to date in 2021, with sales closing in on the £1 billion mark after a 30 per cent uplift.
The northern Lincolnshire manufacturing-to-retail giant recorded turnover at £916.5 million, up from £703.1 million in 2020. And employee numbers have spiralled alongside the numbers, with almost 7,000 people now working for Wren.
Pre-tax profits also passed a new milestone of £100 million, up 34 per cent year-on-year.
It comes amid huge expansion with new production facilities being brought online in the Humber region, while additional showrooms emerge in the UK and US.
The growth comes despite the first three months of the year seeing its branches closed as Covid measures were reintroduced.
The in-house development of the firm’s digital design platform was pushed to the fore as “customers were able to continue their home improvement projects without delay,” – growth was double that seen in 2020 when coronavirus first hit.
In the strategic report accompanying the results, Mark Pullan, managing director, said: “The result is a testament to the fortitude of the team and whilst the Covid pandemic has presented a huge number of challenges, the Wren family has continued to grow and the average number of team members in 2021 reached 6,801 people, an increase of 2,249 people from the number employed two years ago.”
Reflecting on the showroom number hitting 105 in the UK, Mr Pullan said: “This is less than half of the number of showrooms of some of our competitors and there remains significant areas of the UK where the company has no presence. Additional locations have been identified and sites are being sought to address this issue.”
Wren kicked off 2022 with a high-profile advertising campaign from the filmmaker behind The Greatest Showman, and Mr Pullan said the directors remain confident in the strategy, believing significant opportunities exist to expand further.
A total of £72.5 million was invested in manufacturing in 2021 with the second stone worktop fabrication plant at Scunthorpe highlighted.
It has doubled the company’s capacity, with “significant investment” also flagged at Barton where a huge expansion is underway.
The build is on schedule, with handover to Wren anticipated in the autumn.
It takes the total invested to £380 million by the business, founded by former Hygena head Malcolm Healey.
