Corporate News

Lords, a leading distributor of building materials in the UK, announces that it has appointed Steve Durdant-Hollamby as Chief Operating Officer (COO) of its Merchanting division, with effect from 4 November 2024.

Steve brings with him 26 years of industry experience, having held leadership positions in major building material companies spanning across merchanting and manufacturing. Most recently Steve served as Divisional Managing Director at Genuit Plc (Polypipe).

Steve’s career includes extensive involvement in the development of innovative solutions to address the challenges of climate change, population growth, and sustainable urbanisation. His leadership in the building material industry, coupled with a proven track record of driving growth and operational excellence, make him an invaluable addition to the Lords executive team.

In his new role, Steve will lead Lords Builders Merchants, Advance Roofing, Condell, George Lines, and Hevey brands, while partnering with Shanker Patel, CEO of Lords.  This appointment is a key part of the Group’s strategy to expand its Merchanting division and grow the business over the next few years.

Shanker Patel, CEO of Lords, said: "We are thrilled to welcome Steve.  His impressive experience in merchanting, building products, and civils, alongside his ability to build high-performing teams, aligns perfectly with our vision for the future.  Steve’s leadership will be crucial in realising our ambitious growth plans and reinforcing our commitment to creating a sustainable, socially responsible business.”

Commenting on his appointment as Merchanting COO, Steve Durdant-Hollamby, said: "I am excited to join Lords and take on this new challenge. The Company’s reputation for quality and commitment to exceptional service as well as sustainable growth were key in attracting me to the business. I look forward to working with Shanker and the team to drive forward new opportunities with my experience to help grow the business to its full potential."

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Notes to editors:

Lords is a specialist distributor of building, plumbing, heating and DIY goods.  The Group principally sells to local tradesmen, small to medium sized plumbing and heating merchants, construction companies and retails directly to the general public.

The Group operates through the following two divisions:

• Merchanting: supplies building materials and DIY goods through its network of merchant businesses and online platform capabilities.  It operates both in the 'light side' (building materials and timber) and 'heavy side' (civils and landscaping), through 31 locations in the UK.


• Plumbing and Heating: a specialist distributor in the UK of plumbing and heating products to a UK network of independent merchants, installers and the general public.  The division offers its customers an attractive proposition through a multi-channel offering.  The division operates over 17 locations enabling nationwide next day delivery service.

Lords was established over 35 years ago as a family business with its first retail unit in Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire.  Since then, the Group has grown to a business operating from 48 sites.

Lords was admitted to trading on AIM in July 2021 with the ticker LORD.L.  For additional information please visit www.lordsgrouptradingplc.co.uk.