Athlone headquarters safe as local company changes hands for €26.5m

Athlone is to remain the headquarters of Wolseley Ireland and there is no change at the company in the light of the recent sale of the operation to a group of private investors for €26.5 million. The Irish arm of the massive worldwide plumbing and heating company, which encompasses Brooks, Heat Merchants, Tubs and Tiles and Encon in the Republic of Ireland and the Brooks business in Northern Ireland changed hands officially on Friday last under a share purchase agreement to a group of private investors. However, a company spokesperson has confirmed that business would continue as normal that Athlone remained the headquarters of the company. A spokesperson for the firm, which employs an estimated 650 nationwide including a large number in the Athlone area, confirmed to the Westmeath Independent that no company management were involved in the buyout, adding that "there is no change, it's business as usual". The company will remain operating with the Wolseley Ireland name for the next three to six months, she added, when asked if the sale would mean a change of name for the business. The store names will also stay the same for this duration. "With the exception of there being new owners, nothing else has changed. The significant steps already taken by the Irish management to restructure the business, aligned with our future plans will help position the business well to emerge from the current economic cycle a stronger business," Chief Executive of Wolseley Ireland Pat Roche commented this week. "I am greatly looking forward to the future for the Irish businesses having enjoyed a very successful past ten years under Wolseley ownership and the change of ownership at this stage is a new chapter in our development as one of Ireland's largest distributors of timber, building materials and heating and plumbing. Most importantly, it's business as usual as far as all day-to-day operations are concerned and customers will be unaffected by this change in ownership," he added. The Irish businesses including Heat Merchants, Brooks, Tubs and Tiles and Encon Ireland had a turnover of €237 million in the twelve months up to July 31 and losses of €34 millions, recent reports suggested. Back in February last year, the firm blamed the downturn in the construction sector for major restructuring at the company, which resulted in the slashing 180 jobs in Ireland across their operation along with the closure of four branches including two in Tullamore. At that stage, the cuts accounted for almost one fifth of its workforce in Ireland. Prior to the sale, Wolseley Ireland was part of Wolseley plc, the leading supplier of heating, plumbing and building products across Europe and North America, employing some 74,000 worldwide in 27 countries. Wolseley plc's first foray into the Irish marketplace was the acquisition of the Heat Merchants group in 1999 (Heat Merchants and Tubs & Tiles). This was followed with the acquisition of Capper Plastics in 2002 and the merging of this company with the Heat Merchants group in 2004. Brooks group was bought in 2004 by Wolseley to become a sister company to the Heat Merchants group and following this in 2006, Plumb Center Northern Ireland, which was initially part of UK operations, also became part of the Heat Merchants group.