Manchester-based timber merchant J Cavanagh Ltd is bucking the trend and opening a new sales depot in Winsford, Cheshire.
The 1.5-acre site marks a return to the area for the family business which began in the town 25 years ago.
“The Winsford branch changed hands over a decade ago, but local customers have always asked us when we were planning on reviving the original service,” said managing director John Cavanagh. “We’re delighted to be going back.”
The site, in Bradford Road, was located by novel means when the company’s founder, Bill Cavanagh, placed an advert in the local paper, offering a £5,000 reward for anyone who could identify a suitable site. The ad attracted a lot of interest and, since then, public demand has been such that the site opened for trade and DIY customers ahead of schedule.
The Winsford site will stock “off the shelf” C24 carcassing, plus a range of planed timber and sheet materials.
“Given that property prices have plummeted, we’re noticing a distinct increase in the number of DIY customers who want to extend or add value to their existing properties,” said Mr Cavanagh. “We’re offering a raft of special deals in 2009 to make that as affordable as possible for homeowners in the area.”
