Travis Perkins shuts 19 sites and axes 400 jobs

TRAVIS Perkins axed 400 jobs and shut 19 branches at the end of last year as a slowdown in the construction industry hit business, it said yesterday.

The builders’ merchant, which has more than 20,000 staff and 1,400 branches in the UK and Europe, including through its Toolstation business, said it was forced to take some ‘difficult decisions’ to cut costs by £25m this year.

The closures came at its Travis Perkins general merchant arm as well as its Benchmarx kitchens division.

Travis Perkins reported a 20pc fall in profits to £245m for 2022. It was hit by woes in the housing market amid economic uncertainty as well as surging cost inflation.

A spokesman said: ‘With the expectation of lower levels of activity in the UK construction sector in the year ahead, management implemented a number of cost reduction actions in the fourth quarter of 2022 to ensure that the group’s cost base appropriately reflects the trading environment.’

Travis has slashed its investment plans for 2022 and 2023 in light of the more difficult trading conditions. Spending was about £15m lower in 2022 than the £125m per year previously planned, with another cut of about £25m expected in 2023 to £100m.

Nick Roberts, chief executive of Travis Perkins, added: ‘In the second half of the year we made some difficult decisions in response to the weaker trading environment and we continue to be watchful of market trends, working closely with our customers and suppliers to stay on the front foot.’

Shares in Travis fell 4pc, or 42p, to 1004p.