Once a modest joinery workshop based in Derbyshire, Gowercroft Joinery has become one of the UK’s fastest growing manufacturers of high-end timber windows and doors, with a string of awards and high-profile projects to its name.
Becoming the streamlined operation that it is today has been a challenging road requiring hard work, skill and determination plus a highly strategic approach to the market.
Set up in 1998, the company began as a small team with big ambitions, making and installing general woodworking products for a wide range of customers with second-hand 1960s machinery. Through the early years, its perfectionist approach, ability to deliver bespoke solutions and think outside the box boosted its reputation for excellent customer service, as the company started pulling in major contracts from London architects and developers, who had previously been let down by other suppliers.
This generalist approach worked well until the growing skills shortage in 2013.
The decision was then taken to change the business model and transition from a general joinery business to a high-end timber window and door manufacturer targeting specific market sectors.
“We realised that in order to grow and build a truly sustainable future, we needed to adopt a far more focused approach, identifying gaps in the market and developing innovative products that would give us a real competitive edge,” said Andrew Madge, managing director.
The company set about systematically redesigning its entire product line from the ground up. First, came the Classic range, which combined modern double-glazing with sustainable timber to create durable high-performance windows and doors with a traditional aesthetic.
The range of windows and doors was highly innovative and delivered exceptional performance in energy efficiency, sustainability, security and weatherproofing.
The Chatsworth sliding sash was built around a brand new, patented sealing system, the SashSealer, which delivered the highest air permeability and weatherproofing performance in the industry for traditional sliding sash windows. Gowercroft also introduced the only true fixed cost serviced maintenance programme available in the industry to give its customers complete peace of mind for 25 years.
Determined to stay ahead of the curve, Gowercroft Joinery then made its next major leap forward in new product development with the launch of a pioneering range of ‘Heritage’ windows, designed specifically for the conservation market.
“As listed property owners and building conservation officers were frequently having to choose between preserving traditional aesthetics and delivering modern levels of performance, with no single product capable of meeting both requirements, we were confident that our new Heritage range was a unique market changer,” said Mr Madge.
As the first of this radically new generation, the Winston Heritage sliding sash and Richmond Heritage flush casement not only replicated the classic appearance of the original single-glazed windows but exceeded modern levels of performance.
Revolutionary in design, they combined traditional joinery in sustainable Accoya timber with ultra-thin Pilkington Spacia vacuum glazing and the latest in microporous paint coatings.
The result was a genuine slim-lined aesthetic with no double reflection, which preserved the historic integrity of old buildings, whilst providing modern levels of heat and noise insulation, low maintenance, durability, sustainability and low life-cycle costs.
Top Industry Awards
The Heritage sliding sash and Richmond Heritage flush casement windows scooped the ‘Best Windows’ category of the 2017 Build It Awards, which celebrated the best products, services, projects and innovations available to self-builders and renovators.
Further recognition was achieved the following year, this time in the glass and glazing industry, when the rapidly expanding Heritage Range was named a finalist in the New Product of the Year category of the prestigious G18 Awards, taking on wellknown international brands.
Then in 2019, Gowercroft claimed one of the woodworking industry’s highest national accolades: the British Woodworking Federation’s (BWF) Woodworking Project of the Year award for its part in the impressive restoration of a former home of Sir Winston Churchill – Templeton House, in Roehampton. The sensitive restoration of this 18th century Grade II listed stately home received worldwide acclaim and was highly commended in the 2019 Georgian Group Awards.
Progress Through Investment
As the company sales have grown, so has its programme of continuous development and investment to ensure that the highest quality and standards of manufacturing and customer service are maintained.
Working with the University of Derby’s ‘Invest to Grow’ initiative, the company completed a factory overhaul last year. This led to a £350,000 investment in state-of-the- art machinery and software to further streamline processes in order to achieve the efficiencies required to keep pace with increasing sales.
A new commercial division has also been created to provide expert advice and technical support to the company’s growing portfolio of commercial clients.
However, the company’s most important ongoing investment has been in developing its hand-picked team of highly talented craftsmen and window industry professionals. “Gowercroft has always been about people,” said Andrew Madge. “Increasing efficiency, profit and output are great objectives and achievements, but we also want to sustain an environment where all employees can develop their abilities, feel they belong and make a genuine difference.”
As part of this ethos, the company not only encourages further training and cross training within its ranks, but also seeks to bring on the next generation of woodworkers through active participation in apprenticeship programmes. Many of those apprentices now occupy senior roles with the company.
Not a company to rest on its laurels, Gowercroft now has even bigger plans ahead to keep it in the forefront of woodworking and new product innovation.
Following the expansion of its Heritage range, the company is soon to unveil a pioneering new portfolio of windows and doors targeting the future build market.
Designed with a slim traditional look to exacting Passivhaus standards, the Frontier range aims to set new standards by delivering exceptional performance, sustainability, healthy building performance and low maintenance – a true window of the future.
