TTJ: How has the market for mouldings been over the last six months and what have been the key drivers?

Gerard Wilson, sales director SAM Mouldings: We’ve made a policy decision not to constantly mention the ‘B’ word. You can talk the market down and we have a responsibility to customers to remain positive.

And, while there may be bumps in the road, demand is still there, and thanks to strategic selling we are where we wanted to be.

We’re present in all three main market sectors: DIY/RMI, new housebuilding and general construction. Housebuilding remains buoyant, driven by some ambitious build programmes from the big players. RMI is strong too. In construction some companies are hesitating to sign off big projects, but we believe they’re on ice rather than cancelled.

David Howard, director DW Mouldings: After the initial wobble from Brexit the mouldings market has picked up. We’re seeing a good mix of enquiries from various parts of the trade. Our bulk is going to commercial buildings and new build, but there’s still a good proportion going into DIY and renovation markets.

Our part of the timber trade has also been very lucky. There’s political uncertainty, but I think the impact would have been worse if it wasn’t for the Timber Trade Federation. Cladding has declined considerably, but the great job they’ve done in promoting timber has really kept awareness frontline.

Mark Bowers, commercial director, James Donaldson Timber: Overall business has been slower so far in 2019 than last year, with some parts of the country more affected than others.

Simon Fleet, group commercial director, W Howard: The market has seen spikes in demand, but also some dips. Although the weather has been conducive to construction, the main market factor has been uncertainty arising from Brexit, which has led to average orders dropping.

TTJ: Which products have performed best?

GW: SAM’s best performer is primed MDF mouldings. But there’s growing demand for SAM Zero fully-finished too, particularly from the modular and offsite building sectors, which are oriented to fully-finished products overall. Demand for real veneer SAM Wrap is there too, notably from merchants with a good hardwood offer and those offering mouldings as flooring and doors accessories.

DH: Bespoke mouldings are our best performer. We’ve been producing an average of 29 new profiles each month on top of normal production, most of which have been drawn, machined and delivered in days. MB: There has been increased demand for MDF mouldings, partly due to market dynamics and partly national housebuilders being very active. The softwood mouldings market is stable, but remains under pressure from MDF substitution.

SF: Our Contemporary Range has seen significant increases, especially in new build, and fully finished KOTA skirting and architraves have seen growth in the DIY market, as more people opt for products requiring little preparation.

TTJ: What have been latest new product developments?

GW: We introduced Tricoya-based exterior application SAM Trimax a few years ago, but it’s been gaining traction. The range includes cladding, fascia, soffit and window component profiles, either primed or fully finished and sells to contractors and façade solution specialist providers. Given its performance characteristics, there may be scope for Trimax as a decking accessory, but we’ve yet to explore that.

MB: We’re working with key customers on improved finishes, which are yet to be generally released.

SF: It’s early days, but MEDITE TRICOYA is starting to gather interest.

TTJ: What are your most successful channels to market?

GW: We’ve developed our manufacturing resource to service the range of channels; from volume delivery to the Barratts and Persimmons, larger merchant and DIY operations, working with them to tailor our offer to their precise requirements and customer base, through to SME merchant and specialist outlets, providing belts and braces, retail-style product presentations. It’s about understanding individual customers and their customers’ particular needs.

DH: We supply many independent timber and building merchants and they all seem to be thriving. They sell a lot to the ‘white van man’, indicating that the renovation/DIY market is still going strong.

MB: Independent merchants are our main customer base and they continue to perform well in terms of market development.

SF: Builders and timber merchants are still doing well.

TTJ: How does the mouldings market divide between different materials?

GW: There’s still a place for solid wood, but MDF continues to grow market share as more people appreciate the benefits, including ease of use, consistent finish and versatility. And for those who want the real wood aspect, there’s also the veneer-wrapped product, which is a good option properly placed.

DH: Although we machine softwood, we’re mainly a hardwood mill and American white oak remains by far our most popular timber for mouldings. Over the past six months it’s accounted for 52% of production, followed by 12% in tulipwood and 9% Red Grandis. Beech has fallen considerably since being replaced by sapele and paint grade maple for fire door frames and is now just over 1% of production.

SF: MDF continues to see significant growth at the expense of softwood.

TTJ: What have been developments in style and aesthetics?

GW: We still sell decent volumes of traditional torus and ogee, but there’s increasing demand for more contemporary sections with grooves or rebates along the face, or profiles with minimal machining, such as a small pencil round or arised edge.

MB: There is growing demand for improved finishes.

TTJ: Have you developed new customer sales tools? and what would your tips be on mouldings merchandising?

GW: Our diverse customer base requires a range of approaches, from traditional displays, racking, and smaller POS boards, to presentations of physical examples and A1 sheets showing the entire brand. We’ve also embraced ‘new age’, interactive marketing, online tools and social media and providing website development support.

On tips to merchants, I’d say look after the product. It’s a premium item and needs respect. It must be properly presented and stored alongside timber and placed in the right environment.

It’s about the three P’s; product, place and price. It’s also important to recognise its value as an accessory sale. Consider the Tesco pasta factor – the fact that alongside pasta, supermarkets place pasta sauces as an upsell.

Likewise place your mouldings, your architraves or skirting near complementary products, so they can be a primary offer, or an add-on option.

Training is also key. It’s a speciality product and your team will only sell it if they’re confident in selling it. We provide training, suited to different requirements; our account managers offer presentations, Q&A sessions and customer training days.

DH: Our online profile library was created in 2009 to bring otherwise redundant tooling to our customers. It consists of around 1,700 profiles and although it’s working well – we now have nearly 5,000 profiles – we are updating it to make it easier to browse and find the moulding required. Whether you’re trying to match a profile, or just browsing for inspiration, it’s an invaluable trade tool.

MB: Key tips for merchants are to keep plentiful stocks of popular items, keep stock well presented and rotate it well.

SF: Customers like to touch and see products, so we’re investing heavily in display boards.

TTJ: Have you undertaken any capital investment recently?

GW: We keep on top of new technology, although we don’t want to overdo the automation and become like a robot car plant. The danger is you neglect small but important areas of the market. With our customer range, we have to retain flexibility.

It can’t all be about volume and price. Our focus has also been on integrating Select Timber, which we acquired in late 2016. Having a distribution and manufacturing base on the GB mainland has facilitated a whole new level of service for customers there and given them confidence that we’re investing and marching on.

DH: We’ve installed a new 8-head Weinig P2400 moulder. It’s a fantastic machine as standard, but we upgraded it so it’s completely CNC-controlled. It increased the price, but means operators don’t have to open the doors while the machine is running. Health and safety is our priority.

SF: We’ve increased profile wrapping capacity to meet demand and provide opportunities for growth.

TTJ: What are the prospects for the market?

GW: Brexit may cast a shadow, but we believe it will be temporary and we remain positive about prospects.

Longer term we expect the market to continue to evolve. In particular we’re still behind Europe in terms of taking a more finished approach, particularly in favouring products with integral application and installation systems. It’s difficult to give a time frame, but that’s another area with potential.

DH: It’s difficult to predict with Brexit looming, but I’d say the market could be strong for a while. Many smaller companies buy mouldings direct from Europe, which at the moment is quite easy. If we leave Europe, there will be added issues, such as EUTR and maybe currency fluctuations, which may make conditions more favourable for UK-produced mouldings.

SF: Prospects are good, but it feels like the market is currently holding its breath.