Tile deal under investigation as revenues fall
Topps Tiles’ deal to buy 30 stores from the collapsed CTD company is under investigation by the competition watchdog, the Enderby firm revealed this morning.
In a trading update this morning, Topps said: “Following receipt of an initial information request from the Competition and Markets Authority, the CMA has informed us that it intends to review the acquisition under UK merger control and we are now working with the CMA in connection with this process.”
Birmingham-headquartered CTD Tiles was one of Britain’s largest tile suppliers before it collapsed, trading from 87 stores and employing around 580 staff.
Last year was the first year of trading for CTD as a standalone business, following Aurelius’ carve-out and purchase of CTD’s trade and assets from Saint-Gobain in 2022. It reported revenues of more than £112m and profits of £580k.
53 CTD stores have been saved since the firm entered administration with Stiled, which owns the Tile Giant and Tile Choice brands reaching an agreement to take on 16 former CTD Tiles stores, as well as the seventh-largest tile manufacturer in the world Kajaria Ceramics taking on seven stores as part of a UK joint venture for the New Delhi-headquartered firm.
For Topps, sales were down in the year to September 28th. The company reported that group sales fell to £248m – a drop of 5.7% on a record high of £263m last year – amid what Topps is calling “a very challenging environment”.
Rob Parker, Topps Group CEO said: “In a year that has proved challenging in many ways, I am pleased by how well our teams have responded to the weaker market, demonstrating both our resilience and our ability to continue to outperform. I am also satisfied that despite these challenges we have been able to continue to deliver against our strategy and take opportunities as they have arisen, supported by our strong balance sheet.
“Looking ahead, macro-economic indicators point to a stronger market in 2025. While the timing and trajectory of the recovery remains hard to predict, we are confident that our clearly articulated and proven strategy will enable the further development of the Group in all market conditions.”
