Plumbase

What Plumbase does

Plumbase supplies plumbing and heating products to professional trade installers.

Name

Plumbase

Legal name

UK Plumbing Supplies Ltd

Website

https://www.plumbase.co.uk/

Company type

Private

Founded year

1922

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Plumbase supplies plumbing and heating products to professional trade installers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Plumbing and Heating Supplies Distribution

NAICS

Hardware Merchant Wholesalers (423710)

SIC

Wholesale-Hardware & Plumbing & Heating Equipment & Supplies (5070)

akta.pro primary industry

Plumbing Parts & Supplies Retail (Pipes, Valves, Fittings) (CRAIADAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Plumbing Fixtures & Faucets Showrooms (CRAIAFAC), Kitchen & Bath Installation & Project Services (Retail + Install) (CRAIAFAH)

Keywords

• Plumbing supplies merchant
• Heating products distributor
• Bathroom fixtures retailer
• Trade plumbing merchant
• Boiler spares supply

Headquarters

HQ city

Crawley

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Product Sales - Plumbing, Heating, Bathroom Supplies: Sale of plumbing supplies, heating products, bathroom fixtures and fittings to trade and retail customers through physical branches, showrooms, and e-commerce website. Products include pipes, fittings, boilers, radiators, sanitaryware, tiles, and accessories.
2. Showroom Services and Bathroom Design: Design consultation services for bathrooms through showrooms, including design visits and project management from design through to installation

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Plumbase is a UK specialist merchant that supplies plumbing, heating, bathroom, and renewable energy products to professional trade installers and retail customers. The company operates a network of physical branches, trade counters, and showrooms, complemented by an e-commerce storefront offering same-day delivery or collection and next-day availability of over 20,000 boiler spares items. Trade customers can apply for credit accounts with personalised pricing, while retail customers access bathroom design services through showroom displays.

Product overview

Plumbase operates as a single unified merchant brand offering four core product categories: Plumbing, Heating, Bathrooms, and Renewables. The business also maintains Esteem Bathrooms as a dedicated sub-brand showcasing curated bathroom collections from leading manufacturers. Plumbase serves both trade professionals and retail customers with locations across the UK, offering same-day delivery and next-day availability for over 20,000 boiler spares items through its central distribution.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Esteem Bathrooms: Inspirational bathroom collection featuring sanitaryware, modular and fitted furniture, baths, free-standing baths, bath screens, cabinets, mirrors, WC frames and cisterns, mixer showers, wet rooms, shower enclosures, shower trays, wall panels and flooring, towel rails, designer towel rails, bathroom taps, kitchen taps, radiator valves, lighting and ventilation, and accessories.

Products and services

• Plumbing Products

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Esteem BathroomscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEsteem Bathrooms is a private label bathroom collection operated by Plumbase/UK Plumbing Supplies. The brand offers a comprehensive range of bathroom products including sanitaryware, modular and fitted furniture, baths, showers, enclosures, radiators, taps, and accessories. Products are sourced from leading manufacturers and available through Plumbase showrooms and stockists.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• City Plumbing Supplies: City Plumbing Supplies is a UK-wide plumbing, heating, and bathroom merchant serving trade installers with branches, showrooms, and trade credit accounts. It is a direct competitor to Plumbase with a comparable product range, target customer (professional installers and contractors), and distribution model.
• PTS (Plumbing Trade Supplies): PTS is a UK plumbing and heating merchant operating through a network of branches serving trade professionals, offering similar pipes, fittings, boilers, and heating supplies. It directly competes with Plumbase for trade counter business across overlapping UK geographies.
• Graham Plumbing Merchants: Graham is a UK plumbing and heating merchant focused on the trade installer customer with branches and a commercial supply service. It is highly comparable to Plumbase in product mix, customer base (trade installers), and branch-based distribution.

Broad incumbents

• Travis Perkins: Travis Perkins is the UK's largest builders' merchant group, with City Plumbing as a subsidiary. It overlaps Plumbase in plumbing and heating distribution and serves the same trade customer base, but operates across a much broader product portfolio (timber, general building materials) beyond plumbing.
• Saint-Gobain (UK Distribution): Saint-Gobain's UK distribution arm supplies plumbing, heating, and building products through merchant networks such as Jewson and Graham. It competes with Plumbase in trade distribution but as part of a broader global building materials group rather than a plumbing-specialist.
• Wolseley UK / Ferguson Enterprises: Wolseley UK is a large plumbing, heating, and cooling merchant serving trade customers, part of Ferguson Enterprises globally. It competes with Plumbase in plumbing distribution but operates at significantly larger scale and broader product scope.
• Screwfix: Screwfix is a UK trade retailer selling plumbing, heating, and maintenance products with click-and-collect from a dense branch network. It overlaps Plumbase's trade-facing offer but with a much broader hardware and maintenance product range and a digitally-led operating model.
• Toolstation: Toolstation is a UK trade supplier selling plumbing, heating, and maintenance products via branches and online. It competes for trade customer spend against Plumbase but operates as a multi-category trade supplier rather than a plumbing specialist.

Emerging players

• Victorian Plumbing: Victorian Plumbing is a UK-based online bathroom retailer offering sanitaryware, showers, and bathroom furniture directly to consumers. It overlaps with Plumbase's retail bathroom business but competes primarily through digital channels rather than showrooms and trade distribution.

Regional players

• Tile Giant: Tile Giant is a UK tile and bathroom product retailer with showrooms nationwide. It overlaps with Plumbase's bathroom retail and showroom offering but has a stronger weighting toward tiles rather than full plumbing and heating distribution.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/plumbase

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Plumbase