Charles Bentley & Son

What Charles Bentley & Son does

Charles Bentley & Son Ltd is a privately held, family-run UK e-commerce retailer founded in 1860 and now in its sixth generation of family ownership, headquartered in Loughborough, Leicestershire. The company operates a direct-to-consumer platform at charlesbentley.com selling a broad catalogue of garden furniture (bistro sets, lounge sets, sun loungers, benches, hammocks), outdoor heating (fire pits, chimineas, patio heaters), gazebos and marquees, parasols, garden décor, garden maintenance equipment (brushware, sheds, tools), garden play and pet products, and a home living range spanning kitchen, bootroom, fireside and seasonal categories. It also runs a parallel B2B trade division at charlesbentleytrade.com serving professional buyers, and has built proprietary sub-brands including Ottimo (premium gas, charcoal and kamado BBQs) and the Searsmith kamado sub-line. The company sells FSC-certified wooden lines, distributes ELHO recycled plant pots, and supports Klarna / Buy Now Pay Later at checkout, with free UK mainland delivery on orders.

The underlying technology stack is a conventional Magento-based e-commerce storefront (evidenced by the static asset version path) with no public API, no SDK, no developer portal, and no documented AI/ML capabilities. Marketing is multi-channel: a content blog, email newsletter with a £15 first-order incentive, and an organic social presence across Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/X and LinkedIn. Revenue is generated entirely through one-time unit purchases across a wide price band (roughly £12 to £1,000+), with no subscription or recurring revenue model. The business is UK-only in active distribution, though the company describes itself as 'internationally renowned'. Ownership remains entirely within the founding Bentley family, with no disclosed external investment, private equity involvement, or parent entity, and headcount sits in the 51–100 range.

Name

Charles Bentley & Son

Legal name

Charles Bentley & Son Ltd

Website

https://charlesbentley.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1860

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Charles Bentley & Son is a sixth-generation, family-run UK e-commerce retailer (founded 1860, Loughborough) selling garden furniture, BBQs, outdoor heating and home living products directly to UK consumers via charlesbentley.com, with a parallel B2B trade division and proprietary Ottimo/Searsmith BBQ sub-brands.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Loughborough

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Direct E-commerce Sales: Revenue generated through direct-to-consumer online sales of garden furniture, outdoor living products, BBQs, home living items, and related accessories. Products are sold as one-time purchases with options for Buy Now, Pay Later payment methods.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Charles Bentley & Son is a UK-based e-commerce retailer selling garden furniture, outdoor living products, BBQs, garden décor, and home furnishings directly to consumers through charlesbentley.com, with a separate trade division serving professional buyers. The company carries both proprietary branded lines (Ottimo BBQ, Searsmith kamado, ELHO plant pots) and sourced products across materials including rattan, cast aluminium, teak, FSC-certified wood, and recycled plastics.

Product overview

Charles Bentley & Son is a family-run UK e-commerce retailer (established 1860) offering a broad portfolio of outdoor living and home products. The core offering centres on garden furniture (bistro sets, sun loungers, lounge sets, tables and chairs, benches, hammocks, deck chairs) complemented by seasonal categories including BBQs under the Ottimo brand (gas, charcoal, and the Searsmith kamado sub-line), outdoor heating (fire pits, chimineas, patio heaters), gazebos and marquees, parasols and bases, and garden décor. The company also stocks garden maintenance equipment (brushware, sheds, water butts, tools), garden play equipment, pet hutches, home living products (kitchen, bootroom, fireside, Christmas), and DIY tools. Key branded lines include the Ottimo BBQ range and ELHO recycled plant pots. The business operates a single e-commerce platform with free UK delivery and no public API.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ottimo: Premium BBQ brand offering charcoal, gas, and kamado BBQs including Searsmith, Charcoal, and Gas product lines.
• Charles Bentley Trade

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 11,000 verified excellent customer reviews on Reviews.io

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Amazon UK: Dominant UK online marketplace selling garden furniture, BBQs, outdoor heating, and home living products at wide price points; competes on convenience, price, and breadth rather than curation.
• Wayfair UK: Global online home goods retailer with a large UK garden furniture and outdoor living assortment; overlaps on product categories and target consumer, but at much larger scale and broader catalogue.

Direct peers

• Homebase: UK home and garden retailer offering garden furniture, outdoor living, BBQs, and home décor — overlapping product range, target customer, and omnichannel model with Charles Bentley.
• The Range: UK multi-category home, garden, and leisure retailer with deep garden furniture, BBQ, and outdoor living assortment; comparable value-positioning and broad catalogue approach.
• John Lewis & Partners: UK department store with strong garden furniture, outdoor dining, and home living categories; competes for the same premium-UK-consumer customer with full omnichannel presence.
• Argos (Sainsbury's): UK general merchandise and garden retailer (Sainsbury's group) offering garden furniture, BBQs, and outdoor living products at competitive price points through click-and-collect and home delivery.
• B&Q: UK's largest home improvement and garden retailer (Kingfisher plc), competing directly across garden furniture, BBQs, outdoor heating, sheds, and garden maintenance categories with both store and online channels.
• Weber: Global premium BBQ brand (gas, charcoal, kamado) competing directly with Charles Bentley's Ottimo/Searsmith range; relevant specifically for the BBQ and outdoor cooking category overlap.

Regional players

• Dobbies Garden Centres: UK-focused garden centre chain selling garden furniture, BBQs, outdoor heating, and garden décor; overlapping product range with a primarily physical-store UK footprint.
• Notcutts Garden Centres: UK regional garden centre group offering premium garden furniture, BBQs, and outdoor living products; comparable customer demographic and product mix, primarily UK store-based.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/charlesbentley
• Facebookfacebook.com/CharlesBentley1860
• LinkedInuk.linkedin.com/company/charlesbentley
• Instagraminstagram.com/charlesbentley1860

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Charles Bentley & Son