Wilsons
Wilsons of Colchester is a UK trade-only wholesaler distributing 4,000+ hardware, DIY, cleaning, and household product lines — including seven own brands — to registered hardware retailers and trade stockists via a Magento B2B portal.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1992
- HeadquartersColchester, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Wilsons does
Wilsons of Colchester is a UK trade-only wholesaler and distributor that imports and supplies household, hardware, and DIY products to registered trade accounts. Founded in 1992 and headquartered in Colchester, Essex, the company targets hardware retailers, trade stockists, and trade businesses/contractors across mainland UK, explicitly excluding consumer sales, the Scottish Highlands, offshore islands, and Ireland. Its catalogue spans over 4,000 product lines across eight categories: Hardware & DIY, Cleaning, Laundry, Housewares, Brushware, Garden & Outdoor, and Pest Control, supplemented by an own-brand portfolio of seven sub-brands (Buffalo Brushware, DOTS, Everyday by Wilsons, Rushmere, Orwell, Mill Farm, Dragon Dusters) alongside third-party brands such as Araldite, Loctite, Evo-Stik, Everbuild, Soudal, Gorilla, and UHU.
The company operates a B2B e-commerce portal built on Magento, accessible only to approved trade account holders via login. Pricing is account-gated, and the order model is pay-as-you-go with case-size discounts on most lines and regular monthly promotions. Fulfillment is operated from a single Colchester warehouse with same-day despatch offered for orders placed before 1pm and free mainland UK delivery on orders exceeding £250 ex VAT. The platform includes a branded product search (SEARCH-GENIE) and a personalisation layer (SALES-GENIE) covering recommendations, product history, and favourites; these appear to be standard Magento modules rather than proprietary AI.
Wilsons is privately held with no parent company, no disclosed funding rounds, and no PE or institutional investment evidenced. The firm employs 11-50 people and does not publicly disclose revenue. Its go-to-market is sales-led through the trade portal and account onboarding, supported by email, phone, and web chat service, printed catalogues, and a recently launched influencer marketing partnership with Lynsey Crombie ('Queen of Clean') for the Dethlac pest control brand. The company's stated positioning centres on stocking 'hard to get' product lines not readily available through commodity distributors, leveraging 30+ years of industry experience and ISO 9001 certification.
Wilsons firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Wilsons
- Legal name
- Wilsons of Colchester
- Website
- https://wilsonscolchester.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1992
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Wilsons of Colchester is a UK trade-only wholesaler distributing 4,000+ hardware, DIY, cleaning, and household product lines — including seven own brands — to registered hardware retailers and trade stockists via a Magento B2B portal.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Wilsons industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Trade Wholesale Distribution
- NAICS
- Hardware Merchant Wholesalers (423710), Wholesale Trade (42)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Hardware (5072), Wholesale-Miscellaneous Nondurable Goods (5190)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Traditional Cash & Carry Wholesalers (No/Low Membership) (CRAEAEAA)
Keywords
Where Wilsons is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Colchester
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Wilsons business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- B2B product sales: Wilsons operates as a trade-only wholesaler, selling hardware, DIY, cleaning, laundry, housewares, brushware, garden, and pest control products to registered trade accounts. Revenue is generated through product sales with case price discounts, volume-based free delivery thresholds (£250+), and same-day despatch premiums. The company also carries and sells own-brand product lines including Buffalo Brushware, DOTS, Dethlac, Dragon Dusters, Everyday by Wilsons, Rushmere, and Orwell.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Trade account pricing — case price discounts on most lines |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Wilsons product offering
Product offeringCore offering
UK trade-only wholesaler and distributor supplying independent retailers and trade customers with more than 4,000 product lines spanning hardware, DIY, cleaning, laundry, housewares, brushware, garden, and pest control categories. Orders are processed for same-day despatch before 1pm with free mainland UK delivery offered on orders exceeding £250.
Product overview
Wilsons is a UK trade-only supplier of hardware and DIY products operating as an e-commerce platform built on Magento. The company offers a diverse portfolio of over 4,000 product lines across multiple categories including Hardware & DIY, Cleaning, Laundry, Housewares, Brushware, Garden & Outdoor, and Pest Control. Wilsons carries its own brand portfolio (Buffalo Brushware, DOTS, Everyday by Wilsons, Rushmere, Orwell, Mill Farm, Dragon Dusters) alongside third-party brands (Araldite, Loctite, Evo-Stik, Everbuild, Soudal, Gorilla). The product range spans adhesives, tools, cleaning chemicals, laundry supplies, kitchenware, gardening equipment, and pest control solutions. The company focuses on 'hard to get' lines and offers same-day despatch for orders placed before 1pm with free mainland UK delivery on orders over £250.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Buffalo Brushware: High quality brooms with trade tough merchandising units
- Everyday by Wilsons
- Rushmere
- Orwell
- DOTS
- Mill Farm
- Dragon Dusters
Products and services
- Trade Wholesale Supply Service
Companies that use Wilsons
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Wilsons technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Wilsons partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Lynsey Crombie (Queen of Clean)minorDethlac (a brand sold by Wilsons) has partnered with Lynsey Crombie, known as the 'Queen of Clean', for social media marketing activities. This partnership is intended to drive social media visibility and brand awareness for Dethlac products through influencer-style content.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights3 records
Wilsons competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Travis Perkins: UK's largest builders' merchant, supplying timber, hardware, plumbing, and DIY to trade. Overlaps with Wilsons on trade customer base and selected hardware/DIY categories, but operates an integrated branch and digital network at national scale.
- Screwfix: UK's largest trade-focused DIY and hardware retailer/distributor, part of Kingfisher. Overlaps with Wilsons on trade customers, hardware/DIY assortment, and next-day fulfilment, but operates at much broader scale with national branch coverage.
- City Plumbing: UK specialist trade supplier of plumbing, heating, and bathroom products. Adjacent incumbent comparable to Wilsons on trade-only B2B model and branch/online fulfilment, though narrower category focus.
Direct peers
- Zoro UK: UK trade supplies e-commerce platform distributing tools, maintenance, and janitorial/HVAC items to business customers. Directly comparable online trade-only model with broad SKU range and account-based pricing.
- Toolstation: Major UK trade supplier of tools, hardware, and DIY products with a trade-focused catalogue and click-and-collect network. Directly comparable to Wilsons on customer base and product categories, though at materially larger scale.
- IronmongeryDirect: UK-based online trade-only distributor of hardware, ironmongery, and fixings to trade customers. Closest business-model match to Wilsons with a trade-only portal, same/next-day delivery, and a similar SKUs-per-customer value proposition.
- TradePoint: Trade-only arm of B&Q serving trade customers with hardware, tools, and DIY products. Comparable to Wilsons on trade-only model and product overlap, though backed by B&Q's national retail infrastructure.
- Kellaways Hardware Wholesale: UK-based wholesale distributor of hardware, DIY, housewares, and cleaning products supplying independent retailers. Closest small/mid-market peer to Wilsons in terms of trade-only B2B model, assortment breadth, and customer base.
- Cromwell Tools: UK distributor of tools, maintenance products, and industrial supplies to trade and B2B customers. Comparable to Wilsons on multi-category trade distribution, account-gated pricing, and same/next-day delivery model.
Regional players
- MKM Building Supplies: UK independent builders' merchant with branch network across England, Scotland, and Wales. Comparable on trade customer base and hardware categories, though heavier in building materials than the household/DIY focus of Wilsons.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Wilsons social profiles
Digital presenceWilsons financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Wilsons leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Wilsons funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Wilsons M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Wilsons
What does Wilsons do?
UK trade-only wholesaler and distributor supplying independent retailers and trade customers with more than 4,000 product lines spanning hardware, DIY, cleaning, laundry, housewares, brushware, garden, and pest control categories. Orders are processed for same-day despatch before 1pm with free mainland UK delivery offered on orders exceeding £250.
Is Wilsons a public or private company?
Wilsons is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Wilsons founded?
Wilsons was founded in 1992. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Wilsons based?
Wilsons is headquartered in Colchester, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Wilsons make money?
One revenue line is on record: B2B product sales.
Who are Wilsons's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Travis Perkins, Screwfix and City Plumbing. Direct peers are Zoro UK, Toolstation, IronmongeryDirect, TradePoint, Kellaways Hardware Wholesale and Cromwell Tools. MKM Building Supplies is listed as a regional player.
Does Wilsons have an API?
No public API is recorded for Wilsons.
What industry is Wilsons in?
Wilsons's product category is Trade Wholesale Distribution. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAEAEAA, Traditional Cash & Carry Wholesalers (No/Low Membership). Its NAICS code is 423710 and its SIC code is 5072.