JOHN CARR (LIVERPOOL) LIMITED

What JOHN CARR (LIVERPOOL) LIMITED does

John Carr (Liverpool) Limited is a privately held UK building materials manufacturer headquartered at 10-12 Grundy Street, Liverpool. The company produces mortars, floor screeds, Tyrolean finishes, and construction and decorative aggregates for the UK construction industry, with primary geographic concentration in North West England, North Wales, Yorkshire, and Derbyshire. Its core product lines span Lime Sand Mortars, Ready to Use Mortars (workable for up to 72 hours via admixture retardation), Dry Pack Mortars (25kg to 1 tonne IBC formats), Hydraulic Lime Mortars across the HLM 0.5-5.0 designation range, Pointing Mortars, the proprietary Carbra-Mix cement-based Tyrolean finish, traditional and modified sand/cement Floor Screeds, and a broad range of decorative and building aggregates. The business is family-run, founded by John Carr around 1896 and incorporated in 1939, currently operated by two grandsons and a great-grandson of the founder.

The underlying manufacturing technology is built around a lime plant commissioned in the early 1970s that still slakes ground quick lime sourced from Buxton into liquid lime putty for Lime Sand Mortar production, supported by forced-action mixers that ensure even dispersion of cement and aggregate in floor screed batches. Differentiated production features include a colour library of over 150 standard mortar shades with bespoke blending capability, retarder-controlled setting times adjustable from 6 to 24 hours, and a delivery fleet of crane off-loading vehicles that place 0.25m³ mortar tubs directly into brick-layers' working areas without requiring on-site plant. The company sells direct to construction sites and operates with no public pricing, suggesting a quote-based transactional model.

No external investors, parent entities, subsidiaries, funding rounds, patents, or regulatory actions are disclosed. The company's go-to-market is concentrated almost entirely on a single vertical (construction industry) served through direct delivery and an information-only website, with social media channels absent and the corporate identity rooted in multi-generational family heritage rather than digital brand-building.

Name

JOHN CARR (LIVERPOOL) LIMITED

Legal name

John Carr (Liverpool) Limited

Website

https://johncarrliverpoolltd.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1896

Operating status

Operating

Short description

John Carr (Liverpool) Limited is a family-run UK manufacturer of mortars, floor screeds, Tyrolean finishes, and construction and decorative aggregates, founded around 1896 and serving builders, masons, and contractors across North West England, North Wales, Yorkshire, and Derbyshire via direct site delivery.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Construction Materials

NAICS

Cement and Concrete Product Manufacturing (3273), Lime Manufacturing (32741), Other Concrete Product Manufacturing (32739)

SIC

Concrete, Gypsum & Plaster Products (3270), Cement, Hydraulic (3241), Concrete Products, Except Block & Brick (3272)

akta.pro primary industry

Mortar, Grout & Masonry Cements (IMADABAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Plaster (Gypsum/Lime/Cement) & Basecoat Systems (IMADAEAC), Limestone Quarrying (Industrial & Construction Grade) (IMAKAHAC), Cementitious Binders & Additives (Fly Ash, Slag, Silica Fume, Lime) (IMADAAAH)

Keywords

• Mortar manufacturing
• Lime sand mortars
• Floor screeds
• Decorative aggregates
• Building aggregates

Headquarters

HQ city

Liverpool

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

John Carr (Liverpool) Limited manufactures mortars (lime sand, ready to use, dry pack, hydraulic lime, and pointing), the Carbra-Mix Tyrolean finish, traditional floor screeds, decorative aggregates, and building aggregates. Products are factory-controlled, available in multiple colours (over 150 standard mortar shades), and supplied in bulk, skips, tubs, and bagged formats to construction industry buyers.

Product overview

John Carr (Liverpool) Limited is a family-run building materials manufacturer offering a comprehensive portfolio of mortar products and construction aggregates. The product line centres on various mortar types including Lime Sand Mortars, Ready to Use Mortars, Dry Pack Mortars, Hydraulic Lime Mortars, and Pointing Mortars, complemented by the Carbra-Mix Tyrolean Finish for decorative textured finishes. The company also supplies Floor Screeds for levelling applications, along with Decorative and Building Aggregates. These products serve the construction industry with materials for bricklaying, pointing, rendering, flooring, and landscaping applications, delivered in various formats from small bags to bulk loads.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Carbra-Mix: Cement based Tyrolean finish mix manufactured by John Carr (Liverpool) Limited, applied through a hand held tyrolean gun to give textured coloured finish to smooth renders, concrete or block work. Suitable for internal and external use.

Products and services

• Lime Sand Mortars Traditional mortar made from well-graded sands blended with slaked hydrated lime putty, available with coloured pigments for aesthetic purposes; lime-based mortars are flexible and absorb structural movement in buildings. Targeted at construction industry buyers including builders, masons, and heritage restoration contractors.
• Ready to Use Mortars Factory-controlled cement addition to retarded mortars producing high-performance durable Cement Lime Sand Mortars and Sand Cement Mortars that remain workable for up to 72 hours with admixtures. Targeted at construction trade buyers seeking on-site convenience without mixing.
• Dry Pack Mortars Pre-mixed mortars in a range of mixes, strengths, and colours requiring only the addition of water to produce a workable durable mortar; available in pack sizes from 25kg bags to 1 tonne IBC. Targeted at construction buyers who need reliable factory-blended dry mortars.
• Hydraulic Lime Mortars Traditional hydraulic lime mortars with a full range of HLM designations from HLM 0.5 to HLM 5.0 requiring only the addition of clean water, suitable for matching or repairing traditional hydraulic lime mortar applications. Targeted at heritage restoration and traditional building contractors.
• Pointing Mortars Range of pointing mortars that can be either trowel-applied or used with a mortar pointing gun, available in a range of colours and mix designs for suitable finishes to all pointing jobs. Targeted at bricklayers and masons performing pointing work.
• Carbra-Mix Tyrolean Finish Cement-based mix applied through a hand-held Tyrolean gun to give a textured coloured finish to smooth renders, bricks, block, and concrete; suitable for internal and external use. Targeted at rendering contractors and builders seeking decorative finishes.
• Floor Screeds (Traditional) Sand cement floor screeds mixed in forced-action mixers for levelling bases such as concrete, insulation board, and under-floor heating mats; available with modified additives including 6mm or 10mm aggregate, polypropylene fibres, S.B.R., and Rapid Drying options. Targeted at flooring contractors and builders.
• Decorative Aggregates Range of decorative aggregates for drives, paths, and gardens including Cumbrian Green Slate, Welsh Blue Slate, Limestone, Granite, and Beach Pebbles; available in mini bags, big bags, and bulk loads tipped. Targeted at landscapers, builders, and homeowners working on external decorative projects.
• Building Aggregates Wide range of building aggregates including building sands, plastering sand, limestone, gravel, granite, recycled materials, top soil, and various dust products; available in mini bags, big bags, skips, and bulk tipped. Targeted at construction buyers requiring bulk and bagged aggregate materials.

Quantifiable outcome

• Workable mortar for up to 72 hours
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Cornwall Lime Company: Cornwall-based lime products manufacturer focused on hydraulic lime mortars and lime putty for heritage and traditional construction. Niche UK lime mortar peer with overlapping heritage restoration customer base.
• Mike Wye & Associates: Devon-based supplier of traditional lime mortars, renders, and heritage building materials. Closely comparable product mix focused on lime-based mortars and plasters for conservation and traditional construction.
• Ty-Mawr Lime: Welsh-based manufacturer of lime mortars, lime plasters, and natural building materials serving heritage and new-build construction in the UK. Direct specialty competitor with comparable lime putty, mortar, and plaster product ranges.
• Lime Green: UK manufacturer of lime-based products including mortars, renders, plasters, and finishes for new-build and heritage projects. Direct competitor in lime mortars and decorative/functional finishes.

Broad incumbents

• Tarmac (CRH): One of the UK's largest building materials producers offering cement, aggregates, ready-mix concrete, mortars, and screeds through a national network. Broad incumbent that competes in adjacent mortar and aggregate categories at national scale.
• Aggregate Industries: Major UK supplier of aggregates, concrete, asphalt, and mortar products with national operations. Broad incumbent competing for the same construction and infrastructure customers in the Northern England and Wales markets.
• Marshalls: UK-listed hard landscaping and building products manufacturer with a broad portfolio including aggregates and concrete products. Comparable in decorative aggregates and building materials though broader in scope.
• Hanson UK (Heidelberg Materials): UK subsidiary of Heidelberg Materials supplying aggregates, cement, ready-mix concrete, and asphalt. Broad incumbent with national distribution overlapping John Carr's aggregate and mortar segments.
• Breedon Group: Listed UK aggregates and construction materials group operating quarries, ready-mix plants, and concrete product lines. Overlaps with John Carr in building aggregates and concrete-related categories at greater scale.

Regional players

• Longcliffe Quarries: Derbyshire-based limestone quarry and lime products producer supplying aggregates, lime, and calcium carbonates. Regionally overlapping competitor in the Derbyshire source region for building aggregates and lime products.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

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 JOHN CARR (LIVERPOOL) LIMITED