One of the North East's longest established companies has been sold to a larger firm in its sector, it has emerged.
Plumbers’ merchant T Crossling, which dates back to 1855 and is based just off the Coast Road in Newcastle, has been sold to Cheshire firm º£½ÇÊÓƵ Plumbing Supplies Limited. Crossling had operated from 15 branches, mostly around the North of England, with a staff of around 200.
Its sale to º£½ÇÊÓƵ Plumbing Supplies - which bills itself as the country’s largest independent plumber’s merchant, with more than 300 sites around the º£½ÇÊÓƵ and turnover of more than £800m last year - has been revealed in Crossling’s annual accounts. The value of the deal has not been disclosed.
The accounts say: “Since the year end, the entire share capital of T Crossling and Co Limited was acquired by º£½ÇÊÓƵ Plumbing Supplies Limited. On September 2024 the group’s trade and net assets were transferred to º£½ÇÊÓƵ Plumbing Supplies Limited, from which point Crossling trades as a subsidiary of º£½ÇÊÓƵ Plumbing Supplies Limited.
“The directors are confident that Crossling branches will continue to perform strongly under new owner with the benefits that a larger group will bring.â€
Elsewhere in the accounts, Crossling reported a rise in turnover to £51.6m in 2023. Operating profit fell to £3.2m, having stood at £5.2m a year earlier but a £5.8m profit on the disposal of the business meant that the company’s profit for the financial year effectively doubled to stand at £8.7m.
The accounts outline the company’s efforts to reduce its environmental impact in recent years, including investment in LED lighting across its offices and sites and a switch to hybrid vehicles. It also highlighted a commitment to corporate social responsibility which included sponsorship and charitable donations to a number of local organisations, plus a wellbeing service for its employees.
As well as supplying individual builders, plumbers and heating engineers, Crossling served a number of regional and national builders, housing associations, health trusts and utility companies. In addition to its base in Newcastle, it had sites around the North East and in Manchester, Sheffield, Carlisle and Liverpool.
