Ireland's Electrical Magazine Issue 86

COMPANY NEWS

The team at Kew Electrical Belfast.

DOUBLE CELEBRATION YEAR FOR KEW ELECTRICAL AND EDS & EDS... Many happy returns for KewElectrical

L ongevity in any sector of business demands respect, so we should all salute Kew Electrical, an award- winning wholesaler, who is celebrating their 25th anniversary this year. Started by Geoff Kerly, in his spare bedroom in Brighton, 25 years ago, Kew Electrical has grown to twenty-six branches including Kew Electrical Belfast, formally Edwards & Edwards, which was added to the UK network in 2008. The takeover of Eds & Eds in Belfast, est. 1906, marked Kew’s first venture far outside its home territory of the south of England. “It was slightly off the patch,

yes,” said Geoff, “but it was quite a strong business and didn’t cost a lot of money. It also gave Kew some additional volume.” Today, Kew Electrical has an annual turnover approaching £100 million and is the largest member of the Fegime buying group where Geoff has been chairman twice. Despite the woes of 2020 and the pandemic, Geoff said Kew is, “probably in the strongest financial shape we have ever been in. These things make you look at every element of your business. We’ve saved an absolute fortune this past year just by looking at everything very closely.”

Kew has been able to survive the Covid storm in part because of its continuing small company ethos, which gives it an agility that others cannot match. “It is a differentiator,” explained MD Nik Mulcahy. “Geoff and I can make quick decisions within the business – and it happens. We might be a £100 million business, but we still have control of the whole thing.” Family business “There is still a ‘Kerly family firm ethos’ to Kew, he added, “which obviously is harder to keep going as we approach

“Kew Electrical has witnessed and survived many uncertain and turbulent times since its foundation.”

20 | IRELAND’S ELECTRICAL MAGAZINE

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