Staff at the Gloucester timber merchant were warned in November that the business might be closing down.

Management at Griggs Timber Company, which was founded in 1917 and was owned by Kellaway Building Supplies since 2013, contacted staff on 17 November and announced a month-long consultation on the future of the business. This included meetings with staff representatives, where they were told that the business had been making loses for the past three years. 

Sarah Baldwin has worked at Griggs for over 40 years, and is one of those representatives. She explained to local news outlet Punchline-Gloucester.com: "I had a phone call from one of the directors to say my job was at risk as they were looking to close the business.

"I've been there through three or four recessions, and we've always come out the other end. This was not expected. Why didn't they come to us three years ago and say 'we're making these losses, we need to do something about it'?"

"It was all such a shock and a lot of anger. It's affecting many families, some related. We are a family and a little community because we've all worked there for such a long time."

According to Baldwin, almost all members of the 25-strong staff have been with the company for over 20 years. They are being provided with training in CV writing, interview techniques and forklift driving.

Kellaway's accounts show a business in difficulties with turnover shrinking slowly from £52.7 million in 2022 to £50.5 million in 2023 and £49.7 million in 2024. Profit also declines from £11.58 million in 2023 to £10.58 million in 2024. The company made losses of £304,582 in 2024, which is stark contrast with its £859,181 profit in 2023.

The business operates branches in Cirencester, Tewkesbury and Stonehouse.