Press release: Proposed partnership Deli Home with Houtwerf and Distri-Hout

Deli Home extends its position with sustainable timber-based building materials through proposed partnership with Houtwerf and Distri-Hout

Leading timber-based building material producers and distributors join forces in the Benelux

Deli Home, a leading manufacturer and distributor of high-quality timber-based home improvement products has reached an important milestone by acquiring 50.0% of the shares in Houtwerf (www.houtwerf.nl) and by merging the activities of Distri-Hout (www.distrihout.be) and Deli Home Belgium. From their sites in Zoeterwoude (the Netherlands) and Aalst (Belgium) respectively, Houtwerf and Distri-Hout serve the do-it-yourself chains, builders’ merchants, specialist retail stores and construction companies in the Benelux market. The proposed partnership is subject to approval from the relevant competition authorities.

Sustainable product range
In recent years, Houtwerf and Distri-Hout have developed an exclusive range of sustainable and circular product lines that have minimal environmental impact during production, usage, reuse or recycling.

Building on sustainable products such as Corepel flooring, CanDo Green and the fully circular Weekamp Deuren BioComfort front door made of recycled stile wood with a biobased filling, Deli Home is significantly bolstering its position in Europe with the addition of sustainable building materials.

Nearly 100% of the wide range of products offered by Houtwerf and Distri-Hout is PEFC/FSC-certified. This aligns seamlessly with Deli Home’s ESG target of selling 100% PEFC/FSC-certified timber by no later than 2025.

Victor Aquina, CEO of Deli Home, states: ‘Welcoming Houtwerf and Distri-Hout to the Deli Home group marks a new milestone in our growth strategy. Both companies have product ranges that are exceedingly compatible with ours. We are excited about the opportunities that we see for our customers in the exclusive sustainable and circular products that Houtwerf and Distri-Hout offer. In addition, we will be able to benefit from the extensive knowledge that both companies have with regard to this extremely important subject. We are looking forward to working with our new colleagues towards achieving our ambition of becoming Europe’s digital carpenter’.

Pieter and Henri Verbeek, managing directors of Houtwerf and Distri-Hout, add: ‘We already have a very successful partnership with Deli Home in France via our joint venture, AJ Timber. This collaboration gives us the opportunity to expedite our growth plans in the Benelux whilst maintaining the high standard of service that we provide to our existing customers. We are confident that we have found the right partner in Deli Home for the next phase for our companies. We are looking forward to doing business as usual, albeit with the opportunities that Deli Home has to offer’.

About Houtwerf and Distri-Hout
Houtwerf and Distri-Hout are well known for their high-quality service levels and in-depth product knowledge. They serve customers in the Benelux region from their warehouses, which collectively span almost 30,000 m2. The companies are characterised by their innovative and entrepreneurial spirit, resulting in a product portfolio tailored to the latest market trends.

In total, Houtwerf and Distri-Hout employ approximately 100 employees. Pieter Verbeek will continue to manage Houtwerf’s operations. Jeroen Lauwers, currently managing director of Deli Home Belgium, will become managing director for the combined activities of Distri-Hout and Deli Home Belgium, with Henri Verbeek supporting Jeroen Lauwers and remaining contact person for Distri-Hout’s customers and suppliers. As envisaged, the collaboration will entail Houtwerf, Distri-Hout and Deli Home predominantly focusing on combined logistics and innovative product management to ensure that existing customers receive optimum service.

This collaboration is being supported by Ardian, a world-leading private investment house, which is the shareholder of Deli Home together with the management team.

Together, Deli Home, Houtwerf and Distri-Hout are committed to setting the standard for high-quality sustainable and circular timber-based building materials and working towards becoming Europe’s digital carpenter.