Counter Talk

With TradeFest 2025 well underway, Austin sent Ted ‘on tour’ to sit down with three of our most experienced leaders in this bonus episode of Counter Talk. Ted talks with Regional Directors Tim Mason, Claire Bailey, and Andy Richmond, who collectively bring over 70 years of Howdens experience to the counter. They discuss how important TradeFest is to us as a business – You’ll hear stories from previous peak trading periods, the importance of trading safely and having fun. The consistency of the TradeFest message shines through, but with plenty of differences from region to region, and depot to depot. Austin joins Ted at the end of the episode to react to Ted’s tour and his conversations with the Regional Directors.

This week on Counter Talk, we're serving up something special with a guest who is a true master of his craft: Fred Sirieix. Fred & Ted explore the secrets behind providing world-class service and the value of doing the simple things flawlessly. Hear what Fred has to say about his own Howdens kitchen, what he loves about his Lamona appliances and his own take on the ultimate recipe for service success. This episode is a fantastic reminder of how our commitment to great service and reliable products put us in the best possible position for TradeFest 2025.

The Classic Timber Kitchens brochure has now launched. So this week, Ted speaks to Dani Tobin, a kitchen designer from our York depot.  This year, Dani has already sold over 20 of these kitchens, with an average value of over £13,000. Find out how Dani has been so successful in this area and what she thinks of our brand-new brochure. There are hints and tips for designers throughout this episode, so don’t miss out!

As we near the end of our Season 3, Ted turns his focus to the topic of kitchen storage and accessories. To navigate this, Ted is joined by Lauren Smith, a designer from our Exeter depot, who are in the top 10 when it comes to storage conversions. Lauren talks through storage sales techniques and focuses on the all-important factor of listening to the customers’ needs. Is storage just for customers with big kitchens or big budgets? Find out on this episode of Counter Talk.

This morning, we announced our 2025 half year results. Ted’s back in Wigmore Street in this special episode of Counter Talk with Andrew Livingston. He speaks about our positive trading momentum and market share gains. Andrew also talks about our fantastic new products, our progress internationally and how TradeFest will help us build on a positive start to 2025.

TradeFest – the most important time in the Howdens calendar! In this special episode of Counter Talk, we break from the norm – Ted speaks to three depot managers, all with their own take on how they’re going to bring Trade Fest to life. This is your opportunity to hear about the headline acts and supporting artists for Trade Fest 2025 – get your backstage pass right here!

Today, Ted speak to Sebastien Krysiak, who leads our international business.  In true Counter Talk style, Ted explores how well we’ve exported our business model and best practices, but also if there’s anything we can learn back. Find out a bit more about our Sebastien and how he plans to grow Howdens internationally.

This week, our focus is on the role of the Assistant Manager. Our guest is Cameron Masterton, Assistant Manager at Inverness. Ted and Cameron explore arguably one of the least well understood roles in the depot. Cameron speaks about playing to his strengths and providing the atmosphere for others in Inverness to do the same. Do all Assistant Managers need the same skills? Do you need to have ambitions to be a Depot Manager, to be a great Assistant Manager? Find the answers here, on Counter Talk!

Back by popular demand… we’re talking to the trade on Counter Talk! Ted welcomes Tom Easter to the studio – the two-time Kitchen Fitter of the Year speaks about his experience fitting Howdens bedrooms. He talks about our bedrooms vs the competition and why it’s a great opportunity for the trade. Tom also tells us about the importance of his relationship with Braintree depot and how their support has been vital to his success. Not one to be missed!

Today, Ted is joined by a very special guest – our new Managing Director, Austin Cooke.Austin takes on Ted’s Quick-Fire Questions, before telling us a bit about his personal life and career history.  You’ll hear Austin talk about the things that have really impressed him so far and what his expectations are for the rest of 2025.Learn what Austin means by the 10ft bar & the 100ft bar, as well as the ‘staircase of commitment’. Don’t miss out on this a bumper episode, full of insight from our new Managing Director!

Today’s guest, Lindsay Hellier from Portsmouth Depot, has the best joinery sales in the business! This episode is full of hints and tips about maximising joinery sales. Lindsay speaks about the balance of having a loss-leader or two, without crashing her margin. Find out how she empowers her team to do the right thing on the counter; they learn from the builders, and vice versa. Hear about how Lindsay’s approach of quoting joinery, even if it hasn’t been asked for – “What gets measured, gets done”.

We hear it all the time – our people are what makes this business great!In this episode we’re focusing on our people, and more specifically, their development. Netty Dadds is the Depot Manager at Lakeside depot, but like so many at Howdens, that’s not where she started out. Ted and Netty talk about how she developed through the years and the opportunities that are out there. Listen out for Netty’s thoughts on dealing with setbacks, nerves and being out of her comfort zone.

We’ve just launched our new true in-frame timber kitchen range, Ilfracombe.In this episode, Ted talks to Paul Sanderson from Northampton depot about what it takes to sell our higher value kitchens.Paul had success on the Ilfracombe trial, so is perfectly placed to give his insight. He talks to Ted about making the buying experience even more special for his customers and the importance of getting confidence from the first sale. Does your depot have to be in a rural, affluent area to succeed with Ilfracombe? Find out here!

In this episode, Ted goes where the money is!  The Clerkenwell is our best-selling kitchen range that’s been part of our business for over a decade.Chris Pennington from Chelmsford joins Ted to talk about the importance of Clerkenwell in his depot. He explores and bust-myths around the type of customer that might buy Clerkenwell, or the type of kitchen you can achieve with the range.Clerkenwell has something for everyone – find out more on Counter Talk!

Ted is joined by Sarah Willoughby from Sevenoaks depot – a manager who has been smashing her depot margin targets. Andrew set out a depot margin expectation of 40% at the Howdens Show this year; Sarah explains how she’s exceeding this. Sarah talks about open conversations with customers, her competitors’ pricing and how she engages her staff when it comes to margin. Sarah’s margin is running at 41.2% YTD, but she never walks away from a deal! Find out more on this latest episode of Counter Talk!

Ted is back in the boardroom in this special episode of Counter Talk with Andrew Livingston. He touches on the numbers and talks about how we continued to make progress last year. Andrew focuses on our strategy for this year and how well-planned we are to grow our market share profitably in 2025 and beyond. If you'd like to see detail of the 2024 full year results, visit the Howdens PLC website below:https://www.howdenjoinerygroupplc.com/

Ted speaks to Ady Heaton, Director of Design at Howdens. You'll get to hear about the design process, a part of the business most people don't get to see. Ady gives his own hints and tips on kitchen design as well as explaining why Clerkenwell is his favourite range of all time!

For the first time on Counter Talk, Ted speaks to one of our trade customers!Jason Andrews, an account holder at Gloucester Depot, started his business in 1995, the same year that Howdens was founded. Ted speaks to Jason about what was different 30 years ago, why he’s traded with us for so long and what’s going to keep him coming back in the future.

With The Big Howdens Trade Day just weeks away, Ted speaks to Kirsty Girletz about Trade Days at Swansea depot.Kirsty gives her top tips on hosting impactful Trade Days. She goes into detail on the preparation, the importance of getting the whole team on board and creating an atmosphere that makes her customers feel special.

This week, Ted welcomes Scott Hale from Douglas Isle of Man depot.Scott shares some of his top tips for other depots, as well as the challenges and opportunities presented by the location of his depot… on an island. Also, he has some great stories to tell!