Trusted for 125 years
Turnbull first opened for business in 1895 selling building materials out of a small yard on Station Road in Sleaford.
After the First World War, the company sold sand and gravel extracted from local pits making deliveries by horse and cart. Concrete pill boxes made in the Second World War can still be seen in the area and they’re made from Turnbull gravel.
A company with strong local roots, history and tradition, Turnbull now has eight branches in locations across Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire. Our branches in Brigg, Boston, Newark, Sleaford, Lincoln, Spalding and online presence cover the counties from Scunthorpe to Market Deeping and from Newark to Wainfleet.
A family-run business then and now
Bought by the Hopkins family more than 50 years ago, Turnbull is still very much a family business. Two generations of the Hopkins family now work across all areas of the company alongside key members of staff.
It now employs nearly 200 people, but keeps its family values at the heart of the company ethos with the next generation of the Turnbull team working hard to bring innovative products and services to the trade and general public.
Chairman Gary Hopkins sees Turnbull staff as central to its success. He says:
We have always looked to employ people who understand our culture of excellent customer service. We are proud of the great relationships we have with our customers, many of whom return to us again and again due to the service we give them.
A Look Back in Time
1895
Turnbull began trading in 1895 selling building materials in Sleaford – the business establishes itself as a key supplier to local trades as the town expands in the first decades of the twentieth century
1940s
Turnbull delivered gravel and sand from nearby Ancaster Pit and Rauceby Warren for the construction of Second World War pill boxes, still seen in the area today
1970s
Turnbull was a valued local employer at the time, well respected in Sleaford,
View from Sleaford High Street featuring the Picturedrome and Sleaford Building Supplies in Southgate
1980s
1985 The grand opening of Homebuild DIY, the first Turnbull premises built on Woodbridge Road, Sleaford – now Sleaford Plumbing & Heating Supplies with a Kitchen & Bathroom Showroom on site
1987 The Sleaford Target newspaper profiles the Hopkins family, owners of Turnbull Builders’ Merchants, a prominent local business
1990s
1999 A delivery vehicle before the introduction of the familiar Turnbull blue and yellow branding customers know today
2000s
Circa 2001 this shot of a Turnbull crane offload delivery lorry shows how the business was expanding across Lincolnshire, with a branch now established in Brigg
2001 Boston Plumbing & Heating Supplies opened its doors with branch manager Charlie Stafford in charge. Charlie, who is still in post, even remembers the first customer to walk through the doors on January 2nd – Steve Waltham
2004 – Boston Building Supplies opened its doors at the site on Hamilton Way, off Nelson Way, with Branch Manager Mark Holland (still in residence) at the helm.
2003 Turnbull’s very first dedicated Kitchens, Bathrooms and Bedrooms showroom opened on Woodbridge Road, next door to the original Sleaford Plumbing & Heating Supplies
2010s
The Turnbull fleet grows rapidly in this decade, delivering building, plumbing and heating supplies as well as new kitchens and bathrooms straight to customers in Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire – it now has over 60 vehicles
2016 the latest addition to the expanding Turnbull network, Spalding Building Supplies, opened its doors, making it the company’s 7th branch
2018 Newark branch expanded and doubled in size to provide extensive plumbing and building supplies to the local area as well as the first dedicated Turnbull Kitchens & Bathrooms showroom outside Sleaford
Turnbull employs over 200 people across ten locations in a variety of roles from kitchen and bathroom designers, counter traders, yard and delivery staff as well as an online sales and marketing team, making the company a valued local employer
2020s
2020 A brand-new Turnbull Kitchens & Bathrooms showroom located in Lincoln now offers our customers bespoke kitchen and bathroom design services in a state-of-the-art showroom environment
2021 – Boston Plumbing & Heating Supplies relocates after 21 years at Norfolk Street site to the current site on Nelson Way, adjacent to the Building Supplies Branch.
Turnbull is an expanding company, committed to delivering the best in goods and services to its customers, and always with a focus on great value and innovation, so watch this space for our next project!