LONDON: Howdens has agreed to acquire the parent company of DIY Kitchens for an enterprise value of £390 million, a move that gives the trade-only kitchen supplier a direct channel to non-trade consumers, the company announced Tuesday.
The consideration comprises £292.5 million in cash and £97.5 million in Howdens shares. The transaction values DIY Kitchens at approximately 8.5 times its last 12 months’ EBITDA through March 2026, a statement said.
DIY Kitchens, which trades as Ultima Furniture Systems Limited, is a vertically integrated online kitchen business that sells exclusively to end customers through self-service planning, design and ordering tools. The business generated revenue of £136 million and EBIT of £37 million in 2025, representing a 27% margin. Revenue has grown more than 17% annually over the past five years.
“Howdens’ highly successful trade-only model is built around supporting solely trade customers,” said Andrew Livingston, CEO of Howdens. “The acquisition of DIY Kitchens adds a complementary, very profitable business to the group, providing access to non-trade end customers through its direct online channel.”
Following the transaction’s completion, DIY Kitchens will remain an online-only business focused on non-trade customers and will operate separately from Howdens’ trade-only operation. The deal includes freehold property assets valued at approximately £55 million and requires customary regulatory approvals.
Howdens said it expects the acquisition to be immediately accretive to revenue, EBIT margin and earnings per share, with strong cash generation and returns above the cost of capital. The company plans to retain a robust balance sheet and said its previously announced £100 million share buyback program for 2026 remains unchanged.
DIY Kitchens operates short production runs for made-to-order products, while Howdens manufactures to stock with longer production runs. Self-manufactured product represents about 40% of DIY Kitchens’ cost of goods sold. The online proposition is supported by two large destination showrooms, with a third under construction in Scotland.
Howdens will report its half-year results on July 23. The company said year-to-date trading is in line with expectations.
