Huws Gray appoints southern MD: network growth and delivery focus for project teams
Reviewed by Tom Sullivan
First reported on The Construction Index
30 Second Briefing
Huws Gray has appointed former B&Q TradePoint head Jamie Bunting as southern region managing director, giving him responsibility for 75 branches across the south of England. Bunting brings 12 years’ experience in trade-focused retail, including leading regional teams and in-store service improvements aimed at small contractors and trade customers. The move signals Huws Gray’s intent to consolidate and grow its southern builders’ merchant network, with COO Shaun Allen emphasising delivery performance and regional development.
Technical Brief
- Role is framed around “best-in-class service”, signalling tighter OTIF delivery and stock reliability expectations.
- Bunting’s 12-year B&Q / TradePoint background implies strong SKU rationalisation and trade-focused product mix optimisation.
- Emphasis on “enhancing our offering” suggests potential expansion of civils, groundwork and structural materials ranges.
- Focus on “in-store experiences” points to streamlined trade counters, faster collections and clearer yard logistics.
- Commitment to “putting colleagues and customers first” implies investment in branch staff training and technical advice capability.
- Reference to “close collaboration with stakeholders” indicates closer alignment with local contractors, housebuilders and infrastructure frameworks.
- COO Shaun Allen’s comment on “strong focus on delivery” hints at upgraded fleet utilisation, routing and delivery-slot discipline.
- For contractors, a more coordinated southern network could reduce material lead-time risk on multi-site programmes.
Our Take
In our database, Huws Gray’s recent senior hires – including the new plant and tool hire operations director (June 2026) and a first showrooms director (August 2026) – suggest a deliberate build-out of specialist management layers to support a more segmented UK network, with this southern MD role likely mirroring that pattern by geography.
The 75 stores under the new southern region remit sit alongside a fast-expanding national hire network (recently reported at 87–88 depots), implying that integration of hire, showroom and core merchant offerings across the south of England will be a key operational challenge for Huws Gray.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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