Supplying Timber Issue 9 0 - Autumn 2025 - Flipbook - Page 34
———— MEMBER PROFILE ————
R
L
P
E
R
M
B
EM E
OFI
TRADITION, QUALITY AND
TIMBER THAT LASTS
Supplying Timber TDUK spoke to Sykes Timber to learn how the
sixth-generation timber merchant is blending tradition, innovation,
and education to challenge industry norms.
N
STOCKING TIMBER
STOCKING
TIMBER
ow in its sixth
generation,
Sykes Timber
is a business
built on experience, longterm thinking and a deep
understanding of wood. Based
in Warwickshire, the company
has been trading since 1862
and, today, continues to
operate as a family-run
business with a strong sense
of continuity and purpose.
According to Joe Sykes,
that family ownership is a
core part of what makes the
company di昀昀erent. “Being a
family-run business gives us a
level of control, integrity, and
authenticity that’s hard to 昀椀nd
in other organisations,” he says.
“We care deeply about what we
do. It’s not just a job; it’s our
life.”
That attitude, Joe believes,
in昀氀uences everything from the
way the business sources timber
to how it supports its customers.
Rather than focusing solely
on volume or turnover, Sykes
SUPPLYING TIMBER
34
Image: Sykes
Timber's new o昀케ces
in Warwickshire.
↓
AUTUMN 2025
Timber works closely with clients
to understand the demands of
individual projects. “We don’t
want to 昀氀og wood,” he says.
“We want to work closely with
people to achieve the best
possible outcome for their
project through transparency,
relationships and a strong
knowledge base.”
The Sykes family’s passion for
timber goes back as long as
the company has been trading.
In recent years Joe and Bob
Sykes have regularly travelled
to forests and plantations
around the world to view the
quality of the timber in person,
including trips to America,
Java, Slovenia, France and
Canada. But these trips have
been happening for more than
100 years, even back when
travelling to other countries was
for more challenging. In fact, a
photo exists from 1908 showing
ancestor George Sykes, and
his wife, inspecting a Chicago
sawmill after having crossed the
Atlantic ocean.
Sykes Timber supplies a
wide range of hardwoods and
softwoods, from sawn boards
to fully machined sections and
bespoke pro昀椀les. The company
stocks around 70 di昀昀erent
