Wolseley plc has today announced the acquisition of a substantial shareholding in BathEmpire.com a leading B2C online bathroom retailer in the UK, with an option to acquire the remaining equity stake at a future date. In the year ended 31 December 2014 the business generated revenue of £26 million. 

BathEmpire.com was founded in 2009 and has 150 employees. This acquisition gives Wolseley a strong position in the UK B2C online bathroom market and a scalable platform to support future growth.

Commenting on the acquisition, Ian Meakins, CEO of Wolseley plc, said: "The UK B2C online bathroom market is growing rapidly and BathEmpire.com gives us an established brand with a scalable platform and the opportunity to build a significant presence over time."

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Notes to editors

Wolseley plc is the world's largest specialist trade distributor of plumbing and heating products to professional contractors and a leading supplier of building materials in North America, the UK and Continental Europe. Group revenue for the year ended 31 July 2014 was £12.8 billion and trading profit was £761 million. Wolseley has around 41,000 employees, is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE: WOS) and is in the FTSE 100 index of listed companies.www.wolseley.com or follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/wolseleyplc.

For further information please contact

Wolseley plc
John Martin, Chief Financial Officer
Tel: +41 (0) 41723 2230

Mark Fearon, Director of
Corporate Communications and IR
Mobile: +44 (0) 7711 875070

Mike Ward, Head of Communications
Mobile: +44 (0) 7894 417060

Brunswick (Media Enquiries)
Mike Harrison, Nina Coad
Tel: +44 (0)20 7404 5959

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