Windowplus are celebrating their 40th year of continuous trading as a family business. We talk to Manager John Tierney about how partnering with aluplast has aided their longevity and success.
Windowplus is a manufacturer of quality PVC-U windows and doors, using aluplast as their sole PVC-U supplier. Originally established by John’s parents, the business is now run by his Uncle and the second generation of the family.
“We pride ourselves on the fact that we’re still a family business after all this time”, says Windowplus Manager, John Tierney. “It's still largely the same people that are here doing the same work - we have some fabricating staff that have been here for upwards of 35 years. That’s the key to our success I think – a knowledgeable, skilled and experienced team creating quality products.”
Based in Glasgow, Windowplus’ outreach extends across the whole of Western Scotland, including customers as far North as the Isles of Barra, Mull and Skye, who use courier services to travel the hundreds of miles to Windowplus to collect their products - such is their reputation.
“Because of the scope of our customer base, it’s really important for us to deal with a supplier who is reactive and agile”, explains John. “That’s why we love working with aluplast: they’re consistently flexible enough to meet our demands.
“In these situations where we need quick communication, we’re always able to talk to someone who is in a position to make a decision – you don’t have to work up through the ranks. We know them all by name, and more importantly, they know us and our business inside out. The fact they’ve managed to grow their business whilst keeping that personality is vital to us.”
It is widely known that the tilt-and-turn window is highly popular within the Scottish market, and for Windowplus, this is no different.
“We predominantly use aluplast’s Ideal 70 suite of products. Our customer’s favourite product is the Tilt-and-Turn. It has an ovolo finish inside, compared to a standard bevel, that gives it a smart, aesthetically pleasing finish, which you don’t see very often in the market.
“I think for a lot of profile houses, tilt-and-turns are often left by the wayside and are a bit of an afterthought, but this certainly isn’t the case for aluplast – you can tell a lot of thought has gone into its design.
And for Windowplus, aluplast’s broad range of colour is another key aspect as to why they are their supplier of choice.
“The colour market for us is absolutely enormous. It covers probably 40% of our sales, and aludec counts for a lot of that. Customers love the aluminium-finish, and it’s just something that’s a little bit different. It really helps us to get sales, being able to offer aludec.”
In the latter half of this year, the Glasgow fabricator is looking to continue to diversify its offering, by introducing aluplast’s new flush sash window to its product offering.
In preparation for this, they have been utilising aluplast’s new UK technical team. With over 100 years’ experience in the window and door industry between them, the technical team are on-hand to provide a vital personal touch to support both new and existing aluplast customers.
“Andy, from the tech team, has been up to our site probably three times now, helping us to get the set-up ready to start fabricating the flush sash, which is just great”, says John.
“We know we’re probably the most Northern customer that aluplast have, but for us to be able to pick up the phone and say, “we need a hand with this”, and within a day or two, he's here helping out. You can't beat that service. You really can't.”
For John, the ease of working with aluplast has proven the true key to their long-term relationship. “The service and the access to the key decision-makers are probably the best bits of working with aluplast, for us – not to mention the quality of the product which is always exceptional.
“And it makes an enormous difference when you're working with a company that is going forward with you at the same pace. It’s huge for us, knowing that they're future proofing in their business – it allows us to do the same and have full confidence in our supply chain.”
For more information about aluplast, call 01684 273401 email
