From trading out of his home and guarding stock in a Portakabin to 26 colleagues, four wagons and decades of community support, MKM Alnwick Branch Director Gordon ‘Gordie’ Webster reflects on 25 years of people, risks, laughs and relationships.

 

When Gordon ‘Gordie’ Webster and Ian ‘Carzy’ Carr opened MKM Alnwick in 2001, some competitors gave them six months.

Twenty-five years later, Gordie and Carzy can afford to smile.

“We were told we wouldn’t last six months,” they remember. “We started with eight staff, one wagon, a Portakabin and a big marquee for our perishable goods. We remember one local merchant saying, ‘The circus has come to town.’ Now we’ve got 26 staff and four wagons and we’ve grown to become the best merchant in the town. We think we’ve proved a few people wrong.”

But for Gordie and Carzy, the real achievement is the relationships built along the way – with local tradespeople, colleagues who have spent decades at the branch, and the schools, sports clubs and families it has supported.

And it all began, rather unusually, in a house.

 

 

Starting from home

Having both worked in merchanting from the age of 16, they spotted an opportunity with a young business based in Hull and approached MKM founder David Kilburn with a business plan.

They had both only ever worked together for one company, but saw this opportunity and thought, “That’s a challenge we want.”

With Gordie concentrating on operations, and Carzy focusing on sales with their trusted colleague Paul Brennan, Alnwick became MKM’s first branch outside the Yorkshire and Humber region.

There was just one problem: the premises weren’t ready.

“We actually started working from my house in Warkworth,” Gordie laughs. “There were three of us in different rooms, trading, dealing with reps and securing deals ready for the future.”

Their first meeting with David Kilburn had already suggested this wouldn’t be an ordinary career move.

“David was telling us what could happen and how our lives could change. It sounded too good to be true. There was a cupboard behind him, so Gordie jumped up and opened it.

“He said, ‘What are you doing?’ I said, ‘I’m waiting for Jeremy Beadle to jump out!’

“But David wasn’t messing.”

 

Sleeping bags and a call to the police

The early days on site weren’t exactly luxurious either. MKM was the first business on what is now a busy trading estate, home to around 50 businesses including William Hackett Lifting Products and Blackshaws.

Without even a perimeter fence, the team took turns sleeping in the Portakabin to guard the stock.

One night, three colleagues were there in sleeping bags when Gordie heard noises outside and called the police. Gordie recalls hiding under their sleeping bags until the police arrived.

The culprit? A customer throwing stones at the building as a prank.

That same customer still trades with MKM Alnwick today – and Gordie still gets the mick taken about it.

“People deal with people,” he says. It’s a philosophy that has shaped the branch ever since.

 

 

Part of the Alnwick community

When MKM arrived in Northumberland, nobody locally knew the name. Gordie and Carzy set about changing that by supporting the community.

“We sponsored everything in the town,” they remember. “The football team, cricket team, rugby team, music festival, a fair – everything. Within three or four months, people knew who MKM were.”

That early commitment became part of the branch’s identity. Today, MKM Alnwick continues to support Alnwick Rugby Club and Alnwick Town AFC, from junior to senior teams, alongside local schools including Barndale School, which supports children and young adults with additional needs.

Gordie and Carzy believe the branch’s fundraising, sponsorship, donations and wider community support over 25 years would run into six figures. But the projects they remember most are about people.

One involved a young man from Barndale School who joined the branch for a couple of days each week at around 18. Initially struggling with communication, he stayed for almost a decade.

“His life changed completely,” Gordie says. “He looked forward to coming to work and his communication skills improved. It felt great helping him develop himself.”

Another project saw the branch rally customers, tradespeople and suppliers to transform the home of a local family whose seriously ill son, Aidan, needed more suitable living conditions.

Together, they provided renovation work, a kitchen, bathrooms and specialist items, while a designer from The Alnwick Garden and supporting teams created a sensory garden.

“We got all the suppliers together and asked local builders for help, and we transformed the whole house”.

The work, which they estimate represented tens of thousands of pounds of support, helped create a more comfortable and practical home for the family. It also earned a Judges’ Special Recognition Award in 2014, which is still on show in the office.

 

Loyalty that lasts

Around 100 customers have traded with MKM Alnwick since the beginning, with some remaining among its biggest customers today.

“That’s what we’ve built the business on – loyalty and excellent customer service,”.

Those relationships go beyond the trade counter. Customers and their families have long been part of branch celebrations, including the recent 25th anniversary event at Alnwick Rugby Club, complete with live bands, fairground rides and family entertainment.

The same loyalty runs through the team. Four original colleagues remain at the branch, two have since retired, and there are multiple colleagues with over 10 years’ service.

Paul ‘Brenna’ has played a huge part in getting MKM Alnwick to where it is today and was made Branch Director in 2022.

“That’s what it’s about – building careers,” they say.

Most of the 26-strong team live in Alnwick or nearby Amble, with Gordie and Carzy estimating they have well over 350 years of combined industry experience.

“We have loyal staff with local knowledge. We’re local people,” they say. “We work hard, but we also have a laugh. You spend that much of your life at work, you’ve got to enjoy it.”

 

Changing with Alnwick

While its values have remained consistent, the branch has evolved with the local market.

Around eight to ten years ago, the team upgraded their kitchen and bathroom showroom to appeal to a wider customer base, and also created a new tile centre.

“We looked at the area and thought: why are we only trying to sell at one level? So we upgraded the showrooms, stuck with it and it’s worked really well.”

The branch also introduced a dedicated plumbing and heating trade counter, which has been a great success, growing that team from one colleague to three.

“Now the plumbers can go to their own trade counter, and the builders and joiners have theirs. That was one of the best things we did.”

 

 

Still our ‘baby’

At 69, Gordie has no complicated ambitions for the future.

“I just want us to stay number one in Alnwick,” he says.

And stepping away from the business he helped build isn’t an easy thought.

“I class it as our baby. We started it from nothing. I’m finding it hard to leave because we built it and we want to watch it through. And we still love it.”

Twenty-five years after David Kilburn sold them a vision that seemed too good to be true, nobody has jumped out of that cupboard to tell them it was all a wind-up.

Instead, they have one message for everyone who has been part of the journey.

“We want to say a big thank you to all the local people, our loyal customers and all the staff who’ve supported us over the years and helped us grow the business into what it is today.”

“People deal with people. That’s how we’ve built it. And that’s what it’s all about.”

 

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