Brewers may be a national business, but its impact is felt branch by branch. In Hull, local knowledge, donated materials and a willingness to help turned an empty building into a community space. It is a vivid example of how a 120-year-old family business can use national strength to deliver local value. 

When The Peel Project in Hull prepared to open a new centre for local residents, it needed help creating a welcoming space. 

The organisation provides support with wellbeing, careers, social care and community activities, but transforming its premises required materials and expertise. 

Brewers Decorator Centres stepped in, working alongside Johnstone’s Trade, which donated 200 litres of paint. 

The local Brewers branch supplied preparation materials and practical advice, helping the project get ready to welcome visitors in January 2026. 

For Jamal Choudhury of The Peel Project, the branch team’s experience proved invaluable: 

“Because we’ve not done something like this before, the branch manager had suggestions we hadn’t thought of.” 

The finished space offered something lasting to the surrounding community. 

As Jamal put it: 

“Having a facility like this uplifts the whole area.” 

A branch that helped open doors 

Founded in Eastbourne in 1904, Brewers has grown into a family-owned business with 242 stores across the UK.

Despite that national scale, the Brewer family continues to see each branch as a local business in its own right, with employees, customers and relationships rooted in the surrounding community.

Director Neal Brewer describes those branches as being staffed by people who live locally:

“Their community matters to them and they and their communities matter to us.” Family ownership gives that idea continuity. The company is not managing a collection of anonymous outlets. It is stewarding relationships built in places over many years.

That approach gives branch teams the freedom to build relationships and understand what their customers and communities need.

The Peel Project is one example of how those relationships can make a difference.

 

Helping local enterprise thrive

For independent decorators and small contractors, Brewers’ branches are an important part of their day-to-day operations.

Reliable materials, product knowledge, credit facilities and collection services help tradespeople complete work, manage their businesses and take on new opportunities.

Many of these customers are sole traders or small employers whose livelihoods depend on reliable suppliers and trusted advice.

By supporting them, Brewers plays a role in sustaining a much wider network of local businesses.

Brewers also works with many local suppliers, while regional trade shows connect decorators with manufacturers and industry expertise.

Its national buying power and resources therefore sit alongside relationships that help small businesses compete and grow.

Because the Brewer family sees the branch network as a collection of local relationships rather than simply points of sale, growth in the national company can reinforce the small businesses and communities around each store.

 

Sharing success with communities

The family’s commitment to local communities is also reflected in the Brewers Foundation.

By October 2026, the business had reported more than £217,000 raised or donated for charitable and community causes during the year.

The Foundation supports local charities, youth sports clubs and community projects, while encouraging employees to get involved in causes that matter to them.

Importantly, the family wants that contribution to increase as the company grows.

As Neal Brewer explains:

“The foundation is funded by the company, and it is our intention to grow this further in line with the ongoing growth of the company.”

For Brewers, growth has not weakened its connection to local communities. It has provided more resources to support them.

From independent decorators building their businesses to community organisations transforming shared spaces, the company’s 242 branches demonstrate how a national family business can help local economies thrive.