Bird Brand

Bird Brand, manufacturer of paints and woodcare products in Norfolk

Bird Brand is the trading name of R K & J Jones Limited, a family business operating from a 12-acre site (approximately 4.8 hectares) near Thetford, in Norfolk (United Kingdom). The company manufactures and distributes a wide range of building and decorating products under the name Bird Brand, the surname of the founding family, with a history spanning six generations.

Its products are distributed through garden centres, hardware stores, builders' merchants and decorating retailers in the United Kingdom, Ireland and other European Union countries. The company states it has recently invested in an additional 23,000 square feet of warehousing and other site improvements to support its growth and expand capabilities. The business is managed by the four members of the Jones family.

Product catalogue

The range is organised into several product families:

• Protective paints
• Woodcare products
• Solvents
• Polishes
• Roofing products
• Fuel
• Household products
• Car care
• Decorating sundries

Among its references, Ecosote® stands out, presented as a water-based wood preserver and creosote replacement, economical and safe to use. The company also markets a specific line of rustic stains and coal tar coatings for period building applications and specialist uses. According to the company, many of these references can only be obtained from Bird Brand.

Bird Brand Outdoors

The catalogue includes Bird Brand Outdoors, a special satin paint that the company describes as suitable for bringing indoor colours outdoors. It is presented as low odour, quick drying and multi-surface, suitable for plastic, wood, metal and stone.

Origins and family history

The family's activity in the coal tar industry dates back several generations before the formal founding of the business. Charles Bird took part in 1862 in the founding of Messrs. Butlers of Bristol and pioneered the first coal tar road surface dressings. In 1871, together with his son Robert Bird (Snr), he established Robert Bird & Son Tar Distillers in Cardiff, which became the second largest tar distillery in the West Country. Towards the end of the century, Robert Bird (Jnr) specialised in coal tar chemistry applied to timber preservatives, expertise that took him to Canada in 1912 and later to work as chief chemist at a coal tar distillation plant near Ghent (Belgium) and as works manager of the new Pinxton plant (Derbyshire) in 1922.

Terry (T.K.) Bird joined the business in 1935 and, after serving in the Merchant Navy during the Second World War, began trading on his own account in 1946 with the packing and sale of coal tar by-products, mainly refined creosote for the domestic and fencing markets. In the early days he directed sales to the agricultural and poultry trade through advertising in trade publications and used second-hand containers to supply five-gallon drums of creosote with free delivery in England and Wales. The introduction of one-gallon and half-gallon containers and the move to selling through the hardware trade marked the expansion of the business. T.K. Bird Ltd. was the first company to use polyethylene containers to reduce costs.

In 1976 Peter Bird, Terry's son, joined the business, and in 1980 the operation moved from Pinxton to Pye Bridge (Derbyshire). In 1981 R.K. & J. Jones was incorporated, with the participation of Terry Bird's son-in-law and daughter, based in Downham Market to serve East Anglia with Bird Brand products. In 1992 Roger and Jane, children of the founders of the East Anglia branch, joined. In 2003 Peter Bird moved with his family to Western Australia, maintaining regular visits to the United Kingdom to oversee his business interests.

Trade customer service

The company has a trade account for professional customers. Orders from account holders can be placed by email or by telephone during office hours, and the company responds with an order acknowledgement. The prices published on the website are retail prices including VAT.

Location and contact

Southery Road, Feltwell, Thetford, Norfolk IP26 4EH, United Kingdom · Email: websales@birdbrand.co.uk