Work:
McAlpine
Inside the head of the home buyer
The challenge
McAlpine is widely regarded as the leading manufacturer of waste traps and WC connectors in the UK plumbing sector. However, with increasing pressure on installers’ time, rising costs across materials, and intensifying competition at merchant level, McAlpine wanted robust, independent evidence to validate its market position and inform future strategic decisions.
The research needed to be credible to internal stakeholders and usable externally in commercial discussions, while remaining installer‑led and free from overt brand bias.
The solution
A blended sample approach was utilised, drawing respondents from trade sector partners, the client’s own contact list and our own Voice of the Trade proprietary database. To maintain objectivity, McAlpine was not revealed as the commissioning brand until the end of the interview. This approach ensured scale, credibility and balance, while capturing real‑world attitudes to brand usage, loyalty and purchasing behaviour.
The findings provided McAlpine with independently verified evidence to:
- Support distribution and listing conversations
- Reemphasise to stakeholders the benefits of brand strength
- Identify opportunities for brand extension
- Flag emerging installer trends and behaviours to inform future direction
Feedback:
“Dave and Richard are clearly the research experts in our sector and delivered a comprehensive research project that provided tremendous benefit to the business. Friendly, considered, innovative, I would highly recommend them to other brands seeking to better understand their customers, products or marketplace. We certainly look forward to working with them again in the future.”
Let’s bounce a few ideas around
If you’d like to talk through a challenge or explore what might work for your business, we’d love a chat. Get in touch, or feel free to have a further look around the site to see how our research helps solve real‑world business conundrums.