Walker Greenbank Share Discussion Threads

[netcurtains] 07/7/2020 08:42

gfrae: I'm slowly moving my funds into companies that make things here. I'm doing really well with COATS and I'm hoping I'll do the same with Walker Greenback (and Burberry).

There is a double whammy with buying companies that make things here. You get both the potential for government to bung in funds to boost home production and also foreign takeovers on back of cheap pound...

[gfrae] 07/7/2020 08:02

netcurtains, you are one manned PR agency ! I can't stop thinking about William Morris wallpaper ! and actually something manufactured in the UK .
Apparently after a plague in London the tube stations were tiled because people wanted to see that things were clean and fresh, maybe the same will apply to wallpaper in the 21st Century post Covid ?

[netcurtains] 07/7/2020 06:44

With global supply problems companies that make things here are in VOGUE - with Walker Greenback you get a company that makes things here and is literally in vogue ...

[netcurtains] 06/7/2020 18:03

Darren Waterston’s Filthy Lucre


Nice image from the V&A

[trt] 06/7/2020 09:30

Strong buying good recovery play.

[netcurtains] 04/7/2020 08:37

On this day in 1892 (July 4th) Keir Hardie was elected the first Labour MP.
He quoted from William Morris: "A Day is Coming...."



a really good picture of Keir Hardie...



If they were a tad more on the ball they might have made something of that - perhaps something Scottish connected to William Morris (Keir was from Glasgow) - eg Charles Rennie Mackintosh (also glasgow)



So far the POST INDUSTRIAL MODERN HIPSTER CHIC market has been more or less untapped by William Morris but its all there to be zapped into. We need to think more urban.. this wallpaper by
the scottish company includes Muggers and tramps in its background images:

(the company is Scottish - timorous beasties website:

[essentialinvestor] 03/7/2020 18:08

Depends what the margins are on those reduced revenues, usually would expect
economies of scale to play some part.

[netcurtains] 03/7/2020 17:58

salver2: Not sure. licencing deal profits depend on sales coming in from other companies or does WGB get the licence money irrespective of the amount sold? I guess this is an important question.

[salver2] 03/7/2020 17:51

Walker Greenbank stated that they had furloughed the vast majority of their employees which total 650.if say 450 are furloughed at 25000 a year that’s a saving over 3 months of over 10 million - they say that Sales are down by a third so their normal 3 months sales are in the 27 million range - this means that there revenues are in the 19 Million range - which means they are actually making more money than normal or is my maths a bit dodgy!!

[netcurtains] 03/7/2020 15:29

spooky: It might be for a PCA (who knows) - but that is not the point, it is three now and some have bought bigger than others.

[spooky] 03/7/2020 15:21

3116 shares, not exactly going overboard.

[netcurtains] 03/7/2020 15:05

Third "director" buy notification in so many days..... Hope they all know the score... lol... (PCA of Carla Barnett, Group HR Director)

[netcurtains] 03/7/2020 11:16

wow that is a big sell - third of a million! anyone know why they sold? who what why when etc??

[netcurtains] 02/7/2020 09:11

NAV per share 42/43p.... Share price to buy 42/43p.... So we get "intangibles" for FREE.

What is "William Morris" as a brand worth (its "intangible") but I would say a dynamic company could use that "Arts and crafts" brand for a million and one things - even "Arts and craft courses and holidays" ..... It has to be worth at least 40p per share (perhaps a lot more)...

So what I'm getting at is the TRUE NAV value (the value of the "brand") of WGB has to be well over 80p (possibly a lot more) - "William Morris" is the Rolls Royce brand of the of the arts and craft movement. No bones about it, the brand has to be worth an awful lot of money..

Remember Morris was also tied up with the Pre-Raphaelite_Brotherhood. If you ever do a guided tour round highgate cemetry you not only see Karl Marx but interesting stories about the lives of the pre-raphaelites. The tour features quite heavily in a book I read a few years back... "Her Fearful Symmetry" by Audrey Niffenegger -

the brand could be huge .... money money money - its widely known in USA , EU and SE Asia - its a world famous brand. Its in all the global history books of art.

[netcurtains] 02/7/2020 07:25

This is William Morris in Sweden.
The chair in the logo is a Victorian Balloon back (


Here a bit of history on the chair:

William Morris - "The Firm" was established just after the balloon back chair


The socialist league and manifesto were much later (about 1880s)

[netcurtains] 01/7/2020 21:10

My wife was saying the wallpaper in "Rumpole of the Bailey's" house was CFX (and the judge 's house too) - I'm giving away too much of my TV watching habits.

[essentialinvestor] 01/7/2020 13:20

Very tricky, although it varies widely.
Sometimes impossible to get hold of a few hundreds shares,
on other days you can buy 5,000 shares in CFX with ease.

[salver2] 01/7/2020 13:18

Despite what I have said it is indeed more than fair to put them in the same sector I was just outlining the differences - mind you when I bought a lot of Colefax shares in 1998 about 69 p if I remember there were about 30 something million shares sloshing around now less than 10 due to continual share buybacks - I havent bought shares in them for a while butI’m guessing even buying 5 /10 grands worth maybe tricky as they are very tightly held-the co approached me for some of my shares about 15 years ago for a buyback.They are a rather boring tightly run outfit - not such a bad thing these days!

[netcurtains] 01/7/2020 13:12

Second director bought today.... I should keep posting - they must like my posts..

[netcurtains] 01/7/2020 12:44

thanks Salver2: Yes my wife said it was higher end....But nevertheless I think it is fair to put them in the same sector.... the comparison is there to be made. I do like companies with large cash piles (aka Triad and Wey) so perhaps I might get som CFX too!

[salver2] 01/7/2020 12:37

Colefax is a very different beast in a way - no manufacturing - higher end of the market - an interior design business and .-0 -over 50 percent of sales to the USA plus very cash generative with over 10 million in the bank which Wgb doesn’t have - a rather safe plodding business in a way - the major shareholder is 74 - maybe he’ll sell soon!

[salver2] 01/7/2020 12:33

To be fair I had about 2 percent in colefax about 20 years ago - only probably about 1.25 percent now - could never work out how Wgb got over 2 pounds a share - the market was thinking it was the next Burberry !- now I think they are too cheap although my holding cost in the low mid 50ps- I’m happy to be here at this value

[netcurtains] 01/7/2020 12:24

Thanks - that is good that someone is in both. It does give that extra confidence in the sector as a whole. And 2% is a massive investment - one you would not do lightly.