The North Wales-based aggregates supplier says that people’s increased focus on home improvements during lockdowns helped its minerals operation show a 12% increase on 2019.
It adds that the continuing popularity of the colour grey in home interiors and exteriors was reflected in sales of its black/charcoal mineral for roofing felt overtaking its green variant for the first time.
Welsh Slate decorative aggregates also had a positive year with sales up 15% on 2019.
Some of the success has been put down to the increase in exports to mainland Europe as lockdown resulted in increased demand.
Welsh Slate says that deliveries by sea also proved popular as 2020 drew to a close, with a record three shipments of decorative aggregates due to leave within a month of each other from Port Penrhyn at Bangor, near the company's main Penrhyn Quarry.
Welsh Slate aggregates’ commercial manager Neil Rowland believes this unusual convergence of shipments, which typically happens around Easter time, is down to Brexit.
“Given we were closed for a month during the first lockdown, the crushed products division has performed extremely well in the remaining 11 months,” he said.
