Since the appointment of administrators for the BRP Group recently it is now fairly apparent that the Cardale and Henderson brands will be lost forever.
With no takers for the Cardale or Henderson garage door brand and indeed the Wessex GRP factory still currently closed it seems beyond doubt that any revival in the long troubled BRP Group is now impossible. Any company taking over the remnants of manufacturing plants in such trouble would indeed be seemingly taking on the impossible - to produce a garage door range worthy of competing against such fierce and enormous capability as that of the Hormann group of companies - namely Hormann UK and Garador, both UK based companies with the very latest in manufacturing plants and assembly lines. The Cardale range had already been reduced considerably over the last few monthe since going into administration last year in an attempt to consolidate, but it was too little far too late.
Indeed the Hormann group celebrates 75 years of manufacturing in 2010, a great achievement for any manufacturing company in this day and age.
The continuing rise in sales of the sectional garage door in the UK, a garage door type not manufactured by either Henderson or Cardale, and the aggressive pricing of the high quality up and over door range by both Hormann and Garador has been impossible for others to compete against of late. The result is we now have 2 main manufacturers for garage doors - Hormann and Garador and at present 5 specialist manufacturers - Carteck for sectional garage doors, Novoferm for a range of steel doors, SWS for high quality insulated roller shutter doors, Gliderol for steel and aluminium roller doors and Cedar Doors for timber side hinged, up and over and sectional garage doors. many other smaller manufacturers produce small ranges of roller, sectional and side hinged doors in the UK but do not have anywhere near the choice and consistency of the mainstream producers.
Choice is a great thing but too much choice ultimately leads to consolidation in a specialist, niche market such as garage doors. At least the majority of garage doors now available in the UK are fully guaranteed, generally for 10 years and are of a very high quality with excellent security and more options on colours than most people would ever need.
