Lauren marks 45 years working in building industry at Elliotts Builders Merchants

In fact, her busy life juggling family and work is what Lauren says keeps her young. 

Lauren, 65, is a director at the south’s largest independent supplier of building materials to the trade and public, Elliotts Builders Merchant, and she is celebrating 45 years at the family-run company.

She joined Elliotts in 1973 and worked as a typist in Elliotts’ brick department before working her way up through sales and management. Lauren’s hard work was rewarded in 1997 when she was appointed as a director.

Since joining the board of directors, Lauren has helped with Elliotts’ expansion and has brought several new product lines to market.

Lauren, who lives in Shirley, said: ‘I soon realised that Elliotts was a great place to work and I was given the opportunity to develop a career. 

‘A lot of things have changed in the last 45 years. The company had just two branches when I joined but now has 13 merchant branches with four showrooms and two tool centres. To have played a part in the growth of the company is something that I’m incredibly proud of.’ 

She added: ‘It just shows what a family business is like to work for. You feel very much part of it, you never feel like a number, and that’s important.’ 

In October 2018, Lauren’s hard work was rewarded further as she was nominated to be a ‘Role Model’ by UK Construction Week. This honour was offered to just a handful of people within the industry.

She said: ‘I was surprised to be nominated. I’ve gained invaluable experience from role models during my 45-year career and I’m pleased be in a position now to help others.’ 

Today, Lauren oversees the Elliotts Sales Hub, a team of product specialists across all areas of construction. As a high achieving female in a male-dominated environment, Lauren would like to see more women in the industry.

‘It’s been difficult being a female in the building industry, especially in the early days as women were not key within the industry,’ Lauren said. 

‘But now a third of the product experts in our sales hub are female. It’s encouraging to see more women taking up roles, and we need to continue to promote this.’