My Building Materials journey – Keith Wright
Keith Wright is the founder and owner of a service provider business operating in the Building Materials sector. His consultancy helps businesses improve their procurement and category management.
He is an entrepreneur on a mission to positively impact the building materials industry. Renowned for his strategic approach, he has saved millions of pounds throughout his 30+ year career as a procurement expert and has no intention of stopping anytime soon.
Keith’s passion and focus on value creation has driven his success, continuously seeking growth opportunities for his clients. As a trusted business consultant, he has collaborated with multiple market-leading companies, developing tailor-made procurement solutions aligned with their unique needs and goals.
Beyond his consulting work, Keith also acts as a non-executive director and as Chair of a local charity that helps families in his local community. He is deeply committed to leveraging his experience across industries to drive organisational success in an ever-changing landscape. His expertise spans strategic planning, making him a trusted advisor to executives.
In 2021, Keith founded K Wright Consultancy with a mission to share his procurement knowledge and expertise with business owners, leaders, entrepreneurs, and investors serious about taking their business to the next level. Within 2.5 years, his consultancy firm has supported 26 organisations creating value in the multiple millions.
With a forthcoming book on procurement set to be published in 2024, Keith is passionate about shedding light on this often overlooked area of value. While many may prioritise sales, Keith emphasises the significance of a robust procurement strategy to ensure your business has both happy customers and a happy team.
Here he shares his story about his 32 year journey in Building Materials.
My 32 year Building Materials Journey
32 years in Building Materials and still going strong…and I am very grateful.
Who knew it would start by shovelling sand into 40kg bags, 5 days a week, in my first role at a builders merchants!
But that’s where my journey started. It taught me about hard work, commitment and showing up.
And it opened doors.
Doors that have since led me to 12 promotions and 1 lost job (you can’t win them all) – not a bad ratio and you have to keep moving forward.
I’ve matured with age, but I was a hard-nosed buyer back in the day and have learnt so much about culture, not just the numbers, but the importance of teamwork to get a winning and lasting result.
I’ve been blessed to be able to share many cool things with family and friends, including seeing major music artists and many, many sporting events like the NFL, cricket, golf, tennis, football, rugby and F1. Things I could only dream about doing, and made possible by this great industry.
The power of sharing these, not just with my family and friends but industry colleagues, has helped forge relationships outside of the hustle and bustle of the day job.
I’ve had too many supplier visits to mention them all, but some of my favourites include the world of timber, having visited operations in Scotland, Ireland, Finland, Sweden, Brazil, China, Uruguay and Chile. Brazil was interesting as we were hosted by a very wealthy plant owner at his private home and got to fly across Brazil in a twin turboprop plane!
3 of my most random but memorable moments include having dinner with a billionaire (super nice guy), playing in a pro-am golf tournament with spectators (I am not a good golfer – apologies to those who paid to watch that day) and playing cricket against a local village team in India.
In the last 3 years I have been a guest on 10+ podcasts and counting, I’ve written a soon to be published book, and transitioned from a corporate employee to a self employed owner of a consultancy business. My passion for sharing what I’ve learnt and helping others on their journey is as strong as ever. We have to do our bit before we pass on the baton.
My biggest piece of advice? Don’t take yourself too seriously, smile, laugh, and remember to have fun along the way
procurement strategy | category management | value creation
