Staffordshire-based rug specialist Think Rugs is celebrating 30 years in business, marking three decades since Gary and Diane Tippett began building the family business from the ground up.
In the early days, Gary would drive his own van to Belgium to source rugs, bringing them back to Staffordshire, while paperwork was handwritten and containers were unloaded by hand. Their son Sam grew up helping in the warehouse, where he remembers being paid two pence for every rug he rolled.
Today, Sam is Director of Think Rugs, working alongside his wife Steph and his parents, who remain actively involved. The business now supplies more than 1,000 retailers across the UK and Ireland from its over 40,000 square foot Staffordshire base, working with major names including Dunelm, Next, Argos, ASDA and Furniture Village.
Despite its national reach, Think Rugs has remained firmly rooted in Staffordshire, with local relationships including Terry’s Fabrics, Euro Carpets on Victoria Road and Barry’s Place, alongside Burslem-based Blink Studios.
Reaching 30 years in business is a proud milestone for our family and the entire Think Rugs team,
says Sam Tippett, Director at Think Rugs.
I grew up around the business and remember being paid two pence for every rug I rolled, so to now be celebrating 30 years alongside Mum, Dad, Steph and the whole team feels incredibly special.
A huge amount has changed since the days of Dad driving his van to Belgium to source rugs, but the values behind the business haven’t. Staffordshire has always been our home and we’re proud that, as we’ve grown, we’ve continued to work with local businesses alongside some of the biggest retailers in the country.
Think Rugs’ portfolio now combines its own collections with licensed ranges from interior names including Scion, Harlequin, Clarke & Clarke, Catherine Lansfield and Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen.
For the Tippett family, the anniversary is as much about the people who have been part of the journey as the growth of the business, with many of the Think Rugs team living locally.
Looking ahead, new collections from Joules, Sophie Robinson and the William Morris Society are in development, alongside a further British heritage brand set to be revealed in the coming months.
