Local lads set up Cumbria Tile Centre after years in the industry

Mark Bell and Paul Harrington both worked at CTD Tiles in Carlisle for many years before deciding to go it alone after receiving some financial backing.

The shop, called the Cumbria Tile Centre, is set to open for the first time on Saturday, December 2 with plans for both a retail and a trade section underway.

The Cumbria Tiles Centre unit can be found on Caldewgate, near KC Superbikes (Image: Isaac Cooper)“It was an opportunity, to be fair, and we thought there was a gap in the market,” said Mark.

“We had a talk and we managed to find a backer, so we thought that we've got the knowledge of nearly over 50 years between us, so we know what we're talking about, so we have given it a shot.

“Our customer service at CTD was bang on so we’ll be bringing all of that here.”

Cumbria Tile Centre is set to stock tiles of all kinds, including real stone, and when the store is fully up and running, they plan to do deliveries across Cumbria.

Cumbria Tiles Centre will have a retail and trade showroom (Image: Isaac Cooper)“It’s definitely something we’ve always wanted to do,” said Mark.

“The location that came up was ideal as well because you can come from any direction. There's plenty of parking spaces.

“The opportunity was there, and we just thought, why not?

“This is all we've ever done and we’ve been at our trade for decades.

“The traders are starting to come in already, so we've got some business going through and it's ticking along nicely until we get open on December 2.”

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The Cumbria Tile Centre site on Caldewgate near the KC Superbikes shop has been transformed by the team and a new showroom has been built since they took over the site back in August. Mark says the whole experience has been a ‘learning curve’.

The Cumbria Tile Centre will be open from Saturday, December 2 with special deals available on the opening day.