*This project was originally delivered by Gamma, now part of KatRisk.
Overview
Heat Merchants Group is a 100% Irish-owned business operating through Heat Merchants and Bathroom Merchants. With an established nationwide footprint and strong growth ambitions, the group partnered with KatRisk* to identify the best locations for new stores across Ireland. The project combined customer analytics, convenience modelling, and gap analysis to support smarter, evidence-based expansion decisions.
The Challenge
As Heat Merchants Group continued to grow, senior management wanted to expand its store network in a more strategic way. The business needed to identify the locations most likely to support successful new openings, while also gaining a clearer understanding of its customers and market share.
Rather than relying on instinct and past experience alone, the group wanted a more rigorous and data-led approach. They needed to understand what made their highest-performing locations successful and how those insights could guide future investment decisions across both the Heat Merchants and Bathroom Merchants brands.
The Solution
KatRisk worked with Heat Merchants Group to assess the Heat Merchants Group networks separately, recognising the differences in their business models and customer behaviour.
The project involved two key stages:
- Situation assessment, using customer analytics and convenience modelling to evaluate existing store performance and customer dynamics
- Gap analysis, to identify underserved areas and the locations with the strongest potential for new stores
This approach gave Heat Merchants Group a clearer view of where future opportunities existed and which factors were most closely associated with strong store performance.
The Results
KatRisk’s location modelling became a key input into Heat Merchants Group’s store roll-out strategy. As a result, the group has successfully opened two new stores in locations identified through the analysis.
The project also gave the business a deeper understanding of its revenue distribution, customer base, and market share, helping to shape future expansion plans with greater confidence. The findings continue to inform Heat Merchants Group’s long-term growth strategy.
“This project was of extreme strategic importance to our business, right from the initial meeting through to the end results. We never doubted our decision to select KatRisk to conduct this analysis. We found katRisk very professional, and they delivered a clear, concise report that our business could immediately adopt into our development programme.”
Alan Hogan, Managing Director
