The family store has been running since 1928
09:31, 05 Apr 2026
L-R: Steve Dayman and son Adam run the DIY store(Image: Daymans DIY)
An independent DIY store in Leicester says it needs support from the community to reach its 100th anniversary.
Daymans DIY, located in King Richards Road, near Westcotes, is a family run hardware store, established in 1928, by William Dayman.
The store made a public request for support, after another family-run hardware store, Heaps in Sileby, recently closed its doors.
Adam Dayman, from Glenfield, the fourth generation of his family to work in Daymans DIY, said: “I was really disappointed to hear about Heaps closing.
“We’ve been around a long time and we know a lot of the other independent family stores in Leicestershire, so we were really sad to see them go.
Daymans DIY store celebrating its 95th anniversary in 2023(Image: Daymans DIY)
“A lot of people think that we are in competition with the other stores but in fact it is quite the opposite because you build a relationship with these people over the years and you want them to succeed.
“There is enough room for everyone to succeed in the whole of Leicestershire but unfortunately fewer people shop in store and, if you don’t use it, you lose it.
“For example, if someone was looking for an item we don’t have, we’d recommend another independent who will have that item and they recommend us back, creating a close-knit community between us all.”
Daymans DIY founder William Dayman (right) with this son Ron (left)(Image: Daymans DIY)
When asked if he was surprised about the closure, Mr Dayman said: “It’s not anything new that independent stores are closing down, especially in the hardware business.
“It is becoming increasingly harder for businesses to survive and we’ve seen a lot of family places close down because of increased costs.”
The 33-year-old, who runs the hardware store with his father Steve, added: “Back in the day, families used to be bigger and stores would run solely on family staff but nowadays these independent stores have to hire out for staff which means an increase in wage costs.”
Steve Dayman and son Adam pictured at the store(Image: Daymans DIY)
Adding to the issues faced by independent DIY stores these days, Mr Dayman mentioned the introduction of the internet and the Covid-19 pandemic’s effect on business.
He said: “With the rise of the internet we saw a lot of our customers leave and shop online and that was massively accelerated during Covid.”
Mr Dayman also mentioned the effect of next day deliveries leading to people losing the ability to plan building projects in advance, which impacts local stores.
He said: “You then have huge companies like Amazon who can deliver something you need the next day too, so less people continued to shop in store and, with that, people lost the ability of planning, too.
“What I mean by that is, people will now start a project and get everything they need within one day online, when back in the day people would plan their projects, allocating time to collect the materials from independents like us.
“Losing that is something that we have really struggled with.”
Adding to the pile of issues faced by independent DIY stores, Mr Dayman said there was now less people who know of these stores and telling their children about them.
He said: “Another issue we face is the generation of people who do use independent DIY stores slowly fading away.
“If your dad didn’t use DIY stores, then naturally you will grow up seeing the bigger store’s adverts such as Amazon on TV and you will shop with them instead.”
The store has been on King Richards Road since 1928(Image: Daymans DIY)
Speaking about what works for Daymans DIY and the things that have kept the store running for 98 years, Mr Dayman said: “Our charm is our store and our service, which we work really hard to replicate online but, to experience that properly, you need to come in, so it’s a challenge to adapt.”
The team behind the famous store, which has been on King Richards Road since it opened, are now asking for the public’s help to keep their doors open.
Mr Dayman said: “We need support, we need community support and people to keep coming out and using us. Retail is really hard to be in and we’ve seen many long-standing stores close their doors.
“You’re really only a couple of bad months away from being in trouble and I think sometimes people see these long-standing businesses and think that they will last forever but you never know what issues they are facing behind close doors.”