What Wirral’s actually got, business-wise

If you live on the Wirral and can’t remember the name of that plumber, or that cafe, or the bloke your neighbour used for the extension, this is the quick tour. Every kind of local business is here, grouped the way you’d search for it.

Right now there are 461 Wirral businesses listed on WotsItCalled, from West Kirby, Hoylake, Heswall, Birkenhead, Moreton, Greasby and the villages in between. You can see everything listed in Wirral in one place, or read on for the categories and a few names to start with in each.

The local trades you’ll actually need

Wirral trades tend to be established. West Kirby and Hoylake have more sole traders and small firms who’ve been going for years, while Birkenhead and Moreton take on more of the commercial and volume work. You’ll find one-man bands and proper outfits with engineers on the books in about equal measure.

If you’ve just moved to the peninsula, ask the neighbours first and then check whoever they recommend against the directory reviews. The Wirral grapevine is usually right, but some of the older recommendations are for firms that have since changed hands.

• Plumbers: 18 Wirral plumbers listed, including D Mac Plumbing & Heating in Moreton and D.W. Heating & Plumbing, both with plenty of five-star reviews. If a boiler is involved, they must be Gas Safe registered.
• Electricians: 22 Wirral electricians. C.R.F Electrical has over 400 reviews and a five-star average. Elite Electrical Ltd in Woodchurch is the other standout for domestic rewires and fault-finding.
• Car mechanics: Wirral garages like Vernons Garage in Heswall and Hoylake Autos handle most MOTs and servicing on the west side. J-Tec Automotive does diagnostics if it’s something stranger.
• Builders: Wirral builders include Edgehill Builders in Moreton and Open Plan Space Wirral in Irby, for extensions, knock-throughs or full refurbs.

Most Wirral trades cover the whole peninsula, so don’t rule someone out for being a couple of towns over. West Kirby to Bromborough is twenty minutes in the car at worst.

Where to eat, drink, and grab a coffee

Hoylake and West Kirby have most of the cafes. Birkenhead is improving, but the indie coffee places are mainly on the west side. Pubs are everywhere, as you’d hope, and plenty of them are the sort of local where they know your order after a couple of visits.

For a day of shopping and eating, do West Kirby to Hoylake along the coast road. There are independent cafes, a couple of proper delis, and enough pubs to turn it into a lazy afternoon.

• Restaurants: Wirral restaurants run from harbour-view places in West Kirby to curry houses in Birkenhead, at most price points.
• Cafes and coffee shops: 24 Wirral cafes listed. Cathys hot and cold takeaway in Woodchurch scores unusually well for a small neighbourhood spot.
• Pubs and bars: 23 pubs listed across Wirral, mostly proper locals rather than chains.
• Takeaways: Wirral takeaways for the nights you can’t be bothered cooking.

Hair, beauty, health, and wellbeing

Hoylake has long been known for salons and barbers that book up weeks ahead, and West Kirby is catching up. Gyms range from old-school boxing clubs to small personal training studios.

The dentists are a strong point. Several independent clinics do both NHS and private work, and the implant specialists on the west side get a steady stream of patients from Liverpool. Book the busier ones well ahead.

• Hairdressers and barbers: 21 Wirral salons listed. Christopher Millea Hairdressing in Hoylake leads on review count, with over 120 reviews and a five-star average.
• Beauty salons: Wirral beauty salons, including Majestic Hair and Beauty in West Kirby.
• Dentists: Wirral dentists. McGrath Dental & Implant Clinic in Hoylake has over 400 reviews, and No.22 Implants & Aesthetic Dentistry in West Kirby also reviews well.
• Gyms: Wirral gyms, including GirlCode Gym and Utopia Fitness & Performance in Moreton.

Professional services

The peninsula has enough solicitors and accountants for conveyancing, family law, small business accounts and self-assessment. Estate agents cluster where you’d expect, in West Kirby, Heswall and Birkenhead, and a few of the independents have been around long enough to know every street.

Plenty of Wirral firms also work across the Mersey. If you live in Liverpool and would rather use someone nearby than a city-centre practice, the Wirral listings are worth a look, and it works the other way round too.

• Solicitors: Wirral solicitors. Gregory Abrams Davidson in West Kirby holds a five-star rating, and Johnson and Boon in Upton is the other long-established name.
• Accountants: Wirral accountants for small businesses, sole traders and self-assessment.
• Estate agents: Wirral estate agents. Home Estate Agents in West Kirby has over 200 reviews, and Dee Distinct is another established west-side agent.

What’s changed lately

In the last couple of years West Kirby and Hoylake have gained more independent cafes and salons, Heswall has kept its old professional firms, and Birkenhead’s regeneration has brought a slow trickle of new food and beauty openings.

New listings go up every week, usually because someone asks “how come so-and-so isn’t on here?” and we add them. If you know a good Wirral business that’s missing, send us the name.

The short version

• 461 Wirral businesses listed on WotsItCalled right now.
• West Kirby and Hoylake lead on cafes, salons and independent trades.
• Birkenhead and Moreton handle more of the commercial and volume work.
• Dentists and electricians are unusually strong, with several highly reviewed firms each.
• Every category links straight through to real addresses and phone numbers.

WotsItCalled is a free UK business directory. No signup, no catch. Browse everything listed in Wirral, or find the place everyone’s on about.