Hennet was married to the daughter of a timber merchant and started dealing in imported timber while living at Bristol and still undertaking railway contracts. His contracts with the South Devon Railway entailed him to build up a fleet of railway goods wagons. The Old Quay at Teignmouth was central to this work. A siding had been laid to it by the railway company in 1849, and the following year Hennet bought the quay itself and developed a small fleet of ships to carry coal and other goods. In 1852 he was appointed as one of the Harbour Commissioners.