How is business?

[Doug71]

Just wondering how people are doing as every tradesman I speak to is flat out?

I was in the local Howden joinery last week, it's been open 12 years and they said July was their best month ever, there is a company locally which produces scaffold boards (one of the biggest in the country) who just told me they had their best June ever.

Thing is I am still looking to buy a table saw (Minimax SC3 if anyone got a spare) and was thinking a few businesses might be going under so there would be plenty of secondhand machinery at good prices, the opposite seems to have happened, not much available secondhand and prices have gone up #-o

 

[Sgian Dubh]

Just wondering how people are doing as every tradesman I speak to is flat out?

Ha, ha. Flat as pancake since the end of March/early April when all work fell off a cliff. However, maybe there are some slight indications of a weak pulse out there now that might yield something if I'm persistent with looking, and not too fussy: I've reached an age at which I must admit I do tend to be a bit fussy about what I'll take on, and I try to avoid those with Dacia budgets looking for Mercedes quality within unrealistically tight timescales. Slainte.

 

[Just4Fun]

One (non-woodworking) small business I am involved with has been flat out. Each month they have been beating the record set the previous month and they recently opened a second workshop. They asked me to look into buying a piece of used equipment as an upgrade for circa 100K euro, thinking there would be good deals to be had with other businesses struggling and needing to raise cash. The dealer I contacted said they are selling that sort of kit as soon as they get it in and were not prepared to negotiate on price.

 

[doctor Bob]

Give it a year Doug, the recession hasn't started.
Retail and hospitality have been hit badly, Unemployment is going to be massive so there will be a knock on effect.
These things take time.
Make hay whilst the sun is shining, it won't last forever.
It seems like people just want to spend money, and if they can't do it on shops, entertainment and holidays, then spend it on the house.
I'm a bit old fashioned, why not save a bit?

 

[Rorschach]

After a bit of a shaky start this year is shaping up well. If things continued at current rate (they won't) I would have my best year to date but even with how I expect things to pan out it will still be a bumper year and far better than the last 2-3. Of course it helps that the government is giving me the self employed allowance, but even without that I am doing well. Friends don't seem to be suffering either, they might not be doing great but they aren't doing badly either.
I have a few I am worried about who were furloughed and still not back or not back full time, I think they might lose their jobs

 

[Doug B]

I’m finding material supplies lead times are getting longer & longer as stocks are being exhausted, manufacture has been down for so long it’s going to take a while before things are back to normal. Which means I could be a lot busier than I am if I could get gear, I’ve just been quote 6 weeks to get a pair of wooden garage doors :shock:

 

[Terry - Somerset]

Individual experiences vary - but personally, and amongst acquaintances and grown up kids, significant savings have been made.

No commuting, meals out, holidays, concerts, sports events etc etc. For those furloughed, working from home or retired, financially lockdown has been unstressed. Some have used the opportunity to pay off high cost loans and credit cards.

I would expect spending over the next few months to increase as businesses open up, people want to feel "normal", and items that may have been deferred are now affordable (furniture, kitchen, new car etc).

It is unlikely bouyancy will persist - the virus won't go away, local and regional lockdowns are likely, and rising unemployment will reduce consumer spending.

 

[MikeG.]

I'm struggling to find builders who are willing to even price for work at the moment. My favourite 2 builders are booked up for all of 2021. Builders were busy before the lockdown, and all that work they couldn't do for a couple of months is now backing up with their already-full order books. Just to complicate matters, a couple of local councils did no Planning work at all for 4 months, so there is an enormous log-jam in the Planning system.

 

[Max Power]

Everyone I know is chocka and turning work away

 

[Trevanion]

Absolutely mental... and no one in the trades is saying any different because locally either A: People spent a lot of time at home during the lockdown and only just realised how much of a state their house is in (it can be hard to pay attention or even care when leading a pretty hectic life) and decided to have something done about it... or B: They had a nice chunk of cash off the government for their holiday homes which technically count as "businesses" and they decided to put the money back into improving them whilst the money was really intended for keeping struggling small businesses afloat rather than helping the already pretty well-off install a new hot tub and a new front door in their holiday home that they spend 1/4 of the year in.

But a realistic mind knows it won't last, once peoples grant money runs out and start having to pay back the bounce back loans it will get pretty quiet.

 

[Geoff_S]

My nephew, a carpenter/joiner totally overloaded. The electrician I use, the same. The plumber my nephew teams up with, too much to handle. The delivery guys, run off their feet. The butchers & green grocer always a queue when I'm there. I guess there's more.

It seems that real jobs will always be in demand.

Perhaps that thought is one that should be put on the post COVID debrief?

 

[Rorschach]

Interestingly I am getting customers who I have not dealt with in years coming back to me, especially those in Asia.

I am not sure if that is because there is a greater demand there all of a sudden but it did surprise me. Of course it could just be that the suppliers they were using have slowed/stopped work and they have to fall back to dealing with me again :shock: :lol:
Regardless, I am not complaining.

 

[Yojevol]

My daughter's interior design business has had a marked increase in enquiries over the last few weeks. This followed a distinct drop off at the start of lockdown. Perhaps this is a good omen for the tradesmen she nnetworks with.
Brian