Episodes
Robin talks from first hand experience about the struggle to find a work life balance in the construction industry. Robin offers some tips on how to improve your work life balance and looks at some tell-tale signs that you may be overworked
Robin Clevett takes a look at tool theft and van break ins, how to minimise the chances of being targeted and some stats about just how prevalent tool theft is and will become
Robin Clevett talks to Marc & Jack Scott, two brothers from Scotland who set up their business, MJS Joinery, together in April 2022. Robin talks about the extensive training and education, what the challenges have been so far as business owners and what it's like to work with family
Paul Dowding and Andy Stirrup from Building Crafts College return for another chat
Robin Clevett talks about corporate image which is everything from building a website and social media presence to sign writing, branded workwear and how you present yourself to customers
Robin Clevett talks to Andy Stirrup and Paul Dowding who both teach the trade. Paul talks about his experiences retraining, the challenges of teaching and Paul and Andy discuss the quality of learning apprentices get on-site away from college
Robin Clevett talks to Sean Matthews about inflation and how it's affecting quotes, costs of materials and demand for work. Sean is a previous winner of Screwfix's Top Tradesperson award and completes high end bespoke jobs which he also talks about on the show
Robin Clevett has had a hugely successful career in carpentry and joinery and reflects on what key cornerstones have helped him achieve this success
Robin's former apprentice Carl Downing returns to talk about his experiences working as a Carpenter in Norway and some of the key differences between aspects of the trade of the in the UK compared to Norway
Robin Clevett is joined by Max Lee from Pitch Perfect to talk about cut and pitch roofing
Liam McGinley joins Chance Lichfield to discuss his long and varied career in Carpentry & Joinery. Liam talks about starting out in joinery, his experiences on-site, working as a sole trader and then going on to set up a limited company
Chance Litchfield covers for Robin Clevett (currently enjoying his summer holidays) and chats with friend of the show, Andrew Walker about his 300 year old barn conversion project
Robin Clevett talks about health and safety on-site and how he safely conducts potentially dangerous aspects of carpentry and joinery. Chris Tidy, a H&S expert and founder of Hard Hat Awareness Week joins Robin to talk about head protection, working from height and dust extraction
Alex from Errioc Carpentry returns to pick up on a few bits about managing other Carpenters on-site, his work as Errioc Carpentry and social media
Robin Clevett is joined by award winning Carpenter Alex Burham from Errioc Carpentry to discuss his experiences in the trade and starting up his business
Robin Clevett is joined by Carpenter Sammy Smith. Sam is a tool aficionado and his social media content has seen him build a following of almost 15 thousand followers on Instagram and almost 45 thousand followers on TikTok. Robin talks to Sam about his work converting vans, his social media content and tools
Robin Clevett talks about the lack of labour available on-site and how we've gotten to this point. Robin takes a look at some employment stats that are very damning to the construction industry and how we can repair the situation we've found ourselves in here in the UK
Robin Clevett catches up with Chris Keel from Scotland. One year ago Chris joined Robin to talk about winning Screwfix's Trade Apprentice Award. A year down the line Chris has become TikTok famous and is rapidly developing his business. Robin talks to Chris about some of the challenges that come with it and Chris shares an innovative hiring campaign he's just begun
John Revell returns to talk about his experiences fitting and making front doors during lockdown, his opinions and observations on the younger chippies joining the trade and Robin & John talk tools as well
Robin Clevett is joined by John Revell. John talks about his early on-site experiences, earning just £14 a week and how he came to be a big name in radio in the 1990s. John also talks about his passion for Carpentry and some of the projects he works on these days
Geoff Rhodes brings to a close his series of appearances on the show with a chat about the heritage and aims of the Institute of Carpenters. Geoff talks about all of the goals that are essential to growing and improving the carpentry & joinery fraternity in the UK from the perspective of the IOC. Geoff covers the history of the IOC which reaches back into the 1800s as well as the support it offers to the education of apprentices & students joining the trade today
Robin Clevett is joined by Institute of Carpenters President Geoff Rhodes about sustainability and innovation. Robin asks Geoff what his observations are with regards to sustainability in carpentry and what it means for you
Robin Clevett is joined again by The Institute of Carpenters President Geoff Rhodes to talk about the issues that matter to Carpenters & Joiners across the UK
Robin Clevett is joined by Geoff Rhodes, The President of The Institute of Carpenters. Geoff talks about his career in the trade that spans nearly 50 years, he talks through being an integral part of the introduction of MDF in the UK and some of the work he's done as Institute of Carpenters President over the past few years
Robin has grown and developed over his decades in the trade. One aspect of Robin's business that continues to evolve is how he sources and wins work. Robin talks about this evolution, what he's spotted in the market worth targeting now and the importance of price conditioning
Robin talks to FMB CEO Brian Berry about their calls to bring a licensing system into the UK construction industry. Robin wants to know why FMB are backing this, how it might be regulated, what the penalties are for rule breakers and what the construction industry might look like in 10-15 years with a licensing system in place
Robin Clevett is joined again by his right hand man Ed to talk about the continued decline in standards throughout the construction industry. Robin ponders what part education has played in this and what can be done to remedy the slide in standards
Robin Clevett is joined by his right hand man Ed to talk about life on-site. What some of the do's and don'ts are, how to avoid conflict and the different personalities you come across and how to handle them
Wayne Bettess, Trades Business Coach & founder of Off The Tools Academy joins Robin to give some practical tips and advice on business management. Robin asks about taking a sole trader vs. limited company route, how to manage admin, the hiring process, marketing, sales and more
Robin talks about everything in building work that causes stress. Trying to get work done, keeping customers happy, how to run a small business, pricing work, weather, being organised as well as reliable and competitive