Editor’s Note – The following text contains a question by a Daily Mirror reader, addressed to Sir Alan Sugar in his business column ‘A Spoonful of Sugar’. The text also includes Sir Alan’s useful reply. We have received kind permission from his office to reproduce in full. The item remains Copyright © Daily Mirror.
Sir Alan Sugar’s fee for this column is passed on to charities supporting youth employment and enterprise.
Dear Sir Alan
I HAVE just been made redundant and since I’ve always wanted to be self employed I am exploring the possibilities of owning my own plumbing business. Do you think this would be a good investment ?
Name withheld by Gas-News
Sir Alan says
I’m sorry to hear you have been made redundant but I’m pleased to see you are thinking positively and using some of your redundancy pay to start up your own business.
The area you are thinking of is plumbing. You have looked into training and can get help by way of an Open University style course, which will give you some form of qualification.
With the redundancy money you will be receiving you can afford to buy tools and a vehicle and the necessary liability insurance.
All this so far sounds quite good. The only thing is why have you chosen plumbing ? It seems to me you have done so because you have heard there is a national shortage of plumbers.
The most important thing is whether you have the aptitude to become a plumber yourself and if you have any experience at all in plumbing or mechanical Industrial work.
You don’t say what work you were doing in the past, but if, for example, you were working as a salesman in a menswear store selling socks, then it’s not a logical move to become a plumber.
If, on the other hand, you have been working for a building and construction company doing physical work I can quite understand your thinking.
While you can learn a lot on a course, most people will tell you that practical experience is where you learn most.
Most experienced plumbers start out as plumbers’ mates and learn by going along with their superior and seeing the job actually being done on site.
Like all things In life, written examinations and qualifications are all very good to show you have reached a certain level of achievement and intelligence, but It’s the practical work that counts.
A lot also depends on whether you are handy at DIY and a mechanically minded person, If you are, then you could succeed in getting the course done.
As you quite rightly say there Is a good demand for quality plumbing work. If you are a furnble fingered type of person who can’t put a plug on a kettle, I suggest you give the idea up and find some other career to enter into, possibly based upon the experience you have attained in the job you have had in the past.
Nevertheless, I say again, it’s commendable that you are thinking so positively in trying to start up a business on your own after experiencing redundancy.
Stay positive and good luck.
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