Tradies In Business

Joel Pritchett, from The Property Tradies , is a former plumber turned property investor and buyer's agent who built a 5-property portfolio before the age of 25. In this episode, Nic sits down with Joel to talk about how tradies can start building wealth through property, the common mistakes they make when choosing where to buy, why location does 80% of the heavy lifting, and how to find and use a...

Steve Rooney is no stranger to the Tradies in Business podcast, but this time he's back with a plot twist nobody saw coming. Fourteen years of running his own landscaping business, a community of mates, hard lessons in business partnerships, and a whole lot of head noise led Steve to one of the biggest decisions of his life. What he chose next will surprise you, and the reasoning behind it might j...

Running a trade business 700km from home while raising a young family on the coast is no small feat, but for Nick Allen of NJA Electrical , it's exactly what he built over 13 years in remote Western QLD. Nick shares what it's really like earning trust and loyalty in a town of just 200 people, where your reputation follows you everywhere and relationships run far deeper than just a job and an invoi...

The federal budget has landed and for most tradie business owners, the news is not good. Nic brings in Angus Gasbarri, founder of Earnt Advisory , an accountant who has built his career working closely with trade and construction businesses, rounding out his expertise with a background in mortgage broking. Together they talk about the biggest budget changes affecting tradies and small business own...

HR mistakes don't always look like mistakes; sometimes they look like efficiency. Nicole sits down with Kristy-Lee Billett, CEO of People Powered Business and founder of People Powered HR, who brings 20 years of experience helping small businesses build great teams without the chaos, the confusion, or the crippling contracts. Together they unpack the growing risk of using AI for people management,...

Starting a trade business can feel like a massive leap, especially when you’re not sure if you’re ready or where to begin. This week, Nic sits down with one our our Tradiepreneurs, Josh Prineas from Ecostream Plumbing , a plumber who backed himself and went from side jobs to running his own business in just two years. They talked about Josh’s journey into the trades, the moment h...

Avoiding your numbers doesn’t make the pressure go away, it quietly makes it worse. Daniel Palmer from Bold Wealth talks about why so many tradies put off getting on top of their finances, how that avoidance impacts long-term wealth especially super, and what actually changes when you face it head-on. Daniel also shares why having the right people around you matters, how to protect your inco...

Moving from being on the tools to leading a team is where many tradies start to feel the pressure, and it’s often the people side of the business that creates the biggest challenges. Nic Stephen from You Who shares what effective leadership actually looks like in a trade business, and why most “people problems” come back to how leaders show up. The conversation covers adaptive le...

Most tradies don’t need more marketing.. They need clarity on what actually works. This week, Nic is joined by Rhys Clay, Partner and Head Geek at Kaha Digital , to strip digital marketing back to the essentials for service-based trade businesses. They unpack vanity metrics, overpriced packages, and the common traps that keep tradies stuck, while highlighting what genuinely drives results: a...

Australia’s growing trade deficit isn’t just a headline, it’s something business owners are feeling every day. Nic chats with tradie turned Workex founder Ian Cooper to unpack the real pressure on the ground, from a 48% apprenticeship churn rate to ageing workforces and stretched safety systems. With experience spanning trade school, food and beverage manufacturing, project manag...

Feeling stuck on the business hamster wheel, working hard but never quite getting ahead is where Daniel from Dreamscapes Landscapes & Garden Solutions found himself before he took the leap, asked for help, and started seeing real change. Nic sits down with Daniel about his first 12 months in business, the early grind of taking any job to make payroll, learning pricing and systems the hard way,...

Solar installs get all the attention. But what happens after the panels go on the roof is where many trade businesses are quietly leaking opportunity. In this episode, Nic sits down with Daniel Lazarus from Industrias to unpack the overlooked role of solar maintenance and why it’s becoming one of the most stable, scalable business models in the industry. They talk about recurring revenue, la...

Paperwork alone does not keep people safe on site. Systems do. Nic sits down with Gareth Davies, Managing Director of SafeAssure , to break down what practical and effective safety really looks like in a trade business. They explore why so many safety documents fail once the work starts, and how to build simple systems that tradies actually understand and follow on site. Drawing on real world inci...

In this special episode, Nic invites you for a stroll down memory lane, sharing how the TIB podcast began, the unexpected moments that shaped it, and the evolution from early guest chats to Real Tradie Stories, F#ck It Friday, and the daily TradieRonaCast episodes. It’s a warm and honest look at the journey and the community that has grown around it, wrapped up with a little nostalgia and a...

When December starts piling on the pressure, most tradies slip straight into survival mode. Nic digs into why the lead-up to Christmas feels so chaotic for so many business owners and offers simple, real-world shifts you can make right now to steady your cashflow, set clearer boundaries, get your crew aligned, and protect your energy heading into shutdown. The goal is to help you finish the year f...

What does it really mean to be a man today? Nic sits down with John Broadbent, author of Man Unplugged , to unpack the pressures, confusion, and disconnection many men face. From business collapse to personal rebuilding, John shares his own story and the lessons learned through men’s groups, rites of passage, and connection. This is an honest chat about self-worth, leadership, and legacy&mda...

Real change starts when you stop performing and start unbecoming. Nic sits down with Dr. Ash Moreland, neuroscientist and founder of the Re-MIND Institute , to unpack the hidden programming that keeps tradies stuck half on the tools and half in business. They explore identity, purpose, and the cost of hustle on marriages, kids, and mental health, then map a simple path forward: awareness, educatio...

Think running a race team is hectic? Try rebuilding a 10,000-horsepower engine between rounds while managing a plumbing crew back at work. In this episode, Nic chats with Adam Wright from Snap-On Tools and drag racer and business owner Phil Read. Together, they reveal how Snap-On’s national initiatives and Phil’s multi-generation racing legacy collide in the fast lane. From balancing b...

Think you need to grind 80-hour weeks to keep your business afloat? Nic chats with builder Brendan Wyllie from Str8Edge Construction about his leap from apprentice to business owner, and the mindset shift that took him off the tools and into true leadership. He shares honest lessons on tricky clients, the power of documenting everything, and why consistent quoting keeps work flowing. You’ll...

Rock bottom moments and honest conversations aren’t just character building, they are game changers. Nic is joined by her son Blake, whose journey from freezer warehouses to million-dollar eCommerce sales and back again shaped the lessons behind his current venture, Wispix AI . They chat about what happens when ego gets in the way, why community matters, and how tradies can use AI to streaml...

Rats in the office? That’s one thing. But running your trade business with the wrong structure? That could cost you everything. Nic is joined by Dan and Tim from the Two Drunk Accountants to talk about something every trade business owner needs to get right: your business structure. Whether you're a sole trader just starting out or you're eyeing off a company setup, they break down the pros,...

What if the thing holding your business back isn’t your team, but how you’re leading them? Mick Scotney, ex-sparky now CEO & Founder of Awakened Business , shares what it really takes to build a team that runs without you doing all the thinking. He unpacks how to step out of the daily grind and into true leadership, from letting go of control to building systems that support growth...

From chemistry labs to high-vis on-site, Reece’s path into the trades was anything but typical. Now running one of Australia’s most unique trade businesses, Wardrobe Refractories, he’s navigating emergency breakdowns, tight compliance, and the challenge of building trust with casual crews. With a clear focus on shifting from self-employed to true business owner, Reece shares how...

When Tyson Blanch bought the business, he knew it had potential, but he didn’t expect it to grow so fast. In this episode, Nic and Tyson talk through the journey from solo tradie to team leader, building a thriving workshop with multiple staff and more freedom at home. Tyson reflects on the power of asking for help early, leading with vulnerability, and learning to step back so others can st...

Finance broker Anthony Hopson from Urban Broker brings a unique perspective to money management, blending his background in banking with breathwork to help tradies shift how they think and feel about money. Nic chats with Anthony about why brokers can offer more flexible options for self-employed clients and how unspoken beliefs about money, often formed in childhood, can lead to stress, poor deci...