Following the easing of lockdown in the UK, new figures suggest that business has begun to bounce back for builders, plumbers, electricians and other tradespeople. One of the primary causes of this sudden increase in business is coming from a backlog of delayed construction projects and non-essential work in people’s homes, as well as the reopening of supply chains and the availability of materials. 

To highlight the sudden bounce back for the industry, data from almost 600 SME’s show sales hitting £6.3m in June which is an increase of 7% on the previous year. These figures point to a stark turnaround in the income of tradespeople since lockdown restrictions were eased.

However, many tradespeople had taken a heavy hit as the UK went into lockdown in March, with revenues plummeting and many self-employed tradespeople finding themselves with no source of income. One of the major causes of such disruption was the collapsing of the supply chain, with many people ‘panic buying’ bags of plaster, cement and other materials. This made it almost impossible for tradespeople to get their hands on the products they needed.

While some construction work carried on throughout lockdown, many organisations halted work to ensure the safety of workers, especially with the government warning against all non-essential jobs. Meanwhile many tradespeople fell between the gaps and missed out on financial support such as the furlough scheme, leaving families with little to no income.

But many firms now appear to be growing rapidly as construction sites, suppliers and the economy as a whole has reopened in recent months. This is further backed up by Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) data for June which showed the biggest expansion of activity in more than two years. The government’s stamp duty holiday is also predicted to fuel demand for tradespeople, with many wanting urgent home improvements so they can sell.

Many people in the industry see no signs of the bounce-back slowing down and are expected to continue despite the state of the economy and ongoing uncertainty. In fact, fears of a second wave are helping to drive the market since customers are keen to get on with projects quickly while they can.