Convincing anyone to work as a housepainter, kitchen painter or any construction worker in the UK is a hard sell! Since 2020, inflation has worked out at about 17%. Overall, while wages in the UK construction sector have increased by 7.5%, they have not kept pace with inflation, resulting in a real wage decrease of approximately 9.5%. This means that construction workers have effectively lost purchasing power over this period despite nominal wage increases.

Just how many efficiency gains are there left on the housepainters’ table to offset this deficit? Next to none. Based on my experience in the UK, the period from 2010 to 2020 saw enormous strides in improved efficiency—we are talking paradigm shifts. Water-based paints took over from slower oil paints, and techniques such as spraying, masking, spray filling, and vacuum extraction sanding became prevalent. In my humble opinion, painters, for instance, are working about as efficiently as they possibly can. There is almost no wiggle room beyond exploiting workers to work longer hours for less money.

So, who’s going to break first, the consumer or the painter? The painter, of course. No profit, no business.

I think I’m credited with inventing a pricing formula for refurbishing older kitchens, It is known as the £100 a door formula. I worked it out in 2010-2011, and that price still persists as the industry benchmark, plus or minus. However, that original £100 is now worth only £63! Yes, the original £100 figure was a premium rate, maybe plus 30%-50% on standard painting rates. It was a premium because not only does a repaint represent enormous value for money compared to purchasing a new kitchen, but it is really hard to paint kitchens all day every day. With premiums come incentives to do your very best work. Kitchen painting went from 50 elite journeymen to thousands working their butts off to be the best, most efficient painters possible. Now, that premium rate for those gains has been eroded and then some. - and I fear most painters and builders can’t see why they can’t turn things aroundwithout sacrifici g their spare time, their family time, their peace of mind.

If painting weren’t so labor-intensive, you could say that technology has done well for TVE consumer, but the fact is, painting is incredibly labour-intensive. Now, skilled painters charging less than £163/door have lost all and every premium.

The system is broken! In 2010 the UK painting trade was still stuck in the 80’s. For the most part everyone - painters, suppliers, inventors and the public, with no government input by the way - played their part over the following 10 years professionalising the industry. More painters than ever are playing their part correctly, and customers are willing to pay more than they ever were for quality work, yet on paper the painting industry remains unsustainable. And if the inflation rates continue, at some point the Painter and the consumer are going to be faced with an easy choice - food or painting. Painters first.

Ever since I attended trade college the story was always, less trained painters are joining the industry, the public is becoming less practical and ever more dependent on trained painters. Every year, the painters with a trade are going to cash in. It has been true to a degree, but 2008, th best painters in the business were brought to their knees. Gains lost. Then a group of us joined forces and rebuilt until 2019 when the facts now viewed in hindsight showed an end in the progress road. Since 2020, where’s the advances? There aren’t any despite best efforts. Painters and builders cannot in all good conscience work and innovate their way out of the current direction of travel.

There is a way to innovate, but it’s not taught in any trade college. Adopting Bitcoin is the only answer to a healthier painting and construction industry.

 I suggest all members of the painting and construction industry look up Bitcoin in a book, online, find bitcoiners to explain it to you. Do the work, put in the 100 hours and understand the issues of inflation. Understand sound money. Read about the struggles of painters and builders in supposed basket case economies. And rethink, just as many of US rethiught in 2010 omwards.

A door shouldnt be charged at £163 because of Putin or oil cartels or viruses. It’s because governments and central banks perpetually move the light further down the end of the financial tunnel they suckered us into, simple.

When you understand what money really is, you see how the game is rigged to drive you into a financial corner. With a grasp of the issues you can join the dots to sound money, Skip over gold and adopt bitcoin.

Just like in the 2010s, you can start turning the train around and putting it on a sustainable track. I can’t say “back on track” because no one painting today has ever worked outside this rigged system.

However, by securing the fruits of your labor out of reach of a financial system that wishes you harm through a death by a thousand cuts, you can enjoy your work. You can do better work and build a base of happier clients. You can even introduce them to Bitcoin through attractive, no-brainer deals aimed at long-term gains.

On a sound money system, maybe one day the wholesome sight of vans with Mr Painter and Son or Daughter signwritten on the sides will become a thing again, and the sons and daughters wont be enslaved by parents who were in a system where exploitation was the only way to make a good craftsman!