Pointing brick slips prices

[Time's Ran Out]

Pete - A few years ago we did 'Victoria Parade' or something similar in the Museum of London - not sure what the building was eventually a replica of. It was London Yellow Brick cut down to slips and tiled onto a plywood shell. We used Ardurit fast set white with yellow sand added and left it with a worn recessed joint.
When we had 2hours work left to finish the whole site was cleared and tidied up for an Open evening and they got us back 2 weeks later for 2hours on a Sunday to complete. It was at that stage I realised they had money to throw away. Also it would have been cheaper to have used full bricks and build the unit. Only problem we had was access to the job and every time you stopped for a cup of coffee, someone nicked the lights!

 

[Aston]

as i have learned, once you lower your prices, its hard to get them back up.
be firm, stick to you guns pete. if your doing a quality job then £50 per meter is a fair price considering the type of areas your doing and the accomadation/ plant hire etc. if you dropped to £10 per meter, there'd always be somebody out there who'd do it for £8 etc etc

 

[kilty55]

agree with ed,lower and you will find it hard to get those prices back up

 

[Perry]

lost the work now they are doing it for £40 mtr inc mats digs ect could still make money on that price but would need the work all the year round you have to have all your eggs in one basket and it only last 6 months a year might have to do domestics :yikes:

 

[Aston]

sorry to hear you lost that contract pete. they think they are being savvy by saving a tenner a meter but all as they end up doing is losing a decent contractor who produces the goods. its there loss mate, as one door shuts, another one opens and all that stuff ;0)

 

[Perry]

yes been working for them for 20 odd years :incazzato:

 

[Rich]

Well that sucks, sorry to here that. Most of my work is for small builders and my own privates (so it is not the same) and I have a policy that I do not lower my prices. I get asked often enough but I put in a price that reflects my work and that is the price that I am willing to carry out the work for, You will ALWAYS be able to find a cheaper tiler. A few of the builders that I work for have used cheaper tilers and I have been put out about it, then the phone rings "would you come and sort this bathroom out, they have made a right mess of it". It sounds to me that if you put in a price for £10 per M they would still try to knock you down. I lost a job a while back because the plasterer offered to tile the kitchen walls and floor for £60... I know its not much help as you have been working for them for so long but the chances are this new guy will soon step out of line and you will be back in.

 

[Perry]

the thing is they couldn't do it until i was asked and watched to see how i did it and were told how i did it :mad2:

 

[kilty55]

the thing is they couldn't do it until i was asked and watched to see how i did it and were told how i did it :mad2:

bet they dont last a week pete

 

[Perry]

thats life Jamie dont fancy working again lol