As hundreds of thousands of students receive their A-level (13 August) and GCSE (20 August) results and consider their next steps, new Tradify research suggests some of Britain’s most successful entrepreneurs are taking a very different route – building trade businesses that generate up to £2 million in annual revenue.
Drawing on data from 3,271 UK trade businesses, analysis by Tradify, the UK’s leading job management software for tradespeople, reveals that tradespeople are successfully scaling from sole traders into sizeable companies employing teams and generating multi-million-pound revenues.
Overall, average revenue across the six major trades analysed has increased 14% year-on-year, challenging the long-held belief that university is the only route to financial success.
The findings come as graduate recruitment has softened, tuition fees remain close to £10,000 a year and AI continues to reshape many traditional office careers. At the same time, the UK faces a critical shortage of skilled tradespeople, with industry forecasts suggesting a shortfall of almost one million workers by 2032.
Against that backdrop, the skilled trades are emerging as one of Britain’s clearest routes to entrepreneurship, with practical skills that remain difficult to automate.
Tradify’s latest figures show HVAC & Refrigeration businesses generated the highest average annual revenue this year at £428,538, while Carpentry & Renovations recorded the strongest year-on-year growth.
Among larger businesses employing 13 or more staff, average annual revenue exceeded £2 million in both Electrical & AV (£2.09m) and Property Maintenance (£2.02m), while Plumbing & Gas businesses approached the same milestone (£1.99m). Meanwhile, sole traders generated more than £100,000 annually across every trade analysed, with HVAC & Refrigeration sole traders averaging £184,566.
As industry demand continues to outstrip supply, skilled tradespeople are becoming increasingly valuable – creating strong opportunities for those entering the industry today.
For students considering a career in the trades, Carpentry & Renovations recorded the strongest year-on-year revenue growth of 25%. Electrical & AV also delivered strong growth (+19%), while Landscaping & Lawns (+18%) and HVAC & Refrigeration(+17%) continued to perform strongly.
Although HVAC & Refrigeration remains the highest-earning trade overall, with average annual revenue of £428,538, the year-on-year figures suggest there are growth opportunities across a range of skilled trades.
Millie Mercedes from Millie Electrician London comments, “Learning a trade gave me skills that no one can take away, and over time those skills became a successful business. People often think the trades are just about working with your hands, but today you’re running a business. You’re managing customers, using management software, growing a team and building something that can provide a great living.
“If I was collecting my exam results today, I’d want young people to know there isn’t only one route to success. University is a brilliant option for many, but learning a trade can open doors you might never have expected.”
Tradify found the most successful trade businesses combine practical skills with digital technology, using job management software to reduce admin, accelerate payments and convert around 85% of enquiries into paid work.
Commenting on the findings, Michael Steckler, CEO, Tradify, adds, “For a long time, university has been seen as the traditional route to a successful career. But it’s far from the only option. Our data shows tradespeople across the UK building multi-million-pound businesses, creating jobs, and growing successful companies from the ground up. The trades shouldn’t be seen as an alternative to academic success, but as another route to achieving real financial success – one that can lead not only to skilled employment, but to business ownership and long-term growth.”