Mark Conacher

KBB Momentum is a relatively new business, but you've spent decades in the trade. What made you start it, and what problem were you trying to solve?

Mark: Having run an installation business and started as a sole trader, I went through the whole process of working on my own, dealing with retailers, dealing with subcontractors, and building up that knowledge over time.

Coming over to Vancouver, Canada was what really helped me step back, focus properly, and grow the business. I made a tonne of mistakes but the whole experience taught me a huge amount. Eventually, that installation business became very successful.

Having learned what I learned over those decades, there came a time towards the end of 2023 when I needed something different. I needed another challenge. 

I had lots of fitters reaching out to me saying: "This is what's happening. How would you handle this? Can I pick your brains? Can we just chat?"

When I sat down and thought about it, all those questions really resonated.

I felt that if I could create a company that fitters could officially come to, I could say: "Look, if you need help, I can help you." I've lived it as a sole trader. I've lived it as a multi-team installation company. I've run a UK business from abroad. I understand the transition from being on the tools to getting off them.

The reality is that most installers never really get to grips with the business side properly. When you're an installer, you're taught how to use tools. You're taught how to install. You're taught how to be a joiner, a plumber, or whatever trade you're in. But at no point — from apprenticeship onwards — does anybody sit you down and teach you the business side of things. 

You pick up bits and pieces, you stumble along and you make a decent living — but to actually grow something and get somewhere, the business itself has to grow.

And that's important — because we have an ageing workforce. There aren't enough young people coming into the industry, and a lot of pressure is being put on installation companies and installers because they're the ones who will have to train the future workforce. 

But around 70–80% of installers are sole traders. Under very few circumstances does it make financial sense for a sole trader to take on an apprentice. The math just doesn't add up.

So one way to help is to grow those businesses. If sole traders can become slightly bigger businesses, then they can bring young people in — because the finances become less of an issue.

The other side of it is that these installers need to get off the tools. I'm 56 years old. I came off the tools 16 years ago. But my body still feels the previous 25 years. You lift things you shouldn't be lifting. You crawl into spaces you shouldn't be crawling into. Your knees are shot from being on them all day. The sooner you can get off the tools and start running your business, the better.

All of these things came together in my head. I didn't really see anybody out there doing this in a way that resonated with me. 

There were companies offering services, but I always felt they were trying to sell something. I wanted to be the person fitters could reach out to. Someone who could mentor them, hold their hand, give them advice based on lived experience. That's really why KBB Momentum came about.

Manufacturers, retailers, designers and installers all serve the same end customer. Do they communicate enough with each other, and if not, what is that costing the industry?

Mark: No, I don't think they communicate enough.

One thing I'm a huge fan of is the InstallerSHOW. The reason I like it is that manufacturers, retailers, designers and installers are all there together — the whole industry is there. 

But importantly, it's pitched as an installer show. For the first time, somebody is really paying attention to the person at the end of the line. The person who has to fulfil all the promises that everybody else has already made to the customer.

So yes, I think the industry is fragmented. There isn't enough communication. 

Events like InstallerSHOW force people together. You can sit and listen to talks, hear things from an installer's point of view — a lot of those talks are delivered by installers. 

If you go into the Kitchen Arena or Bathroom Arena, there's a huge amount manufacturers and retailers could learn. They should be there listening and engaging.

When was the last time a manufacturer picked up the phone to an installer and asked: "How can we help you?"

I think some of this comes from how trades have been viewed historically. 

When I was young, there was always that saying: "You need to stick in at school or you'll end up on a building site." That message stuck. It implied that ending up on a building site meant you had somehow failed. 

Years earlier, having a trade was considered a great thing — "Get a trade because you'll always have something to fall back on." But that message got lost. The "you'll end up on a building site" narrative stayed around.

I think it created a divide — a blue-collar versus white-collar divide. 

One side thinks: "You're over there. We don't really need to talk to you." Of course, I'm using a very broad brush here. But fundamentally, I think that's been part of the issue.

I would encourage retailers to pick up the phone and ask installers: "Is there anything we could do better? Is there anything we can do to support you?" That never happened when I was installing kitchens. Nobody ever called and asked: "How could we improve our designs?"

Occasionally there would be installer meetings. But because they happened so rarely, they just became moaning sessions. Installers would focus on individual problems with specific customers. The retailers and installation managers probably came away thinking: "We're never doing that again."

But that was exactly the problem. If they had continued communicating, they would have learned from it.

Something else that's changed dramatically is technology. When I started, you collected plans from the showroom, so you inevitably ended up speaking to designers face-to-face. Relationships naturally formed. 

Around the time I moved to Canada, email started taking over. I remember asking a major retailer if they could just email me the plans instead of me making arrangements to have them collected — at the time it was a real fight to get that to happen. Eventually it became standard. 

Now everyone emails plans. But what that did was remove the relationship. It stopped designers and installers interacting. I'm not sure that was a good thing.

Maybe retailers need to create those opportunities again. Send designers out on installations — twice a year, even for a day. Let them see what installers deal with. Let them understand the challenges. Let them experience customers in their own homes. 

A customer in a showroom is one thing. A customer in their own home is completely different. There's pressure. A lot of people struggle with that environment.

The more understanding there is between designers and installers, the better. Nothing bad ever came from more communication.

Why is it important to have standards for installers and installation?

Mark: Part of the disconnect between retailers and installers is that everybody is doing things differently. The installer technically runs their own business — they have their own rules, their own way of doing things. The retailer is saying: "We give you all this work, so we want you to jump through our hoops."

Standardising the installation process gives stability and support to the installer. At the same time, the installer has responsibilities they must fulfil, which gives support and stability to the retailer. Having processes that get everybody on exactly the same page is gold. 

It removes a lot of unnecessary friction because everybody knows what everybody else is doing at any given point. If you turn up with a sore head on a Monday morning, the process still happens the same way. If a new person starts, they know exactly what to do. That removes pressure.

Because the process supports both sides, there's less grief and fewer misunderstandings. That naturally brings installers and retailers closer together. That's where I see the value of having installation standards.

Installers are often the first people blamed when something goes wrong. How does that affect the industry, and what needs to change?

Mark: If we're talking about kitchens within extensions or renovations, there are several moving parts.

I've never installed a kitchen without checking the plans, checking the order, and checking the physical dimensions on site. That's my responsibility. I want to know the kitchen fits. I want to know the plans work. I want to know the correct products have been ordered. That's 100% my responsibility as an installer or installation business.

Does that mean installers never make mistakes? Of course not. Everybody makes mistakes. But if an installer fails to check the plans, the order and the physical space, then that falls on the installer. 

If the installer does check everything and the retailer ignores those findings, then responsibility moves elsewhere. Likewise, if the retailer isn't conducting proper pre-installation surveys, responsibility can sit there too.

Where things often fall down is in how problems are handled.

For years tradespeople have been viewed negatively. There's that old mindset — "You'll end up on a building site." TV programmes about rogue traders haven't helped either. 

Of course rogue traders exist. But they paint everyone with the same brush. As a result, there's often mistrust the moment a tradesperson enters somebody's home.

Because of that, tradespeople can become defensive very quickly when a problem occurs. That's often what escalates the situation.

I recently wrote an article saying: "The problem isn't always the problem. It's what happens around the problem." Sometimes the reaction becomes bigger than the issue itself.

That's where relationships come in. If I'm installing a kitchen and realise I've made a mistake — say I ordered the wrong cabinet size — I need to be able to pick up the phone and call the retailer. If I have a strong relationship with them, they'll help me find a solution. 

That always happened for me because I invested heavily in relationships. The customer doesn't need to see the panic. You keep the project moving, manage expectations, get the replacement ordered. Everybody works together.

The same works in reverse. If a retailer had a damaged door that needed replacing, I'd often drive past one evening, swap it over and move on. 

I wouldn't necessarily bill them for it. Why? Because relationships work both ways. When they helped me out, I helped them out.

Without those relationships, none of that happens. Everybody starts blaming everybody else. Nobody wants to take responsibility.

Again, it comes back to communication.

Most installation businesses remain sole traders. What are the top three things stopping them from growing?

Mark: Being busy is probably the biggest one. The only way to grow is to step back — you need time to think, time to create systems and processes, time to work on the business. But if you're constantly busy, you don't have that time. You stay inside your own bubble. You keep doing what you've always done. Nothing changes.

Mindset is the second one. A lot of people simply become comfortable. What often happens is you're working for somebody else, and one day you decide you're going to start your own business. 

Everybody around you gets excited. You get logos, you get a van, you build a website, you start a Facebook page. But ultimately all you've really done is bought yourself a job. You end up taking home the same money you were making before — the only difference is you're paying your own tax.

To actually build a business means dealing with VAT, bookkeepers, accountants, systems, employees. Suddenly things start becoming serious. A lot of sole traders deliberately stay under the VAT threshold because crossing it feels intimidating. 

Then they start thinking: "What if I have to employ someone? What if I need more systems? What if I need more responsibility?" And it all starts feeling overwhelming.

The third is lack of systems and long-term planning. Running a successful business isn't one big thing — it's lots of little things done consistently. 

The mistake people make is looking too far ahead. They imagine running four installation teams, dealing with VAT returns, what happens if a retailer goes bust. They overwhelm themselves before they've even started.

Instead, you need to begin with a vision. Where do you want to be in five years? If you don't know where you're going, how can you know how to get there? 

You decide where you want to end up, then reverse-engineer the process. Work backwards. Break it down into small steps. Ask: "What has to happen for this next stage to happen?" Then focus on that. Then ask the same question again.

Success is simply the compounding of lots of small improvements. Most people look at the finished picture and become overwhelmed. So they choose the easier option. They get up on Monday, fit kitchens, go home. It's easy. They're not really going anywhere — but it's easy.

With rising material costs, fuel costs and economic pressures, many businesses feel pressure to cut labour costs. How should installation businesses protect their margins?

Mark: I've never really believed in that way of thinking. Things cost what they cost. There is always money being made somewhere — in a bad economy, somebody is still making money. In a strong economy, somebody is still making money. 

When house prices rise, the lower and middle parts of the market may slow down, but the higher end often keeps moving.

I've never worried too much about material prices. The material costs what it costs. You price accordingly. If the customer wants it, they'll buy it. If they don't, they won't. Focus more on the value you offer.

What tends to happen is your market shifts. Maybe instead of fitting £20,000 kitchens, you're fitting £40,000 kitchens. You move into a different market segment.

The thing I absolutely wouldn't do is start cutting labour costs. That always comes back to bite you.

The other issue is the shortage of tradespeople. When there's a shortage, experienced tradespeople can charge more because supply and demand takes over. 

That creates an opportunity for less experienced people. Someone who has worked alongside an installer for a year suddenly starts calling themselves an installer. They're half the price. 

Customers think they're getting a bargain. Then everything goes wrong. That damages the reputation of the entire trade.

That's why I think organisations like BIFIS are so important. Customers should be researching who installs their kitchens, and the industry should be doing far more to promote professional standards and accredited installers. 

Customers should understand that skills have been checked, qualifications have been checked, reviews have been checked, vetting has been completed. At that point, there is a recognised minimum standard.

If a customer chooses the cheapest option purely to save money, then they're taking on that risk themselves.

If a self-employed installer came to you for help with their business, what are the first three things you would look at?

Mark: The first thing I'd want to understand is what they actually do right now. What does a normal day look like? What does a normal week look like? I'd want to break that down.

The second thing I'd want to know is where they want to end up. What are they actually trying to achieve? That's always a big tell-tale sign.

Even if the answer is: "I have no clue." Which, to be fair, is quite often the answer. 

I went through a huge period of that myself, just doing it without really knowing where I wanted it to go. So I'd want to know: where are they now? Where do they want to be in one year, five years, ten years? What's the plan?

The third thing I'd look at is the processes they currently have in place — not just what they do day-to-day or week-to-week, but the inner workings behind the scenes. Do they do customer follow-ups? Do they advertise? How do they communicate with customers? How do they generate work?

All of that information is valuable. It helps me understand not only the facts of the business, but also the mindset of the person running it. 

How do they think? How do they work? Once I understand that, I can see where pressure needs to be applied — where do they need a push, where do they need support, where do they need a kick and where do they need a cuddle?

It's pretty basic stuff, but it gives me a very quick overview of the person, the business and where the opportunities are.

What is something you know now that you wish somebody had told you when you were working as an installer?

Mark: It's funny because, in some ways, I think I always knew it instinctively. I just understand it much more clearly now than I did back then.

The biggest thing is relationships. I've always been drawn to people, but over the years I've learned just how important relationships really are. I can never stress that enough. You are who you hang around with. The company you keep matters. The people you associate with matter. 

I think it's very easy for sole traders and installation companies to go through life with their heads down. Get up on Monday, go to work, come home on Friday. Everything becomes very insular. And there's nothing wrong with that — I wouldn't criticise it in the slightest. Everyone has their own goals and ambitions. 

But if somebody wants more from life or more from their business, then relationships become incredibly important. You need to make the effort. You need to think long term. 

Relationships are long-term investments. They're not transactional. They're not about taking. A lot of installers have contacted me over the years asking for help. I never had a problem giving advice — it was never about what I could get back from them. I was happy to help.

That's why I keep coming back to relationships. Think about who you associate yourself with. And when I say that, I mean in a business sense. 

Associating yourself with an organisations like BIFIS, for example, is a hugely positive thing. It says something about who you are and what standards you believe in.

I always go back to 2008 when MFI collapsed. At that time, MFI was the only company I worked for. Overnight I had no work. They owed me thousands of pounds and I wasn't getting paid. At the same time, I owed thousands of pounds to subcontractors who worked for me. That wasn't their problem — they still needed paid. On top of that, there were customers sitting with half-finished kitchens. 

So despite knowing we probably weren't getting paid, we went out and finished those kitchens anyway. It wasn't the customers' fault. I made sure my subcontractors got paid. I took the hit personally. I had no idea what was going to happen next. It was a month before Christmas.

Then this organisation — called the IKBBI at the time — held a meeting in a hotel in Dundee. They invited installers along. It was basically Damian Walters explaining what the IKBBI was about, very early days. There must have been around 50 installers in that room. 

We listened to the presentation. And when the meeting ended, I remember hearing almost everybody around me saying the same thing: "It's just a cash grab. It's nonsense. I'm not paying for that." Most of them walked away.

I took the opposite view. I saw an institute that could separate me from the other 49 installation companies in the room. So I started investing time into the IKBBI. I invested time into that relationship. I invested time into what they were building. And I used it to my advantage as a business. That became the start of a fantastic relationship with BIFIS and Damian that has lasted for nearly twenty years.

That experience reinforced everything I believe about relationships. Who you spend time with matters. Who you associate with matters. The organisations and people around you can influence how you think, how you grow and where you eventually end up.