Name: Anthony Mynett
Company: Carpet Services Cardiff Ltd.
Job Title: Managing Director
How did you get into the flooring industry?
Following my father, Peter, who founded the business back in the 1960s, I worked with him from a young age, as often as I could, until I finished school. Then, I started working with him full time for a number of years before taking over the business, along with my sister, Sue. What started out as a business mainly concentrating on domestic work in South Wales from our retail outlet has developed into dealing with major projects with large contractors, local authorities and commercial end users.
What’s been the biggest change in the industry over the past 10 years?
I can’t comment on the past without highlighting the current climate we are living in and the challenges we are facing. These are certainly testing times. Fortunately, I believe the flooring trade has fared a lot better throughout Covid-19 than most, which we need to be thankful for. There are a lot more restrictions, granted, but the market is still buoyant, particularly in education and social housing. They’re the main drivers in construction at the moment.
Looking forwards, what do you think will be the biggest change in the next 10 years?
On the flip side of the market, there appears to be fewer office refurbishments, which I guess is related to employees now working from home. Whether that will continue is anyone’s guess. I predict finance and ecommerce will continue to influence the way the market works. The element of cash transactions is slowly disappearing and I believe crypto currencies, such as Bitcoin, will influence transactions, which is easier to control and legislate. A single world currency could very well become reality one day.
What’s the worst job you’ve been on?
There have been a few over the years. What makes a project turn sour for me personally is usually related to the personnel managing the trades – sometimes they can be reluctant to take advice from us contractors, which can present obstacles, affect my enthusiasm and sometimes impact on the job’s final outcome.
And what’s the best?
An interesting one happened recently. We refurbished a number of areas at Bluestone, Pembrokeshire’s ‘Nightingale’ recovery centre with Morgan Sindall. A short turn–around was required, and the project demonstrated what could be achieved with a well-managed site controlling all trades working in unison to ensure the facility was operational to cope with the demands of Covid-19.
Do you have a go-to product for certain jobs?
I’ve been brought up on the Yellow Bucket. F. Ball adhesives are all we use, and the team always demand them as they’re reliable products which are always compatible with our supplier chain. The new Styccobond F73 PLUS adhesive works really well – it might be a new favourite.
What do you like best about the job?
I’d definitely say the people in the industry. I’ve made many good friends over the years because of flooring and enjoyed many experiences. I particularly enjoy the aspect of training apprentices and developing new talent in our workforce. In fact, we’ve trained up a large proportion of our staff over the past 25 years in conjunction with the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB). It’s something that can be rewarding – seeing people grow and build their competence. It’s a practice which is essential for the future of our industry.
What is your least favourite thing about the job?
Being one of the last trades on a job before hand–over. It can sometimes be stressful and not especially rewarding trying to make up the time to finish a job when it’s been handed over late to you. Also, the lack of payment protection and outstanding retention payments. There needs to be clearer T&Cs regarding the settlement of old retentions. And Main Contractor Discounts – what’s that all about?!