01Move
DNA dimensions
Jobs/week, avg ticket (£280–£28,000), FMB / Guild of Master Craftsmen membership, bespoke joinery share, day-rate vs project-rate mix, repeat-builder contract share.
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Carpentry playbook.
A UK independent carpenter / joiner running first-fix (stud walls, floors, roof joists), second-fix (skirting, architrave, doors, kitchen install), and bespoke joinery (fitted wardrobes, alcove units, sash-window restoration, staircases). The 2026 win is the loft-conversion + media-wall + boot-room niche — £8k–£28k bespoke fit-outs with 48–62% margin.
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Reference fit-out · Carpentry
Overview
A UK indie carpenter in 2026 runs four engines: first-fix construction (£280–£640/day rate, 5 days/week per carpenter — joists, studs, roof carcassing on builder sites), second-fix (£280–£480/day OR £180–£420 per door/skirting run, 4–6 jobs/week), kitchen install (£900–£2,800 per kitchen, 2–4 days, 1–2/week — Howdens/Wren trade install), and bespoke joinery (£1,800–£28,000 per project, 1–3 weeks shop + install, 1–2/month — alcove units, media walls, fitted wardrobes, sash-window restoration, staircases). Maths for solo carpenter + apprentice: £6.4k first-fix days + £4.8k second-fix + £4.8k kitchens + £8k bespoke = £24k/month gross. Bespoke joinery is the margin engine (48–62% vs 28–38% for site work) and the brand engine — Houzz + Instagram media-wall content drives £14k average bespoke tickets.
3.2
Jobs/week/carpenter
£1,400
Avg ticket
34%
Bespoke share
What you'll need
Equipment list with real 2026 UK prices.
Sized for a 2–4 chair shop. Buy mid-range on chairs and clippers; cheap kit fails inside 12 months and walks away with your barbers.
01
Site kit (per carpenter)
Panel van (Ford Transit Custom / VW Transporter)
£16,000–£26,000 used
Sortimo / Bott racking + L-Boxx system
£1,800–£3,400
Festool TS55 plunge saw + rails
£640–£900
Festool TS75 + Domino + CT26 dust extractor
£2,400–£3,800
Mitre saw (Bosch GCM 12 / Festool Kapex)
£480–£1,400
DeWalt / Makita 18V cordless kit (drill, impact, jigsaw, multi-tool, planer)
£1,400–£2,400
Hand tools (Stanley + Bahco + Veritas chisels)
£640–£1,400
Laser level + Hilti measure
£280–£640
02
Workshop (bespoke joinery)
Workshop unit (60–120 m²)
£800–£2,200/month
Wadkin / SCM panel saw or table saw
£1,800–£8,400 used
Spindle moulder + planer-thicknesser
£2,400–£6,400 used
Edge bander + bench drill
£900–£3,400
Dust extraction (Camvac / Felder)
£900–£2,400
Spray booth + HVLP gun (lacquer finishing)
£3,400–£8,400
Sheet material rack + lumber storage
£640–£1,400
03
Compliance + accreditation
FMB membership
£420–£900/year
Guild of Master Craftsmen
£280–£480/year
CSCS card per carpenter
£60 per 5 years
Public + product + £5m liability + tools-in-transit
£640–£1,800/year
Where to set up
Location is half the business.
Service area
20-mile radius from workshop
Bespoke install logistics + day-rate site travel cap at 40 min.
Workshop unit
60–120 m² Class B2 / B8
Panel saw + spray booth + lumber storage.
Catchment
≥30,000 households + 12 active builder firms
Bespoke retail + builder subcontract mix.
Timber merchant proximity
Within 15 min of Travis Perkins / Howdens / Champion
Daily timber + sheet runs.
Loading + parking
Roll-up door + van bay + 7.5t delivery access
Sheet materials + completed cabinet loadout.
Area tier
Rent / month
Notes
London + SE
£1,800–£4,400 workshop
Premium bespoke ticket. Loft + extension subcontract abundant.
Regional city + suburbs
£800–£1,800
Sweet spot. Bespoke + builder + kitchen install mix.
Market town + rural
£480–£1,200
Heritage sash + barn conversion specialism.
Licences & registrations
Get the paperwork done before you sign a lease.
UK figures for 2026. Lead times assume you submit complete applications — councils will pause the clock if you miss documents.
Requirement
Who issues
Cost
Lead time
ReqCompanies House Ltd
Companies House
£100
Usually 24 hours
OptFMB membership
FMB
£420–£900/year
8 weeks (vetting)
OptGuild of Master Craftsmen
Guild
£280–£480/year
6 weeks
ReqCSCS card per carpenter
CITB
£60 per 5 years
2 weeks
ReqWorking at Height + asbestos awareness
CITB / Logic
£280 per carpenter
4 weeks
ReqPublic + product + £5m liability
Tradesman Saver
£640–£1,800/year
1 week
ReqEmployer's liability + tools-in-transit
Broker
£280–£640/year
1 day
ReqVehicle (commercial)
AXA / NIG
£640–£1,400 per van
1 day
ReqWaste carrier registration
Environment Agency
£154/3 years
2 weeks
ReqICO data protection
ICO
£40–£60/year
1 day
Build-out timeline
From decision to open in 12 weeks.
01
Phase 0 — Setup
Weeks 1–4- Companies House + FMB application
- Van + Sortimo racking
- Public liability + tools-in-transit
02
Phase 1 — Workshop
Weeks 4–10- Workshop lease + 3-phase install
- Panel saw + spindle + extraction set-up
- Trade accounts (Howdens + Champion + Tilgear)
03
Phase 2 — Brand + portfolio
Weeks 8–14- Houzz + Instagram + Google Business profile
- First bespoke alcove project (loss-leader portfolio)
- Builder subcontract outreach (3 loft-conversion firms)
04
Phase 3 — Soft launch
Weeks 12–16- Checkatrade + MyBuilder + FMB Find-a-Builder profiles
- First paid bespoke commissions
- Site-day rates booked 4–6 weeks ahead
05
Phase 4 — Open
Week 16+- Bespoke media-wall + alcove campaign live
- Repeat builder contracts running
- Sash-window restoration partnership
Budget
Realistic startup and monthly cost ranges.
One-off · Startup
Setting up the shop
Workshop lease + deposit + 3-phase install
£3,400 → £10,000
Van + sign-writing + racking
£18,000 → £32,000
Site kit (Festool + DeWalt + hand tools)
£4,400 → £10,000
Workshop machines (panel saw + spindle + extraction + spray)
£10,000 → £28,000
Opening timber + sheet stock
£2,400 → £6,400
Software (Powered Now + SketchUp + Cabinet Vision)
£640 → £1,400
Branding + FMB + Guild + insurance + licences
£1,400 → £3,400
Houzz + Instagram + portfolio shoot
£900 → £2,400
Working capital (3 months)
£8,400 → £18,000
Typical total
£49.6k–£111.6k
Recurring · Monthly
Keeping the lights on
Workshop rent
£800 → £2,200
Van (lease + fuel + insurance)
£640 → £1,400
Utilities (workshop 3-phase + dust extraction)
£280 → £640
Materials COGS (32–42% on bespoke, 18% on site days)
£4,400 → £14,000
Wages (carpenter + apprentice + part-time joiner)
£6,400 → £18,000
Software + accreditation + insurance
£280 → £900
Marketing + Houzz + Checkatrade
£420 → £1,400
Typical total
£13.2k–£38.5k
Numbers that compound
How a carpentry actually looks on a chart.
Illustrative planning ranges, not measured customer data. Toggle the views to see ramp, mix and weekly load.
12-month revenue ramp
Low vs high scenario (£ monthly)
High Low
Illustrative example for planning, not measured customer data.
First 90 days
Dates that actually matter after opening.
01Day 1
Soft open: 1 site day (£420) + 2 second-fix door hangs (£640). £1k revenue.
02Day 7
First week: 4 site days, 6 second-fix jobs, first bespoke alcove quoted (£3.8k accepted). £5.4k revenue.
03Day 30
Steady: 18 site days, 22 second-fix jobs, 2 bespoke projects delivered. £18k revenue. First builder subcontract signed.
04Day 90
Full ramp: £22k/month, bespoke pipeline 6 weeks deep, Houzz featured 'best of houzz' for alcove media-wall.
05Day 180
Mature: £28k/month, bespoke share at 34%, sash-window heritage partnership delivering £4.8k average tickets.
What's inside
DNA, route, automations, integrations, benchmarks, advisors — tuned for a carpentry.
02Move
Suggested route
Join FMB + Guild of Master Craftsmen, build 3–5 builder-subcontract relationships (loft-conversion firms + extension specialists pay £280–£420/day reliable cashflow), launch a bespoke alcove / media-wall niche on Instagram + Houzz, partner with sash-window restoration specialists for heritage premium.
03Move
Automations
Site-visit photo + measurement auto-attach to quote, materials cut-list auto-generation, install-day SMS + arrival window, snagging + 12-month return reminder, review request 7 days post-install.
04Move
Integrations
Powered Now / Tradify, SketchUp + Cabinet Vision for joinery design, Stripe, Klaviyo, GBP, Houzz, Xero.
05Move
Benchmarks
Jobs/week, bespoke share and repeat-builder share vs FMB carpentry cohort.
06Move
Advisors
Encore advisors from Institute of Carpenters, FMB master craftsmen, ex-Howdens trade reps and bespoke-joinery studio founders.
Stack
Modules used in this playbook.
01DNA Engine02Route Map03Launch Twin04Automation05Verified06Encore
Related playbooks
Owners of a carpentry often run — or cross-sell with — these adjacent operations.
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