The person behind Trade Forge Network. And why it matters.
I'm Lex, founder of Trade Forge Network. I'm based in Bracknell, Berkshire, and I work with trades businesses across the UK.
Good work. Happy customers. Then nothing.
I didn't come from trades. But over the last 17 years I've either been building operational systems for service businesses, or watching closely while people close to me navigated the reality of running one. My partner is multi-trade. A lot of my closest friends work across different trades. I kept seeing the same pattern: good work, happy customers, and then nothing. No follow-up. No system. Revenue walking out the door that nobody was chasing.
That's what Trade Forge Network is built to fix.
Why I know this works.
Before Trade Forge Network, I spent over 7 years at Alexander Mann Solutions - one of the world's leading recruitment and workforce management firms - working on process improvement, systems optimisation, and operational compliance across global programmes. That work taught me how to take complex operations, strip them back to what actually matters, and build processes that people can follow consistently without it feeling like extra work.
I then spent seven years running the full operations of a domestic and commercial cleaning business - bookings, scheduling, client communication, invoicing, team coordination, customer retention. That's where the repeat revenue insight came from. Not from a course or a book. From watching, first hand, what happens when you build a simple follow-up system versus when you don't. The difference in repeat customers coming back was significant. The effort required was not.
After that I spent three years working directly with trades and service business owners, building automated systems, follow-up pipelines, and customer re-engagement processes for their specific businesses. By the time I launched Trade Forge Network, I had a very clear picture of what works and what doesn't for this type of business.
Years corporate process improvement
Years running a service business
Years trades and service business systems
Practical and process-first.
No software you don't need. No system you'll never use.
Everything starts with understanding your business - how you work, who your customers are, what you're already doing. Then we build around that. Simple, repeatable, and built for days where you're flat-out on the tools and don't have time to manage a complicated system.
I mainly work with Google Sheets, email and, where relevant, SMS - tools that work on any device and don't need a monthly or annual subscription. Most of the day-to-day runs on your phone.
That's a deliberate choice, not a limitation. Over the years I've worked with a wide range of systems and technology, from enterprise workforce platforms to CRMs, scheduling tools and custom automation. For a trades business, the simplest tool that actually gets used beats the most sophisticated one that doesn't - but if your business calls for something more, that experience is there too.
Gas engineers. Electricians. Plumbers. And any trade with work that comes back around.
These trades share a common pattern - customers who have a natural reason to come back. Regular service visits, certificates, maintenance agreements, repeat call-outs. The frequency varies by trade and by business, but the opportunity is the same: a customer list full of people who could book again and haven't been asked. Most of the businesses I work with are sole traders or small teams - one to three people is typical, sometimes a little more. What actually matters isn't team size, though - it's whether you've got a customer base that's never been properly followed up.
All Trades Businesses
Suitable for any trade with repeat service potential - customised to your business.
Gas & Heating Engineers
Built around the annual certificate cycle - boiler services, CP12s, repeat call-outs.
Electricians
Built around inspection schedules - EICRs, PAT testing, periodic renewals.
Plumbers
Built around maintenance work - cylinder checks, servicing, drainage.
Most of the businesses doing this work are small operators. Good at their trade, busy with the next job, and not set up to run a proper follow-up system. That gap is where the revenue goes.
The depth I've built for gas and heating engineers, electricians, and plumbers is specific for a reason - and it's the model I use for every trade I take on next. A system built around a gas engineer's annual certificate cycle is not the same as one built around an electrician's inspection schedule or a plumber's maintenance work. The specificity is what makes it work in practice rather than just in theory.
If your trade has regular return work and a customer list you're not fully activating, the same logic applies - get in touch and we'll talk through whether it's a good fit.
Find out how much repeat revenue you're leaving on the table.
The Revenue Leak Report takes 15 minutes and costs £49. You may find the number bigger than expected.
Book your Revenue Leak Report - £49Or get in touch directly - email lex@tradeforgenet.com or message on WhatsApp, or connect on LinkedIn.