Episode 16

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Published on:

20th May 2025

The Freedom Exit with Tom Howard

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The step-by-step sales framework built for trade business owners: https://tradesformation.systeme.io/smartsales

From sweeping trucks at 15 to helping build companies worth hundreds of millions, Tom Howard shows what it really takes to grow a serious home services business.

Adrian Fadini connects with Tom Howard from ServiceTitan to lay it all out.

Tom tells his story from the yard to the boardroom, how a life-altering misdiagnosis reshaped his priorities, and why knowing your numbers is the real leverage point in any plumbing, electrical, or HVAC business. He shares what he has learned across 20 plus acquisitions, how to think about exits long before you sell, and why clear pricing and incentives change everything for your team and your customers.

When you truly understand your numbers and build with an exit mindset, you get more control, more options, and a business that serves your life instead of trapping you.

You’ll learn:

  • Why trades can beat traditional careers when you treat your business like an asset
  • How knowing your numbers gives you real power and better decisions
  • The myth of “that will not work in my market” and how to bust it
  • Why every trade business needs an exit plan, even if you never plan to sell
  • What Tom learned from 20 plus acquisitions, including Fetch-a-Tech
  • How to think about pricing like a steakhouse, not a fast food outlet
  • Ways to use incentives and autonomy to build a high-performance team
  • How to balance goals, responsibility, and legacy as you scale

In this episode:

01:00 Meet Tom Howard and his origin story

05:00 Why trades beat finance and why numbers matter so much

10:00 Killing the “that will not work in my market” story and planning your exit

16:00 Acquisitions, Fetch-a-Tech, and building 100M plus businesses

25:00 ServiceTitan, community, and pricing mindset

35:00 Incentives, autonomy, and leading strong teams

40:00 Goals, responsibility, and building a legacy that lasts

Follow TradesFormation

https://link.me/trades_formation

https://tradesformation.com.au/

Connect with Tom Howard

Website: https://www.howarddeals.com | https://www.servicetitan.com

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About the Podcast

TF Unlocked: The Tradie Business Podcast
Sell. Scale. Systemise - The no BS podcast for Home Service Tradies
TradesFormation Unlocked with Adrian Fadini - the tradie business podcast for Plumbing, Electrical, HVAC, and home service business owners who want to grow with confidence.

This is your wake-up call. Your line in the sand. The moment you stop grinding through jobs and start building the business you know you’re capable of.

If you’re in the home service trades - Plumbing, Electrical, HVAC, and beyond this podcast cuts straight to what actually shifts your results: selling with confidence, leading with clarity, tightening your systems, and creating growth you can sustain.

Every episode gives you real stories, practical tools, and the kind of insights that get you out of your head and into action.

It’s time to step up.
It’s time to take control.
And it’s time to build a business that works without burning yourself out.

About your host

Profile picture for Adrian Fadini

Adrian Fadini

Adrian Fadini built Plumber To The Rescue from the ground up and turned it into one of Sydney’s most respected service trade businesses. He knows what it takes to build something that lasts—because he’s lived it.

After selling the business to his biggest competitor in 2012, he stayed on for two years, securing major commercial accounts—strata firms, pub groups, and businesses needing ongoing plumbing and electrical services.

Through it all, Adrian learned the power of training—not as a nice-to-have, but as a non-negotiable. It’s how he levelled up his team, created consistency, and built a business that could grow without him in the driver’s seat.

For over a decade, Adrian’s been coaching tradies across the service trades—plumbing, electrical, HVAC—you name it. He’s worked with clients at every stage, from solo operators trying to get off the tools to multi-million dollar businesses chasing serious scale.

Now, he brings all that experience to the table—real-world strategies, proven systems, and a genuine drive to help other tradies sell better, scale stronger, and systemize for long-term success.