A Future in Flooring: What Does it Take to Become a Flooring Contractor?

When you think of learning a trade, a flooring contractor might not be your first thought. However, it’s a great one to consider. Let’s face it, everyone will always need flooring and it can be very lucrative too. You could work for a company or set up your own business, you could specialise in one type of flooring (natural stone, laminate, ceramic tiling etc) or you could improve your skills and training and offer all kinds of floor fittings. If you’re considering going down this path, here are a few things to consider.   Skills As a flooring contractor you will be doing a lot of manual work; putting down self levelling compound, hauling carpets and vinyl around, laying tiles. You will be doing a lot of bending, lifting and stretching and so being physically fit with the ability to be on your feet and moving around all day is crucial. Being good at maths is useful as a flooring contractor as you will be dealing with measurements and working out things like square footage of an area on a day to day basis. You will also need to be precise, there’s no room for error in professional floor fitting- it has to be a good job and so you will need to be accurate and perfect in both your measuring and execution of the job. Education You don’t need any specific qualifications to become a flooring contractor, although there are lots of educational courses that would help you to make your venture a success. If you plan on working for yourself for example then business management, financial qualifications and  business software. Courses that teach you how to work with customers or supervise staff will all come in useful in your business. In some cases, you may be able to undertake an apprenticeship which will teach you how to lay different types of flooring giving you education and real life work experience at the same time. However, if this isn’t available to you (perhaps due to your age or there being no availability in your area) it’s not essential. Experience If you complete an apprenticeship then this will give you plenty of on the job training and the skills you need to make it on your own. If not, your best option would be to work with a professional. You could start by being a workman’s mate or labourer, helping them with their tasks and learning yourself along the way. Training and plenty of practice is how you will perfect your craft when it comes to becoming a floor contractor, so it’s important to get in as much of this as possible.   Be aware that in some places in the world, to lay flooring such as wood and tiles you will require a home improvement contractors license. Do your research here so that everything is above board. For things like carpets, no license will be required and so you could always start out purely as a carpet fitter and expand your business later down the line. ]]>