In this power-packed episode of TradesFormation Unlocked, Adrian Fadini sits down with industry heavyweight Tom Howard for a raw, humorous, and insightful deep dive into business growth, leadership, and the often-ignored importance of having an exit strategy. Tom shares his unlikely journey from a 15-year-old truck cleaner to scaling and exiting multimillion-dollar trade businesses.

Now serving as VP of Customer Experience at ServiceTitan, Tom reflects on his entrepreneurial path, detailing the acquisitions and exits that fueled his success. He emphasizes the importance of financial literacy, visionary leadership, and building with intention. This is your ultimate blueprint to future-proofing your trade business.

Listeners will discover how Tom used painful lessons to develop financial acumen, why mindset trumps market conditions, and how investing in your team creates massive value. The duo also covers real-world examples of acquisition wins, price objections, and creating a workplace culture that retains top talent. Above all, Tom delivers a wake-up call for trade business owners to think long-term and build with the end in mind.

🧠 What You'll Learn

• Why every business needs an exit strategy—even if you never plan to leave
• How to build financial literacy without a degree
• The cost of NOT knowing your numbers
• Key mindset shifts to break through growth ceilings
• How to price for value, not just survival
• How Tom turned a -$1M profit business into $6M profit in 16 months
• Why paying your team well is a moral obligation
• The power of transparent incentives and leadership autonomy

💬 Memorable Quotes

"Your life has a 100% mortality rate. You need an exit strategy."

"Not knowing your numbers will cost you more than learning them ever will."

"Stop selling to your customers. Start creating the conditions where they want to buy from you."

"If you can't pay the highest wages in your area, it's not your team's fault—it's yours."

HowardDeals.com — Tom's acquisitions, podcast, and deal platform

How Lifelong Friends Built a $6M Plumbing Powerhouse from Scratch

In this inspiring episode of TradesFormation Unlocked, host Adrian Fadini dives deep with Ren and Chris, the dynamic duo behind Fix n Flow Plumbing. Starting as preschool buddies and eventually becoming business partners, these two have turned trust and grit into a $6 million plumbing empire in just three years.

We explore their story from humble beginnings and shared sacrifice to major wins—including doubling sales performance after just two days of training. The episode is packed with practical advice on building a business, leading with mindset, creating strong partnerships, and developing a culture where team members thrive.

Whether you're a technician dreaming of launching your own venture or a seasoned owner seeking new inspiration, this episode will spark motivation and provide actionable strategies.

🧠 What You'll Learn

The critical role of trust in business partnerships

How clear role division powers growth

Why technical mastery is key to successful sales

The power of investing in team training and culture

How to handle burnout by aligning with your core values

What it really takes to grow a trade business from zero to millions

Insights on mindset, self-belief, and personal sacrifice

“Before TradesFormation’s sales training, our techs were averaging $20K–$25K a week. After just two days with the team, that doubled—$50K weeks became the norm. The impact was immediate.”

— Chris, Fix and Flow

“You can’t sell something you don’t know. Confidence comes from mastery.” — Ren

How Shane Pinner of Tonkin grew a trade business from 7M to 25M+ by merging vision, leadership, and heart

In this compelling episode of TradesFormation Unlocked, Adrian Fadini sits down with Shane Pinner, co-founder of Tonkin, to unpack the incredible journey of merging two legacy trade businesses into a powerhouse of growth and leadership. Shane shares the real story behind Tonkin’s expansion from a local operation into a 25M+ enterprise, revealing the mindset, structure, and shared vision that fueled this transformation. From navigating partnerships to building internal leadership academies, Shane pulls back the curtain on what it really takes to create sustainable growth while staying rooted in community and values.

The critical factors for a successful business partnership

How Tonkin scaled from 7M to 25M in just five years

The value of shared vision and complimenting leadership styles

Why training and leadership development is essential in trades

How Tonkin redefined what a "trade business" can look like

Lessons from failed ventures and how they shaped future wins

The impact of data-driven decision making on profitability

Why you need to treat your business like a living, evolving entity

Trades business growth, partnerships in trades, Shane Pinner, Adrian Fadini, Tonkin Plumbing, leadership in trades, business systems, ServiceTitan, training culture, TradesFormation Unlocked, HVAC growth, trades leadership, profitability in trades

🔥 Guest: Phil Filaski – America’s #1 HVAC Sales Technician

🎧 Host: Adrian Fadini

What if you sold $20 million in HVAC… in a single year?

This episode is a front-row seat into the mind and method of Phil Filaski, one of the highest-performing sales techs in the US. From $8/hour in sheet metal to $48,000 installs in under 40 minutes — Phil’s journey is proof that grit, belief, and the right systems beat talent every time.

• Sales Without Sleaze: How Phil closes massive deals without pressure, pushiness, or gimmicks.
• From Tools to Top Gun: Why techs need to fix it before they sell it — and how that built his unbeatable sales culture.
• Real Talk on Sacrifice: What it actually costs to be the best — and how Phil balances legacy with hustle.
• Power of Belief: How to lead others by example and build a team that outgrows you.
• Simplify to Sell: Why over-talking kills deals, and the art of saying less to win more.
• Using Current Events to Close: How Phil turns market chaos and weather shifts into urgency.
• Paper Over iPad: The old-school presentation style that outperforms digital flash.
• The Flip Game: How his team feeds him warm leads and why options (always 3!) are king.
• Finance Like a Pro: Why 80% of his sales are financed — and why Aussies need to catch up.
• The One Thing Aussie Tradies Must Hear: $500K/year is just the start — not the finish line.

💥 Favourite Quotes:

“There’s no substitute for hard work — you have to out-effort the talent.”

“Simplify everything. Two sentences max. Let the silence do the work.”

“Most clients will say no once. Stick around — the sale starts after the no.”

“Legacy matters more than numbers. I want my crew to be better than me.”

This one’s a masterclass — real, raw, and wildly valuable.

Don’t miss it. Phil’s story isn’t just inspiring — it’s replicable.

Let’s get to work.

🚀 In this episode of the TradesFormational Podcast for Trades, we bring you an absolute powerhouse lineup! We sit down with Ellen Rohr (ServiceTitan & Zoom Drains), Vicki & Scott Erwin (Network Plumbing), and dive deep into how ServiceTitan is shaking up the Service trade industry in Australia.

👀 What you’ll discover:

✅ How Ellen went from plumber’s wife to a financial powerhouse in the trades.

✅ Vicki & Scott’s journey as the first ServiceTitan customers in Australia—and how it’s revolutionised their business.

✅ Why real-time data & automation are non-negotiable for scaling your trade business.

✅ Insider details on the massive ServiceTitan event in Australia this April—featuring top U.S. and Australian industry leaders.

📅 World of Titans : a 2-day event packed with expert insights on marketing, sales, finance, and operations from experts in the field.

🔹 Sydney Harbour Cruise for deep-dive convos with the industry's best.

🔹 Elite speakers: Business growth secrets from Keith Mercurio, Kathryn Elizabeth, Ismael Valdez & more!

🔥 If you’re in plumbing, electrical, HVAC, or solar—THIS is the podcast you need to hear.

🎟️ Want to join the event? Get the details & secure your spot now!

👉 https://web.cvent.com/event/0a1fa394-a8f8-46ed-b32c-7794a9a2f4d5/summary

📩 Let’s connect! If you’ve got questions, reach out—we’ll put you in touch with Ellen, Vicki & Scott.

#TradesTransformation #ServiceTitan #LeadGrowProfit #TradeBusinessSuccess

Unleash your sales potential! Join Adrian Fadini and Alan Ferguson in a transformative discussion on mastering sales influence and mindset in the trades industry.

Would you like to improve your team's skills in the residential field with continued education?

In this new TradesFormational episode, we have Ken Sutton! Ken has been in the electrical trade for 35 years and created Electrical How To, a platform that specialises in providing training and skills to help tradies in the electrical industry. In this episode, Ken discusses how he got to where he is today and how he allows tradies to improve their business.

Hey Friends!

The third part of our interview with Daniel Vigario is here! In this episode, Adrian and Daniel talked about inflation and how to increase your income and create wealth by building passive income with Gold, Silver and other precious metals. If you want to know more, listen and follow us now!