Specialist recruitment consultancy, and online training provider, Simon Acres Group Limited hosted a panel discussion at the recent InstallerSHOW New York exhibition, providing an opportunity for UK and US based trade professionals to learn from one another.
The session focused on how to encourage more young people to choose a trade for their career, bringing in various perspectives from the expert panel, which consisted of:
- Mark Conacher: A highly experienced leader with more than 30 years’ service to the KBB industry, Mark is the CEO of KBB Momentum, a consultancy service for installers.
- Eric Marshall: Serving as a Global Connect Advisor for the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA), Eric is a prominent figure in the US storage and closet industry and co-founder of the Closet Training Institute.
- Sharon L. Sherman: An award-winning interior designer, certified kitchen designer, and founder of Thyme & Place Design.
- Mark Rosenhaus: An established New York-based designer, long-time contributor to the NKBA community and owner of Rosenhaus Design Group.
- Wilson Matthew Betances: An educator, podcaster, public speaker, and founder of Energize Us Edu, Wilson guides young trade professionals to unlock their full potential and create lasting success in their careers.
The panel explored both the challenges and opportunities facing the UK and US trade sectors, with a particular focus on attracting and retaining young talent. While the two markets have their differences in structure, regulation, and education pathways, the conversation revealed a shared mission: reshaping perceptions of the skilled trades and creating clearer, more supported routes into long‑term careers.
Key findings from the panel discussion include:
The industry must make trades ‘attractive’ again
Several panellists emphasised that the skilled trades are experiencing an image problem. Sharon pointed out that cultural change over the last few decades has created a belief that success is synonymous with university education. As a result, craftsmanship has stopped being ‘cool’. Eric noted that employers must now compete for talent by offering perks, strong culture, and a sense of pride in the craft. Social media emerged as a powerful solution. Both Mark Conacher and Sharon said that young people often discover trade careers not through schools or traditional marketing, but through TikTok and Instagram.
Clear pathways and roadmaps are a must
Many of the speakers agreed that a solution to attracting more people to the construction industry is a defined pathway or ‘roadmap’ into the trades. A clear structure so that young people and their parents can understand where to begin, how to gain qualifications, what each stage of training involves, and what long‑term career progression looks like. It was noted that pathways into trade careers do exist in the US but it’s about marketing and showing young people that they are available. The UK also faces the challenge of inconsistency; as Simon explained, outreach to schools often depends on individual businesses taking the initiative rather than a systematic, nationwide effort.
Helping businesses grow to increase training capacity
Mark Conacher explained that the UK installation industry has too few businesses with the capacity to take on apprentices. With many tradespeople operating as sole traders, scaling up to become apprenticeship providers is often financially or logistically unfeasible. Mark argued that helping businesses to grow, making them more stable and better resourced, would improve apprenticeship availability. Similarly, Wilson highlighted that in the US there isn’t enough current builders to help attract and bring on new workers.
This point lends itself to apprenticeship funding. In the UK, for eligible apprentices, training costs are 100 per cent funded by the government for SME employers who do not pay the apprenticeship levy. This means that when hiring a young apprentice, SMEs will simply have to cover the apprentice’s wage and associated employment costs. In the US, funding varies across states, however Eric pointed out that there are instances where apprentices’ salaries can be covered with help from ‘The Labor Board’ via federal funding.
Better marketing is essential
Throughout the conversation, marketing emerged as an essential theme with the consensus that the construction and design sectors must put an emphasis on promoting themselves to attract young talent. Mark Rosenhaus touched on the importance of modernised storytelling within the sector, highlighting that InstallerSHOW New York is showcasing innovative, modern products, far from the ‘old‑fashioned’ image some young people have of the industry.
The panel discussion is available to watch in full on the Simon Acres Group Facebook page. For further information on Simon Acres Group or to make an enquiry, please call the team on 0203 701 6660, email [email protected] or visit www.simonacres.co.uk.
