Featured Image Credit: Alamy
Topics: Money, Celebrity Net Worth, Business, Politics
Jen Thomas
Anyone who has ever called out a plumber in an emergency will know it can be a lucrative (if not revolting at times) business.
Charlie Mullins OBE shot to fame thanks to his business, Pimlico Plumbing, and he became the UK’s first millionaire plumber.
Known for his Rod Stewart style barnet and flash cars, how much is his net worth now?
It’s said that Charlie Mullins is worth a massive £70 million. Anyone else thinking of changing career?
His major bank balance came from building two plumbing businesses from scratch, eventually becoming a business advisor to David Cameron and George Osborne.
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He was also awarded an OBE for his services to the plumbing industry.
Mullins was born into a working class family, and says he had his heart set on becoming a plumber from the age of 8.
Such was his passion for the trade, he said he regularly skipped school to help a local plumber.
He left school at 15 without any official qualifications and started his apprenticeship, and was fully qualified by 19.
He decided to set up business in a nearby wealthy district, Pimlico, explaining he “followed the money”.
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Some 9 years later, he was bringing in £900,000 a year.
In 2013, it was reportedly earning £19 million, with around 9% of all plumbing work in London being carried out by Pimlico Plumbers.
Mullins went on to sell 90% of the business in September 2021.
At the time, it had a turnover of circa £53.7 million. He sold it to American firm Neighborly for between £125 million and £145 million.
Charlie's son Scott retains a 10% share of the firm and stayed on as CEO.
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He has an eye for marketing and gave plumbing-themed personalised number plates to the vehicles, such as W4TER, DRA 1N, and BOG 1.
As well as his businesses, Mullins invested in property, and spent €2 million on two Spanish villas in Torrenueva, Granada.
He put his £4.75 million Hutton Mount, Essex home on the market in 2021.
In addition to this, he owns a six-bedroom London penthouse worth a massive £8 million, and divides his time between Spain and London.
He owns nine villas in a gated community in La Calla, near Marbella.
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These villas cost him £14 million.
Instead of retiring, he is building another plumbing company based in Marbella, Spain.
He also said in an interview that he plans to expand into the UAE, explaining: “I am playing it smart and taking my time because of the pandemic, but I’m very serious about this,” he said.
“I will bring British trained and qualified plumbers out here but I won’t charge London prices, it will be less.
He has two Bentley´s worth about £200,000 each, with one in Spain and one in the UK.