Strong Balance Sheets, No Support: Make It Make Sense

We keep hearing about the trade shortage, yet the people stepping into the trades are expected to build a business with nothing but grit, credit cards and crossed fingers.

Everything is COD. Materials upfront. Insurance before you even start. Payroll every two weeks. Financing? Only once you’ve already survived the part where you needed it most.

And here’s the part no one talks about: Established trade businesses consistently show some of the strongest balance sheets in the small‑business sector.

Stable cash flow. High asset value. Predictable demand. A proven ROI profile that lenders should be fighting over.

But instead of backing tradies early — when it actually matters — financial institutions wait until the risk is gone. They support the finishers, not the starters. 

Meanwhile, the modern workforce is more entrepreneurial than ever. People want to build something of their own. They want autonomy, ownership and a path that isn’t tied to a punch clock.

If we want to fix the shortage, we need to stop making new tradies self‑fund every risk from day one. We need programs built around the reality of how trade businesses grow — not policies designed for industries with softer landings.

The skilled trades shortage isn’t about interest, it’s about access.

And access starts with backing the people who build the backbone of the economy.