Charlie Mullins OBE: 'People say I'm old fashioned. A dinosaur. I also started from nothing and sold a company for £147m'

The Starting Line with Rich Leigh

This week's episode is with Charlie Mullins OBE, the founder of Pimlico Plumbing and the self-styled ‘most famous plumber in the world’.

Charlie was born in 1952 in north London to a working class family. In his own words, they were very poor, and he remembers going to school with holes in his clothes. He began working from the age of 8 or 9, and that work ethic stuck. He started his company when he was still in his twenties, and sold it two years ago for £147m.

He was awarded an OBE in 2015 for services to business, and has been an advisor to a handful of prime ministers and governments.

We talk about a lot of topics, including his upbringing, what kind of father and husband he thinks he was, his recent ban from Twitter - having, in his words, stepped over the line when speaking about London Mayor Sadiq Khan, and how that is likely to impact his own Mayoral ambitions, how he thinks he wouldn’t have said those things was he in better health at the time, the new business he’s creating that will rival Pimlico Plumbing - and how he doesn’t care that they’re upset about his new venture, and much, much more.

Charlie says some things, both in this conversation and outside of it, which I don’t necessarily agree with.

I think it’s important to be able to sit across a table and have conversations with people we might not always agree with, in good faith.

I think all too often, in 2023, we are seemingly, collectively, almost foaming at the mouth in our want for people to be punished and cancelled. I think that’s a dangerous game to play, and a sure way to ensure that the question isn’t if something we’ve done or said comes back to bite us on the backside, but when. I’m sure there’s a phrase about throwing stones and glass houses that applies, and I would sooner have a conversation than maintain this polarisation. At the best, opinions shift. At the worst, opinions don’t change and each of you are only more staunch in your belief, which is no bad thing.

About The Starting Line Podcast

From a turbulent childhood marred by domestic violence, addiction and crime to being named the #1 most influential PR person, my journey has been anything but conventional.

At 17, I dropped out of school. At 18, I became a father for the first time, and left the chaos of my family council house, determined to rewrite my story and break the cycle so many understandably struggle to.

By 30, I was a successful agency owner with a #1 best-selling book. We were working with some of the UK’s leading brands, entrepreneurs and celebrities, building, shaping and protecting reputations, using my influence to raise more than a million pounds for sick children.

Hosted by me, Rich Leigh, The Starting Line Podcast is your weekly dose of inspiration, featuring powerful interviews with entrepreneurs, entertainers, athletes, philanthropists and more. Together, we explore the themes of curiosity, resilience, ambition, and the relentless pursuit of success, proving that your starting line doesn't define your potential.

Join me every Monday as we discuss life's challenges with positivity, perseverance and a touch of silliness.

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