Personalised number plates often reek of braggarts desperate to gloat about their wealth.
But for millionaire plumber Charlie Mullins, it is all just a bit of toilet humour.
Take a trip around the city of London and you’re bound to see one of his Pimlico Plumber vans branded with "bog 1", "loo 2 wet" and "flush".
While they often make passers-by crack up, the unique letters and digits are no laughing matter.
With 250 company vans on the road, his plumbing-themed number plates are worth more than £1.5 million ($2.08m) – and Charlie himself, about £70 million.
The eccentric businessman, known for his bleached-blond hair and blinding white smile, has crossed the pond to Dubai to turn a pipe dream into reality.
Sitting in his Dh4,000-a-night, ocean-facing suite in one of Dubai's most exclusive hotels, the man known as Britain's richest plumber spoke to The National about life as a millionaire tradesman and why he has set his sights on the Middle East for his next business venture.
“Look, if you want a quality suit you go to Savile Row,” he said, while buttering some toast from the dining room of his sun-drenched suite.
“In plumbing, the cheapest job always turns out to be the dearest job. We don’t do cheap.
“All you have to do is look around and see that people here live the good life, they like quality and I will bring that quality to them.”
Bunking off school at 11
Dressed in a bright pink polo shirt and white chino shorts, Mr Mullins ticks all the boxes when it comes to the classic rags-to-riches tale.
The north Londoner, born and raised on a council estate in Camden, started bunking off school at the age of 11 to dig up lead pipes from his neighbours’ gardens.
Helping out a local plumber, Mr Mullins, now 68, would "pocket two bob a day and get a free meal" for his labour.
“I picked up the plumbing gig from an old fella that used to live in my area,” he said.
“He had nice clothes, a decent car and went on sunshine holidays every year. I was in awe of him.
"I remember him telling me if I went into plumbing I'd never be out of work. That's when the seed was sown.
“If he was a bank robber maybe I would have become a bank robber, that’s how much the guy inspired me.”
At the age of 15, Charlie took up a plumbing apprenticeship. Within 10 years, in the late 1970s, he started running his own business from a dingy basement in Pimlico, west London.
Morris Minor to Bentley Bentayga
Today, he heads his empire from a 3,500-square-metre headquarters in the centre of England’s capital.
“At that time plumbers had a bad name,” he said.
“They’d turn up to jobs in a rusty van with their bums hanging out of their trousers and they’d never finish a job. I quickly caught on to that and did the opposite.
“I’d turn up on time in a nice van, a smart set of overalls and get the job done then and there.
“I set out to change the image of plumbers and I succeeded. Who would have thought you could be a millionaire plumber? I didn’t, but here I am.”
Over the years, Mr Mullins became something of a local celebrity on the UK circuit.
His years spent getting elbow deep in the plumbing trade ended up catching the eye of Britain’s most elite – the royal family – and in 2014 he was awarded an OBE in the New Year’s honours list.
He has been regularly snapped with big name politicians including British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and makes no secret of flaunting his wealth in public.
Still clubbing aged 68
He spends hundreds of thousands of pounds a year on cars and holidays, including £300,000 jetting off to Dubai and Marbella, among other sunny hot spots, several times a year.
While his transit vans helped to garner his millions, Mr Mullins's personal fleet of vehicles included a Bentley Mulsanne and Bentley Bentayga – a far cry from the banged-up Morris Minor van he started out in back in the 1970s.
Modesty is not a trait he does well, but he makes no apologies for that. The old adage, work hard, play hard, is a motto he lives by.
On the day The National visits, he is having a "late breakfast" at 2pm after a late night before.
The twice-divorced and now single father of four, has been flying back and forth to Dubai for more than two decades, but says he is still a sucker for the nightlife.
Five star restaurants and exclusive beach clubs are where he spends most of his time when not talking business with his wealthy expat friends.
Dubai plumbing 'bit shoddy' in parts
Since landing in Dubai in December, he has racked up a hotel bill in excess of Dh240,000 ($65,350). Asked whether he has thought about renting an apartment instead, he shakes his head; he could not do without the pool, beach and daily turn-down service.
The plumbing boss has a bulging property portfolio too, which includes a £10 million three-bedroom penthouse in Millbank, London, a luxury villa in Marbella, Spain, and a six-bed mansion in Essex, which recently went on the market for more than £4.5 million.
Now, he is on the lookout for another home in Dubai.
“When I do set up my business here, it won’t be a permanent home but I’d definitely fancy myself a villa on the Palm Jumeirah, 100 per cent.
“The property there is right up my alley and I love the beach. I think you even get your own private stretch of beach.
“The social life is second to none out here and it’s a big step up from the drain of London.”
Despite the pandemic, Pimlico Plumbers has done well over the past year. Business is up 15 per cent and that has a lot to do with his company’s hefty call-out rate of £105 per hour, rising to £200 for unsociable-hour emergencies.
Mr Mullins, a firm UK remainer who was vocal in his opposition to Brexit, said he had been eyeing up the idea of setting up a Pimlico Plumbers outlet in Dubai for years and now was as good a time as any.
“I am playing it smart and taking my time because of the pandemic, but I’m very serious about this,” he said.
“Dubai is great but some of the plumbing workmanship I’ve seen in buildings is a bit shoddy.
“I know I could fill that gap for people willing to spend a bit more for a quality outcome.
“I will bring British trained and qualified plumbers out here but I won’t charge London prices, it will be less.
“If I’m being very honest, I wish I tapped into the Dubai market 15 years ago. I didn’t and I’m gutted.”
With a large British expat community in Dubai that is "familiar with his name", Mr Mullins thinks he could establish a "great customer base really quickly".
And if all goes to plan, he will be up and running before the end of the year.
“I even heard they’re bringing the famous black taxis of London out here soon, now if that’s not the perfect platform to advertise the business I don’t know what is.”
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
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The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Should late investors consider cryptocurrencies?
Wealth managers recommend late investors to have a balanced portfolio that typically includes traditional assets such as cash, government and corporate bonds, equities, commodities and commercial property.
They do not usually recommend investing in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies due to the risk and volatility associated with them.
“It has produced eye-watering returns for some, whereas others have lost substantially as this has all depended purely on timing and when the buy-in was. If someone still has about 20 to 25 years until retirement, there isn’t any need to take such risks,” Rupert Connor of Abacus Financial Consultant says.
He adds that if a person is interested in owning a business or growing a property portfolio to increase their retirement income, this can be encouraged provided they keep in mind the overall risk profile of these assets.
What are the influencer academy modules?
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Countries offering golden visas
UK
Innovator Founder Visa is aimed at those who can demonstrate relevant experience in business and sufficient investment funds to set up and scale up a new business in the UK. It offers permanent residence after three years.
Germany
Investing or establishing a business in Germany offers you a residence permit, which eventually leads to citizenship. The investment must meet an economic need and you have to have lived in Germany for five years to become a citizen.
Italy
The scheme is designed for foreign investors committed to making a significant contribution to the economy. Requires a minimum investment of €250,000 which can rise to €2 million.
Switzerland
Residence Programme offers residence to applicants and their families through economic contributions. The applicant must agree to pay an annual lump sum in tax.
Canada
Start-Up Visa Programme allows foreign entrepreneurs the opportunity to create a business in Canada and apply for permanent residence.
The Settlers
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Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
FINAL RESULT
Sharjah Wanderers 20 Dubai Tigers 25 (After extra-time)
Wanderers
Tries: Gormley, Penalty
cons: Flaherty
Pens: Flaherty 2
Tigers
Tries: O’Donnell, Gibbons, Kelly
Cons: Caldwell 2
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Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
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Thank You for Banking with Us
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Rating: 4/5
