The UK’s first radio station for builders Fix is now turning over up to £8m in revenue, according to CEO Louis Timpany.
He said the station has seen a five-fold increase in revenue since 2022 when it gained a licence to broadcast nationally on DAB. The station was previously only available in London.
The station claims to average 724,856 listeners per week, citing Nielsen figures
Timpany said investment in new presenters also contributed to growth. He described presenters Brad Hanson and Sam Hughes as “really loved characters amongst the community”, alongside lunchtime presenter Clive Holland and recent addition Jonny Gould. New show Tradeswoman Together is also set to be launched.
Hanson and Hughes present the Bald Builders Breakfast show, which won silver in Radio Academy’s Best Music Breakfast Radio Show Award 2025.
Fix’s promotions department involves “three vehicles on the road every day that travel around builders’ merchants or put breakfast mornings on”.
The station also organises FixFest, a music festival for tradespeople, set to take place on 30 August in Sussex featuring Dizzee Rascal and Toploader.
On Fix’s online strategy Timpany said: “We’ve got about 400,000 followers across our social media channels…
“We’re trying to use it to… speak to the wider audience in the hope that they become radio listeners.”
Fix also produces a daily construction news bulletin which “covers all of the major topics affecting the trade and construction industry”.
“We also carry Sky News’s feed, so we’ll be covering mainstream news”.
Timpany also said that although Fix limits its target audience to tradespeople, having a specific target had benefits.
“Radio is… all about community. We are embracing that and we’re seeing that it’s being successful – whereas a lot of these bigger brands are moving away from those things…
“So, whereas previously you would have hundreds and hundreds of local breakfast shows across the UK, now you’ve got one breakfast show on Heart.
“It’s hard for someone in Aberdeen or Scunthorpe or Cornwall to feel like they’ve got that sense of community.
“Now although we are a national product, because we are so heavily targeted towards a specific community, they can get that sense of community through us”.
Fix launched its charitable arm, the Fix Radio Foundation, in 2017.
Timpany said: “Almost a third of people hear about Fix… from a friend or colleague on site.
“I think a lot of our success is because we genuinely care and look after the community that we serve.
“In turn they’re looking after us back by listening for long periods of time and telling their friends about us…
“What we believe in is that you can build a business model where you share your success.
“So why not create a business where the more successful we are, the more we can help the community and bring them along with us…?
“Everyone wins from that approach.”
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
