i think its all down to a combination of skill, experience and the effort and expense you prepared to put in to find work...
its a layer cake innit...
those with just themselves and a van can only make enough money for a small amount of publicity...
those with 6 lads and 3 vans should be able to put the same percentage of their turnover into advertising but it should be more, therefore more work etc..
ive just about given up with the whole idea cos 1) im p'ssed off with killing myself for work and 2) when youve been up and down in the game for a while it gets to you eventually...
personally i think the moneys gone out of the game, its had its cash cow phase, now its a dead dog.... time was when you could make a killing from plastering, now everyones cottoned onto it, just like small welding/fabrication companies jumped on the mig welder and upvc manufacturers figured out how to fit windows using nothing but complete idiots, its much harder to make money due to the competition involved...
when you first start out youre running round like a headless chicken, and you think 'as long as i keep this up im laffin', then the buzz wears off, the missus starts havin a pop constantly and it gets harder...
soon as someone invents the idiot proof plastering machine were all f'cked.... :