Charlie Mullins, founder of Pimlico Plumbers, has said he will take a pay cut this year because "times are tough".

Mullins, who earned over £1 million last year, has said he will take home just £350,000 this year.


"I suppose I have been a bit greedy in the past, if I'm honest," Mullins told the Financial Mail. "But times are tough and you've got to cut your cloth."


Mullins founded Pimlico Plumbers in 1979, and has since built a successful business based in London. "We were known for giving good service and being quite expensive. While we're still giving good service, we've become a little more competitive," he said.


The latest accounts show that Pimlico Plumbers increased its turnover slightly to £15.3 million in the year ending May 2010, while profits rose from £343,000 to £859,000. The company also made nearly £200,000 of charitable donations.


Mullins is the latest industry figure to "cut their cloth" in this way, after the executive chairman of Grafton Group, Michael Chadwick, declined a bonus and a pension allowance payment of £270,000 last year.


Find out what happened when HVP's Sarah Allen spent the day with Pimlico Plumbers