Aussie tradies swap hi-vis for ‘sexy Santa’ in ‘Mean Girls’ Dance – and go viral

A group of Aussie tradies have gone viral after swapping their hi-vis for tongue-in-cheek “sexy Santa” outfits and recreating the iconic “Mean Girls” dance in a festive video filmed on site.

The light‑hearted clip has racked up more than 1.6 million views and over 1000 comments in just days, with viewers embracing an unexpected look at the lighter side of tradie life.

Wade Smith, Director of Wade Smith Plumbing and one of the men in the clip, told news.com.au the idea had been in the works for about two years after the company’s general manager, a self-confessed “Mean Girls” fan, kept joking about recreating the scene.

“He loves a good old ‘Mean Girls’ movie and a knee slap,” Mr. Smith said.

“He sort of punches them out a fair bit during the week, just to get a bit of a laugh in the office and yeah he’s been wanting to do this for a long time.

“We finally worked up the courage … Banded together and got it done.”

Despite the polished result, the team was surprised by how quickly it took off.

“We didn’t expect it to blow up like this, we thought it’d just be a bit of a laugh. It’s certainly gone a lot bigger than we thought, to be honest,” Mr Smith said.

He said they’re used to seeing around 4500 views on posts, with some previously reaching about 20,000.

“Once it beat that mark within the first hour, we were like, wow, this is probably going to go pretty far. It was a bit of a shock.”

The video came together in around ten minutes, with the team only running six or seven takes before settling on the final version.

“It’s not perfect, but it wasn’t bad,” Mr. Smith said, adding there was a “good vibe” in the office with plenty of onlookers having a laugh.

“Life can be too serious, so taking the seriousness out of it every now and then and having a laugh is always good.”

Not everyone was on board at first, with one tradie pulling out at the last minute, prompting an unexpected substitution.

“I was probably the most reluctant,” Mr. Smith said.

“I wasn’t even meant to be in it. I’m the one on the left next to the fella with the good legs. Another bloke wigged out and tore his clothes off, so I had to sub in, funnily enough.”

As the clip gained traction, commenters leaned into the Christmas and plumbing gags, mistletoe references and tongue‑in‑cheek service calls.

“There have been some goodies. There’s been a few talking about spending time under the mistletoe with the fellow on the left and asking whether he’s got a partner or not, which is quite hilarious,” Mr. Smith said.

“A few have joked about blocking their toilet to get our plumbers around. It’s all been a very good laugh.”

For Mr. Smith, the response shows people enjoy seeing a different side of tradies, who can be stereotyped as all business.

“We’re a team of 42 … We’re a fun bunch and family‑orientated. We’re family‑owned, have been going for eight years, and we’re big on building culture within our team.”

He said the company prides itself on communication and reliability.

“Tradies cop a bad rap for being unreliable, not showing up or communicating poorly, so we’ve really focused on nailing that … You’re never going to be wondering where we are or when we’re going to rock up. We take pride in our work,” Mr. Smith said.

With the festive season winding down, the team is already feeling the pressure to top their viral moment next year.

“We’re probably going to have to make it bigger and better next year. A lot of people wanted it to go a bit longer, so we’ll have to do an episode two for sure,” Mr. Smith said.

But for now, the hi-vis is back on and the tools are out.