110 | Elite Building BUILDING With budgets that typically run between $1 million and $3 million, husband-and-wife team Fiona and Josh Gillanders, owners of Elite Building Ltd, are usually building architectural homes, and both of them are fully involved in the project from the start. Based in Mangawhai, the couple launched their business early in 2017. Josh has over 17 years of building behind him, nine as a licensed building practitioner, and is hands-on with all their builds, often on-site, on the tools, overseeing and signing off the builds. Fiona is behind the scenes in admin, working closely with clients and doing everything else it takes to keep the company and their builds running smoothly. “My role is to get the job ready to start, then Josh takes over,” she says. “We have a crew of eight builders and we’re all local, and most of our work has been here in Mangawhai, which has been booming, but we go as far south as Warkworth and north to Whangarei.” With four qualified builders and four apprentices, they generally have two or three builds going, which allows them to allocate resources according to each build’s needs, and gives them the flexibility to manage the different elements typical of any build as they shift and change. They are new-build specialists, but among the new builds are the smaller jobs and renovations that help fill in any gaps. “Our point of difference is that we’re a married couple so we’re in the business, married to the business and our business is everything to us,” Fiona says. Teamed up in life and business They are new-build specialists, but among the new builds are the smaller jobs and renovations that help fill in any gaps. T T Virginia Wright “Our clients often find it refreshing to be working with both of us, as we really bring a team approach to our builds. With both of us being fully involved, it means two sets of eyes over everything, which means there is less of a chance of things being missed. We each focus on our area of expertise, so that brings a nice balance to what we do.” Whether a referral comes in from a real estate agent, an architect, or directly from their website, Fiona deals with the initial contact before they go and meet the client together and gets a sense of the job: the section, the scope of the build, the budget, and so on. They are generally quoting on completed drawings, but the occasional client just has the land, and Elite Building also enjoys being involved early on, as the builder’s perspective can aid the design process, along with the architect’s. Communication is central for them both, with Josh on the tools, running the build schedule and the subbies, and keeping clients fully updated as the build progresses, while Fiona continues working with them to select fixtures, colours and the myriad of things that make a house a home. Together they ensure they keep to the time frames and the agreed budget, and they pride themselves on being transparent and honest. “We quote in detail right at the beginning, which means we sometimes look like we’re costing more, but that’s because we try to minimise any surprises with unexpected variations later,” explains Fiona. Whether it’s a beautiful estuary build with an infinity pool and sleek back aluminum cladding, and managing the challenges that come with building on sand dunes or a steep site, or a luxury glamping tent with rustic architectural bathroom block in the middle of an orchard, their tag says it all: Elite Homes, Elite Teams, Elite Workmanship. www.aboveboard i nter i ors .co.nz RESIDENTIAL FIXUPS • SMALL COMMERCIAL PROJECTS • NEW HOME BUILDS RENOVATIONS • INSURANCE WORK • COMMERCIAL FITOUTS & REFURBISHMENT FIRE PROTECTION • PLASTERBOARD FIXING • INTERIOR PLASTERING • PAINTING 021446716 CONTACT US FOR A FREE QUOTE COMPREHENSIVE PLASTERBOARD FIXING STOPPING AND PAINTING SERVICES IN AUCKLAND & MANGAWHAI
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