Business South August 2021

| 87 Ingold Building Richard Loader Ashburton-based Ingold Building has progressed from maintenance and repair work to being the builder of choice for high-end builds. BUILDING F or customers investing a significant portion of their life savings in the con- struction of a brand new home, there is a beauty about working with a small but reputa- ble family owned and operated company like Ashburton’s Ingold Building. That beauty comes down to dealing with one person throughout the journey and in the case of Ingold Building that is the company’s founder, Craig Ingold. It means nothing gets lost in translation and if anything needs to get changed it’s easy because Craig oversees all the systems. In the fourteen years that Craig established his business, projects have progressed from maintenance and repair work, bathroom renovations and building residential fences, to being a preferred choice for the upper end of new builds. That growth and development has all come on the back of trust and reputation. “We’re very lucky with the level of homes we get to build,” says Craig. “The majority of our work ranges from the upper-mid level through to the high-end home and most of the projects are design-and-build. I work with an architect in Christchurch and in most projects we’re heavily involved through- out the design process. That’s very important because the client gets a better result at a better price point.” With large proportion of work coming from referrals and repeat business, Craig says in a town like Ashburton reputation counts for everything. “If someone doesn’t know me they know of someone who has built with us. Because of the reputation that we’ve built up over the years, most of our projects have been secured before the house has been drawn and priced. There is huge trust in that.” Now employing a team of six tradesmen including an apprentice, Ingold Building is 100% focused on new residential builds and while most projects are centred in Ashburton, Craig and his team operate throughout the Mid-Canterbury region. “We have a lot of work on at the moment but I don’t know of any builders who are short of work. “ Depending on the scale of the projects, we typically have up to half a dozen new houses in varying stages of progress at any one time.” Craig says with the volume of work right now he could do with more carpenters but that is balanced with how big he wants Ingold Builders to become. “The size we are now I know everything that is going on in every job on any day. The bigger you get, you end up spending more time in the office and lose some of that control. “I just don’t want to get to that stage. You also have to employ the right people and I’ve been very lucky with my team. “Two of my staff have been with me for over ten years now. We very seldom lose staff so that is a massive bonus as well.” Reflecting on Ingold Builders’ success, Craig says loyalty to his subcontractors is key and you get that loyalty back with the service they deliver. “We have two of every subtrade and share the work evenly between them. “A build is treated as a package and so it doesn’t matter how good we are as builders, the quality of the job will be equally measured on the work- manship of the subtrades. “So they play a very important role in any project in getting repeat business and refer- rals.” Small firm with a big reputation • Textures & Specialist Coatings • Licensed Rockcote Plasterers • Interior & Exterior Painting • Factory Lacquer Finishes • Plasterboard Stopping • Level 5 Spray Finish • Wallpapering & Decorating FREE PHONE: 0800 TFC ASH (832 274) 15 Grey St, Ashburton| Ph: 03 307 8870 PROFESSIONAL DECORATING & PLASTERING PLACEMAKERS ASHBURTON ARE PROUD TO BE SUPPORTING INGOLD BUILDING