90 | Talk to us today, the feature profile experts Phone: 03 983 5500 waterfordpress.co.nz PROFILE YOUR PROJECT... Joinery Company flying high Gill Joinery is based in Christchurch, but does residential and commercial fit-outs all over the country, JOINERY Gill Joinery T T Hugh de Lacy “I can still see a lot of upside for the company and I’ve got more staff coming aboard soon, so I’m still in expansion mode.” The 200,000 passengers expected to pass through Christchurch International Airport this summer will be treated to the results of a major upgrade of the terminal, and they will have Gill Joinery to thank for much of the look and layout. Owned and operated by Harjot Gill, Gill Joinery is based in Christchurch, but does residential and commercial fit-outs all over the country, and this year landed a contract for a chunk of the biggest upgrade of passenger facilities at the terminal since it was built in 2013. The upgrade included no fewer than 12 new eateries, several new retail spaces, upgraded bathrooms, a new parents’ room, a large children’s play area and a re-modelled food court. Being such a high-profile site made it a plum job for Gill Joinery, which gets most of its work through reputation – and that was how Harjot nailed the airport sub-contract in the first place. Gill Joinery had so impressed the main contractor on a Dunedin project it was working on, with a crew arriving in Dunedin on a Sunday afternoon, getting straight into unloading their gear and materials, then finishing the job the following day, they were keen to get Gill Joinery aboard for their future projects. By early October, Gill Joinery had completed four shop fit-outs as subcontractor at Christchurch International Airport. Gill Joinery has a staff of 12, and they are prepared to go anywhere round the country for their clients: over the past few months they’ve worked in Auckland, Invercargill, Westport, Nelson and Queenstown. As well as shop fit-outs and installation, the company produces custom cabinet designs and joinery for living rooms, bathrooms, kitchens and bedrooms. Other big companies that Gill Joinery works with, besides Armitage Williams, include Naylor Love and Cook Brothers. Harjot is a mechanical engineer by trade, who went into a CNC operator role, becoming a computer programmer for Wainoni, Christchurch, company Claim to Fame Joinery. He was with that firm for five years, and when he wasn’t in the office he was out in the workshop learning the physical side of the trade. This led him to do some joinery for friends in the community with the tacit approval of Claim to Frame owner Rob Barlass who, when Harjot’s outside work began to impinge on his regular employment, encouraged him to launch out on his own. Harjot formed Gill Joinery in 2021, and his willingness to take his crew of workers anywhere saw him quickly grow the business to where it is today. “I can still see a lot of upside for the company and I’ve got more staff coming aboard soon, so I’m still in expansion mode,” Harjot says. “The construction industry, both residential and commercial, has gone through some pretty tough times lately, but we haven’t really noticed them. When you do a top-quality job every time, the work just seems to find you.” And it does no harm either to have hundreds of thousands of passengers passing annually through Christchurch Airport, and getting the chance to admire Gill Joinery’s work. SERVICES BAR F I TOUTS | SHOP FITOUTS KITCHENS AND WARDROBES 03 42 0 40 42 1/67 Barnes Road Redwood info@gilljoinery.co.nz | www.gilljoinery.co.nz
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