Sean Breckon, registered local home builder, came straight out of school, having taken a pre-trade building and carpentry course the year before at Whangarei G&H Training centre, and went into an apprenticeship. His Dad had done an apprenticeship straight out of school, and encouraged Sean to do the same thing so he’d have a good life skill.

“Dad was a builder by trade who then veered into joinery,” says Sean. “As a kid, I liked watching him construct custom-built kitchens and creating fixed interior furniture on super yachts. Like him, I’ve always enjoyed working with my hands and being outside so it was a no-brainer for me to go into carpentry and building myself.

“Home construction is a trade in which you’re often outside working in the sun, (and dodging rain),” he says, “but every day you’re doing something different. Dad was fussy with his work because fine interiors require very high standards of expertise and precise workmanship, and because that’s the kind of work I was exposed to through him, I’m the same. I treat every house construction as if it were my own house, and frequently check myself on whether I’d be happy with the job I did that day. It does make you fussy and puts a certain level on it.“

Sean particularly likes the finishing stage of a project when he can see it all come together at the end.
“It’s great to look back on all the hard work I’ve invested throughout, and see it has paid off,” he says. “I always enjoy the excitement of a new site too – somewhere different. Custom home builds and difficult sites present good challenges.

Although the work itself is similar, it can be much harder to build to the benchmark level of expertise on difficult sites so it keeps my brain engaged.”