David Pickles completed his apprenticeship in carpentry and joinery under Neil Hawker in 1989, and several decades later, having built hundreds of houses each, they joined forces again as directors of Trident Homes, founded in 2012, where both men’s very extensive experience has helped ensure remarkable success.
“After 46 years of self-employment I’m no stranger to the building industry!” says Hawker, who qualified in 1977.
He says he’s weathered many different markets and adds that it’s almost a relief to have time to breathe after what he describes as the ‘mad, mad rush’ of the past few years.
“We’re still getting strong, steady enquiry and that will see us through. Naturally we’re being cautious, but we definitely still want to grow our business.”
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Hawker says that Trident Homes’ brand recognition is now firmly cemented – especially in the South Island, and the company’s reputation has grown swiftly, especially in the area of eco-building and environmental awareness.
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“Our core values have always been ‘loyal, committed and responsible’, but we’ve now added ‘sustainable’ to that as well.
“The past two years, we've been researching and investigating structural insulated panel (SIP) homes in partnership with Formance in Christchurch, and putting our Trident Homes Eco Spec range together,” he says.
The SIP panels are made up of two layers of high-density facings. They are bonded to a core section of highly insulating polystyrene and the panels can be used for walls, ceilings and even floors. Because they’re so light, transportation and assembly are very easy, which means a house can quite literally be constructed over several days.
The system has been used overseas for many years and Formance’s SIP panels comply with the New Zealand Building Code, thus guaranteeing high performance standards.
“It’s a premium product at the moment but things are catching up rapidly now with the new insulation codes. Eco Spec insulated panel homes already exceeded these new standards, so they will become an affordable option for people who want to remain in their environmentally friendly, healthier homes long-term, and cut their power bills in half,” says Hawker.
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He believes that Eco Spec technology has put Trident Homes at least two years ahead of much of its competition in the building industry – another huge plus at the moment.
“We will see them start jumping on it now but it's not something you can suddenly click your fingers and have a network in place for, so we’re a bit ahead of the eight ball, from a housing company's point of view,” Hawker says.
“We’re the first cab off the rank with show homes already in various locations, so I’m pretty pleased about that.”
Hawker says that in order to retain this level of innovation, Trident Homes requires new franchise owners and he believes this is a good time for savvy business-minded parties to come into the network, which operates widely in the South Island - although Nelson and Marlborough is available - but still needs franchisees in the North Island – including Kapiti, Gisborne, Whangarei and especially Waikato, where he sees huge potential for growth ahead.
“A Trident Homes franchise in Hamilton would be the jewel in the crown for us, he says.
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“In quiet times, established brands like ours seem to shine out a bit more and we get good enquiry about franchises from builders who are thinking about their futures.”
He says that franchisees will benefit from the thought and effort that has already gone into bringing Eco Spec homes to the market – by making them available to more of the many Kiwis who are increasingly concerned about carbon reduction.
They’ll also have exceptional support in terms of Trident Homes’ cutting-edge software and training systems.
“You don’t necessarily have to come with a building background, as long as you know how to run a business,” says Hawker.
“Age isn’t an issue, but we have noticed that young people tend to be like sponges and are eager to learn – looking to experienced people like us for leadership.
He says that the ideal franchisee is savvy, full of energy and prepared to work hard.
“By coming in now, they’ll have time to get up to speed without the recent pressures.”
Hawker says demand for housing stock in New Zealand will always remain, and the Trident Homes team maintains a positive outlook – especially as awareness of the game-changing Eco Spec range continues to grow.
