7 minute read
Adding character to small homes
Words: Kat Duggan
David Wraight has a knack for being ahead of the curve. When he began his journey with David Wraight Cottages two decades ago, his dream was to build small homes.
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But New Zealand, he says, wasn’t quite ready. “I started off thinking there was a market for smaller homes with a bit of character,” he says. “But as we started doing them, people loved the character but weren’t ready for smaller homes; so we went from cottages and grew into bigger villas.” For the best part of 15 years, David Wraight Cottages have been building larger character homes on a range of sections throughout Marlborough, many on lifestyle blocks and farms in the region, others on smaller town sections. A little over four years ago, due to a lack of free sections and a slow in new builds following the Seddon earthquakes in 2013, David and his team, co-headed by his wife Kirsty, set up a factory in Kaituna. The plan was to get back to the original idea of making small homes; completed entirely at the factory before being transported to their final destination. “We actually enjoy the factory more so than working on site, and in four years it’s just grown,” David says. The majority of the homes now created by David and his team are up to around 106 sqm in size. “When we first came here [to the factory], our enquiries were generally from people who wanted to come and have a look because they weren’t sure if 100 squares was big enough,” David says. ‘Whereas now, since Covid, it’s ‘we want 100 squares; it’s changed, just like a switch.’ David was first inspired to start the ‘small home’ movement in New Zealand after reading a book by a Canadian author early in his building career.
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A gorgeous interior of a Heritage Series ‘T shape’ cottage.
“It was about 25 years ago, before I started this, and that’s what I set out to do then with the cottages, but for various reasons it didn’t quite work back then,” he says. For those still wanting a larger home, David’s team also has the ability to create homes in two to three sections and join them together on site. On average, the company creates and delivers around 10 to 12 dwellings each year, including homes, baches, secondary accommodation, farm houses, and smaller, studio spaces. They’ve sent homes as far south as Christchurch, as far north as Levin, across to Tasman and almost everywhere in between, including deliveries of homes into the Marlborough Sounds.
“Logistically it’s a lot more work; it’s quite demanding. To move houses around the country is not simple,” David says. “We take them on barges, we take them across the [Cook] Strait, logistically you’re getting road permits, you’re getting all sorts; there’s a lot to go through.” “In saying that, it’s still very enjoyable,” Kirsty says.
RICHARD BRIGGS PHOTOGRAPHY
A typical classic series kitchen has plenty of space for any chef .
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“We follow the houses down the road through sheer enjoyment,” David says. Once at their ‘forever site’, the David Wraight Cottages team and their subcontractors hook up the homes and get them running just like your average on-site build, ensuring they’re secure and have working power and running water. They even use their own trusted team when travelling outside of Marlborough to ensure a seamless job from start to finish. “Generally we put the piles in, let them settle, let the concrete harden for a week or two, and then when they take the house, we will follow and carry on putting in decks, and verandas things like that, as well as putting all the services on.
“It’s easier, even though we’re paying them travel, to have our own contractors come with us, because they know what they are doing,” David says. The contractors used to transport the homes are also highly experienced at what they do, putting in a lot of time and effort to ensure a smooth delivery. David Wraight Cottages is all about creating lifestyle for our clients.
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Our classic series features a lovely double gable which shows off the detail in our builds.
“It’s very professionally done, there’s a lot involved [in moving a house] but it’s managed very well, they’re very thorough,” David says. Of course, the meticulous attention to detail starts at the Kaituna factory, where David, business partner Dave Gee and their team of eight carpenters and painters spend their days creating each piece of each new home.
Having the factory has enabled the team to template much of their work, providing a blueprint to follow for each build. “Some days I can work on three houses. All the scaffolding is here, all the gear is here; if it rains I can go inside and pre-cut stuff, there is a lot more pre-cutting that we do.
“We have developed systems and you look back and think, ‘why didn’t we do that when we were on site’,” David says. “There’s a lot of templates now to make the job quicker and easier.”
DAVID JAMES PHOTOGRAPHY
Our apprentices – Becky Gee (left) and Mackenzie Hanrahan.
Another classic series kitchen/dining area (106 sq metre cottage) This shows a gorgeous wallpaper feature wall – even in a transportable you don’t have to skimp on the character detail and can add the WOW factor.
RICHARD BRIGGS PHOTOGRAPHY
The interior of our new showhome. This home is 106 square metres in size and has a ton of living space which is light and airy.
Our settler series shows a classic 10 sq metre sleepout/office and a 50 square metre home.
The team of tradespeople is supported by two wonderful ‘office ladies’, project manager Kirsty and sales consultant, Whi Hapakuku. Alongside managing the logistics of each project, Kirsty is responsible for designing the kitchens of each home, as well as the colour selection for their show homes.
“Kirsty is on the phone talking to councils in the North Island, South Island, engineers and our architect, it takes a lot [of organising] to do what we do,” David says. “And we’ve got the bubbliest salesperson in town, which leaves me to be on the tools; I just love being on the tools.” In line with his forward thinking approach to business, David and the team have recently welcomed two young female apprentices, Becky Gee and Mackenzie Hanrahan.
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Despite being a male-dominated industry, David insists the two women were the best applicants for the jobs at the time they applied. “When you’re trying to find a worker, you want a conscientious, hard worker. “It just happened that they were girls, really. We just started looking for people that were focused to do the job, it’s got nothing to do with size, sex, or race, it comes down to ‘we need someone on the tools that’s focused’, because you actually invest a lot of time and money into your apprentices,” David says. The work that goes into guiding building apprentices, male or female, means David could not have taken the women on without support from the wider team to get them up to speed while ensuring they stick to deadlines with their client projects. “The guys that are here are very good to get on with and have made them very welcome,” David says. “We’ve got a very relaxed, happy team,” Kirsty adds.
David Wraight Cottages has recently completed a new showhome on site at Kaituna, which is available to view by appointment. It’s located at 121 Mahers Road and appointments can be made by contacting Whi at davidwraightcottages@xtra.co.nz or on 027 233 7421.
