Since we operate on a smallish island (which is only accessible by air or ferry), the market is sort of limited. We don’t need to advertise as we get our jobs from refferals of past customers mostly. Many clients just want the cheapest job and that’s not really our market. We always try to do our best and use premium materials. Anyone can start a business calling themselves a painter but those who do, don’t tend to be in business for more than a few years; one of the perks of living on an island as the word spreads quickly, both good and bad. Painting apprenticeships are not required here but if an employer does want to put someone through, it is completely funded by the company as there is no Government help or incentives. The term is only two years long. The environment is very important to us, both globally and our own work environment. There still is some work that require oil based paint but mostly we use water based, which is made by Teknos, a Finnish family owned paint company that are extremely big in Europe. When we read some of the articles here in your magazines we were amazed by the strict regulations you have on how
you wash out your equipment and such; it seems like we have lighter regulations regarding this. When sanding we mostly use machine sanders connected to a vacuum hose with filters but there still is some sanding by hand. Working as a painter is as you all know very varied, new places with new customers who want different jobs done all the time. In Sweden though, we have the different seasons to deal with which can be quite extreme. In the winter we work inside doing everything from hanging wallpaper to laying floors (we are very versatile in our trade). Gotland is situated in southern Sweden and so far this winter we haven’t had less than minus 10 to minus 15 degrees celsius but some years it can get down to minus 30 to minus 35 degrees. In the new built or completely remodelled houses where the heating hasn’t been installed, we sometimes have the problem with the plaster and paint not drying. In this case we have to plan our work carefully so that we don’t get caught out with nothing to do.
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