All about clients
Devrite is a leading Western Australian-based builder of elegantly-designed, exceptionally-built homes. Since being formed in 2003 by husband and wife team Ron and Jay Mangano, the company has consistently delivered uncompromising quality, unrivalled attention to detail, and highly personal service to satisfied clients in their region.
“We focus on being client driven,” says Jay, an owner of the company. “Everything we do is about our clients. It’s all about providing the best outcome for our client, not the best outcome for us.”
Both Ron and Jay have diplomas in Building and Construction, and have been building homes in Western Australia for more than 12 years. Today, they mainly work within the metropolitan Perth area on high-end houses and townhouse developments.
According to Jay, Devrite is set apart in that luxury market by “what you can’t see” – their attentive customer service.
“We focus on clients,” she reiterates. “We deliver what they want, and we tell them how much it’s going to cost from the beginning. There’s no smoke and mirrors. We’re transparent in everything that we do, so our clients have every confidence that we’re looking out for their best interests.”
Because of their commitment to service, Devrite has developed and maintained strong and positive relationships with their clients over the years. These days, almost all of the company’s business is generated through word-of-mouth referrals and recommendations.
“When clients first come to us, they’re all very dubious,” Jay says. “But by the time the project is finished, we’ve become friends.”
Usually, Devrite is involved in a project right from the early stages. They start by sitting down with the client and discussing their lifestyle needs, then referring them to a designer that they think will best accommodate those needs. From there, they come up with a plan that suits the unique requirements of the client’s block. They proceed to take care of all planning approval, before constructing the home all the way through to completion.
“Ron and I will be involved the whole way through,” Jay says. “We are the people who make the decisions, and we’re in constant contact with the clients. We keep them informed, we meet them when they want to meet us, and we encourage them to come to us with questions. We take personal pride in overseeing all projects we undertake.”
Industry recognised
Over the years, Devrite Constructions’ quality workmanship and customer service has been repeatedly recognised by industry bodies such as the Master Builders Association (MBA) and Housing Industry Association (HIA). In 2013, the company won regional MBA Awards for Best Customer Service, most Liveable Home, and Waterwise Home. They also won an HIA accolades for Townhouse / Villa Development of the Year, while being nominated for Perth Home of the Year and Residential Building Designer of the Year.
More recently, in 2014, the company’s commitment to quality was again recognised with a list of awards – including a MBA WA Awards for Contract Home $400,000 to $500,000, Contract Home $650,000 to $750,000, and more.
At this year’s HIA-CSR Australian Housing Awards on the Gold Coast, they were also recognised with an award for Australian Townhouse / Villa of the Year.
“It means a lot to be recognised by our peers,” Jay says. “It shows the market we’re building homes of quality. It proves we’re doing something right.”
According to Jay, Devrite has achieved that award-worthy consistency as a result of their hard work and uncompromising high standards.
“Our motto is ‘The standard you walk past is the standard you accept,’” she says. “So we don’t walk past any problems. We’re on top of them right from day one. We never let anything go, and we check everything.”
That dedication, Jay says, is shared by every one of Devrite’s subcontractors – many of whom have been working with the company since the beginning. In the rare cases when the company does have to find new subcontractors, Jay says they seek referrals from other high-end builders, so their quality is never interrupted.
“We have good relationships with all our tradies,” she says. “They love working for us, because we pay them on time, and we treat them with respect – the same way we treat our clients.”
“In return, they know they have to meet our standards,” she adds. “And if they don’t meet our standards, they will have to do it again.”
Value for money
Devrite’s award-winning townhouse at 46 Onslow Street – which won three regional HIA awards in 2013 and a national award in 2014 – is a prime example of the company’s dedication to quality. Located in one of South Perth’s premier streets, on a 160 square-metre block, the home is spread over three levels with “stunning design, and suburb finishes from top to toe.”
National HIA judges awarded the building Townhouse / Villa of the Year, and said they were impressed by the “quality and value for money,” as well as the exceptional craftsmanship of the “forward-thinking trades.”
Jay is particularly proud of that recognition because of the challenge the project presented. Because it was a relatively small block, they had very little access during construction, and much of the available space was taken up by scaffolding. Despite that, they were able to build a high-quality 287 square-metre home with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, two living areas, and two outdoor areas.
“It’s a fine example of the quality that we do at Devrite, and the thought we put into the whole building process,” Jay says.
Moving forward, she says they want to continue delivering high-quality projects that showcase the same values. They also want to keep providing the same hands-on, personalised customer service that has set the company apart so far.
“We do what we do now for our clients, and that will always be the case,” she concludes. “We like working with people to give them what they want.”
