GETTING IT RIGHT
2 | Shriek Building Group GETTING IT RIGHT Schriek Building Group is a construction company that focuses on the needs of clients. They specialise in housing, multi-residential and small commercial projects, and apply their personal brand of hard work and persistence to every job. No matter what they are building, Managing Director Peter Schriek says they work towards the same high level of professional excellence and client satisfaction. “We understand the importance of getting it right the first time,” Peter says. “And we make the process of building and renovating as simple as possible – whether we’re building a commercial property to reflect a company’s vision, or a home that will realise an owner’s dreams.” Peter personally comes from a long career in the constructed industry, which he officially commenced as an apprentice joiner before going on to become a Master Builders apprentice. That was approximately 30 years ago, and in the
Shriek Building Group | 3 years since he has completed numerous projects in Toowoomba, Brisbane &Melbourne. Peter’s wife Anita – who co-founded the business – also has a solid background in the field. After completing her secretarial and tourism studies in Brisbane, she returned to Toowoomba and found a position within a local construction group. Together, the couple established Schriek Building Group in 2003. Four years later, the company won its first industry award from the MBA, in the category for Low Rise Multi-Residential Housing up to $2 million. Since then, the business has won many more accolades in many categories, and grown considerably in size and scope. BOUTIQUE BUILDERS Today, Schriek Building Group operates mainly within the Darling Downs region of Queensland.
4 | Shriek Building Group They do a broad range of work in a variety of sector. They regularly build houses from $300,000 and up, for example, and have built multi-residential properties from two units up to 50 units. In the commercial arena, their projects have been valued as high as $5 million. According to Peter, homeowners, investors and companies are all attracted to Schriek for similar reasons – namely, the company’s status as a true “boutique builder.” They do not just build project homes or standard, uninspired commercial premises. They devote a lot of attention and hard work to everything they do, and they make the process as simple and easy to navigate as possible. “I’m personally involved in all aspects of a job,” Peter says. “When a client comes to Schriek Building Group, they are dealing with me – Peter Schriek. And I know how to complete a project, because I’ve done it so long, and done it with my own hands. I know how to deliver a dream, basically.”
Shriek Building Group | 5 Peter personally works with clients at every phase of the building process – from design and pricing through to building and post-care maintenance. He likes to become personally invested in every job, so that when it is complete, he’s as proud as the client is. “A lot of builders have salesmen or managers working for them – people who don’t actually know how to deliver a project,” he says. “My strength comes frommy product knowledge. I’ve been a tradesman, a homeowner, and an investor as well – so I speak their lingo and see both sides of the fence.” “I know what liveability is, and I know how to get the best bang for your buck,” he adds. Due to their extensive knowledge, Peter and his team at Schriek Building Group can work to meet the specific needs of their individual clients. They can look at a block of land and tell the owner how they can optimise their home to best suit the block’s orientation, their family’s needs, and their budget.
6 | Shriek Building Group INDUSTRY RECOGNISED Schriek Building Group’s dedication to quality building has not gone unrewarded by clients. Almost all of the company’s work comes from word-of-mouth, or is done on behalf of repeat customers. “After we’ve worked with a client, they tend to be happy with the result,” Peter says. “They know they can put their confidence in us, and we can help them design and deliver projects within their budgets and to their standards of quality.” Schriek’s building excellence has also been continuously rewarded by the industry at large. At the 2012 MBA Building Excellence Awards, for example, their efforts were acknowledgedwith a victory in the category for Individual Homes $1.5 million to $2 million. The same project also won a prize for Best Kitchen. Those wins were far from the company’s first. Since they started submitting projects for award consideration, Schriek Building Group has won about a dozen accolades from respected industry bodies like MBA in Queensland – where Peter is on the Executive Board. “We value that immensely,” he says of the recognition. “I always believe we do a quality project, and we go the extra mile, but it’s nice to know that our peers in the industry believe that too.” In addition to being a confidence boost for the company, Peter says that recognition is also useful for advertising. As an award-winning company, Schriek Building Group can easily show clients
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Shriek Building Group | 9 that they are respected within the industry, and are likely to do a quality job on their project as well. “And if you look at our awards list, you’ll see that we’ve won a lot of awards in a lot of different categories,” Peter adds. “It shows that we’re a builder than can build everything – from the outhouse to the penthouse.” According to Peter, a lot of credit for the company’s award-winning consistency belongs to their team. He says that includes everybody from their direct staff to longstanding roster of subcontractors. “All my main trades have been with me from day one,” he explains. “Quality is paramount for us, and our subcontractors know that – and deliver every time.” “I only select the best guys,” he says. “And together, we deliver a consistent product.” STAYING CLIENT FRIENDLY Currently, Peter says he is very happy with the company’s size. After growing quickly early – the company doubled its turnover every year for the first four years – they were able to test the waters, and Peter learned exactly what volume he was most comfortable with. Now, Schriek Building Group does approximately a dozen projects a year. That allows Peter to deal with clients on a personal level, and ensures the company’s all-important quality never dips. “We want to stay at a client-friendly size,” he says. “We don’t want clients to have a question and have to go through three or four different departments to get an answer. We want to be a onestop-shop, where clients can come to me directly and get an answer on the spot.”
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