HI, I'M CHRIS
Chris Donnelly - Director and Carpenter extraordinaire
My Story starts in the Majestic Top of the South Island of NZ where I grew up in the beautiful City of Nelson.
Nelson is still my home and I enjoy this unique slice of paradise with my wife Juanita and my three Children - Levani, Griffin and Romi.
I had a pretty typical kiwi childhood, building things in the garage, being outside until bedtime, bike rides up the Brook valley where I grew up, and plenty of hikes up and over the Grampians with my brother and friends exploring our 'backyard'.
During my secondary school years at Nelson Boys College, I got the opportunity to work after school for some local bespoke wood furniture makers, who would sell the furniture at the local Saturday market, one that is still selling there today.
That experience lead me to my first construction job when I finished school as a hammer hand, building Nelson's Water Treatment plant, a $26 million project.
It was my first experience in building and was the perfect lesson in what hard work consists of!!!
It was wet, it was muddy, and the Tantragee was literally freezing cold in the middle of the Nelson winter.
At the completion of that project I started my apprenticeship with a local residential builder and after a time there I shifted to the larger IMB Construction, known back then as Ian McCully Builders, where I completed my apprenticeship and 10 years of my building career.
During my time with these local companies I gained valuable experience from building residential new builds, to large architectural builds, renovations, to multi-storey commercial builds and working with a variety of people within and suppliers to the local industry.
During that time I got married and started a family.
As we grew I decided it was time to start my own company and that was when Chris Donnelly Builders became a reality.
Since then I have worked on numerous projects and met some amazing people.
During the time that I have been growing my company from scratch I have always had a commitment to building the right way, something I am very passionate about, achieving a high standard of quality that all my clients appreciate.
Along this journey, I have had the privilege of success via my social media which has connected me with individuals and like-minded professionals whom I have built working relationships with to collectively raise the standard in our industry.
Some of the work I have been involved with through my social media 'side-gig' includes collaboration with powertool brands, granting me access to top quality and new to market tools, and the innovations that make my job easier and more efficient.
Another project that I am proud to be included in is RESENE's new DIY platform 'MasterStroke by RESENE'.
I am the Weekend DIY Fix guy sharing tips and tricks for those quick fix ups around the home (see Below)
Another aspect of Media that I have a growing involvement in is Podcasting. having been recognised in the industry for my experience and insight I have been sought as a guest as guest on such Podcasts as the Mediaworks Produced Podcast 'Renovation Nation' hosted by Jen Jones from Nine Yards Consulting and Duncan Hyde from The ROCK FM,
and have been a part of the production of The SpinOff produced Podcast 'Building Belonging' as a co-hostwhich is due for release very soon. (Check back in a few weeks for a link to Building Belonging Podcast)
Ultimately the benefit of these collaborations is that I am part of the conversation about achieving and maintaining quality in a diverse industry.
Ready for the Next Step?
TELL ME ABOUT YOUR PROJECT
LET'S . GET THE BALL ROLLING...
Before we have a chat there are a few things that I will need to know for me to understand the needs of your project.
You can access a form below where you can add Your name and address, A brief run down of what your project includes and what stage of the process you are at plus a few more important Questions
