With 40 years of experience, painter Phil Wilkinson knows a thing or two about the industry. Find out what he loves about the job.
How did you become a painter?
My dad was a painter. I never wanted to be a painter – I wanted to be a fighter pilot! I wasn’t allowed to leave school until I got a job. My dad said, ‘why don’t you become a painter?’ He made me take on an apprenticeship, which was 8000 hours or four years in those days. On the first day, I got the smell of paint in my nose and loved it. I started my apprenticeship on May 2, 1983, and almost 40 years later, I’m still here.
What is your role in the industry these days?
I am national manager field services for Master Painters New Zealand Association Inc. It’s a multi-faceted role and I work closely with painters and paint companies like Resene. I deliver training courses across New Zealand which Resene sponsors. I deliver 50 courses annually on lead paint management.
I had my own painting business until the late 1990s and then purchased a retail paint shop in Avondale, Auckland, and then worked for a paint company training other painters. I joined Master Painters in 2012. As well as training, I look at projects that have supposedly gone wrong. We write reports on the quality of the paintwork, and we deliver those for everybody from the Disputes Tribunal, through to insurance companies, to individual consumers, builders, and the painters themselves.
What do you love about painting?
When you’re a painter and start work on Monday, by Friday you can look back and say, ‘this is what we’ve achieved this week’. It’s tangible and you can see what you’ve achieved. You’ve taken an old house that hasn’t been painted for 10 or 15 years and it’s in terrible shape, and you give it a nice new paint job and a modern colour scheme. It looks fantastic, and everybody’s really pleased with it. There’s something great about that.
Do you need to be a perfectionist to be a good painter?
I don’t know about a perfectionist, but you need to be someone with an eye for detail to be a good painter. I think that is the difference between a painter and a good painter. It’s horses for courses – there are some painters who are fantastic at doing factory and commercial-type work where detail isn’t so important, but you’d never send them to a high-end residential repaint. Likewise, the guys who are good in high-end residential because they have a good eye for detail, you couldn’t send them to a factory.
How has the industry changed since you started out?
It’s changed a huge amount. The paint we use has completely changed. In the early 1980s, 95 percent of the coatings I put on were oil-based, turps-based paint – stuff that smelled bad and took a long time to dry.
Now, my perception is that less than 5 percent of all paint coatings are oil-based, so everything’s moved to water-based. With water-based technology, which you can see in the Resene range, we’re getting superior products that last longer and hold their colour longer. They’re much more user friendly, and better for the environment.
How does a painter become a member of Master Painters NZ?
We look for people with good quality work – a business that’s been in operation for at least two years, with trading history. We want to meet them and see some examples of their work. We’ll ask for references and work out where they buy their paint from. We’ll give their rep at the Resene ColorShop a call and ask what they’re like to deal with. Those sorts of things are important to us.
For the public, what are the advantages of hiring a member of Master Painters?
Members are industry-vetted and peer-reviewed. Most importantly, the work they do is guaranteed. On a residential, owner-occupied repaint job, Master Painters guarantees the painting work on that home for five years for up to $15,000. Customers can also choose to purchase a guarantee of up to $50,000, which can be included in the painter’s quote.
Do you do the painting at your own home?
I probably do 99 percent. We have a bach in Coromandel and I painted that about four years ago. Karen, my wife, didn’t want to paint the house, but she painted the garage.
How do you like to relax?
I’ve always said my job is my hobby. We love going over to the bach. It’s probably the only time I actually do relax. I’m a bit of an active relaxer – I like to do odd jobs and go kayaking, paddleboarding, swimming, all those sorts of things. I like the outdoor life.
To find your local Master Painter, visit masterpainters.co.nz.
