When deciding on a career path, Gareth Felton knew what he didn’t want to – anything confined to a classroom. Ruling out tertiary education, he asked his dad for advice.
“We were renovating at the time, and we went out to the builder (a really good guy who we trusted heaps) and dad asked what trade he would suggest – a builder, plumber or sparky,” Gareth said.
“The builder said ‘If you’re a builder you’re likely to go broke and if you’re a plumber you’re likely to play with s***. I’d probably be a sparky because it’s easier on your body long term’.”
So that’s what Gareth did, completing a four-year apprenticeship to become an electrician.
From the start, Gareth knew he wanted to have his own business so he could control the direction of his career. Again, he sought the advice of his dad, who happened to be a business consultant.
Together they decided on the name – GreenElec – with his dad even creating the original logo.
“When it came time to go out on my own and build up a brand, dad said I needed a point of difference,” Gareth said.
“Something coming through then was clean energy, solar panels and all that.”
That was in 2008, when solar rebates were at a premium and everyone wanted a piece of the action. But it wasn’t long before the market changed, forcing Gareth to reassess his business model.
“There was a point in time when the rebate offered completely fell away and I had to decide if I wanted to persist with something that wasn’t really succeeding,” he said.
“I decided I would use the GreenElec name and build the brand around the energy efficiency banner as a whole and, when the time was right, re-enter the solar market.”
Now, there are three arms to Gareth’s business – electrical contracting, solar and batteries, and home automation design and delivery – with services delivered by a team of 16 people.
The team’s work has been recognised at the Master Electricians Australia Electrical Industry Excellence Awards three years running, with Gareth named 2022 Electrician of the Year (National Winner).
Gareth said the support of Master Electricians Australia (MEA) – he’s been a member for a decade – has been pivotal to his business success.
“The MEA to me is an industry body where there are other people you can learn from,” he said.
“The more high-quality people doing the same thing, delivering a consistent service across the board, the better for our industry.
“Being able to pick up the phone to a technical support line to ask for advice and get some direction – for me and my crew to have that support, which they’ve used multiple times, has been paramount.”
