Operating out of Balbriggan, Co Dublin, S & S Building Contracts specialise in one-off new build projects with seven different jobs on-going at the moment. Building Ireland touched base with co-director Shaun Gallagher to hear all about the company – from its origins to the current state of business.
When Shaun Gallagher and his business partner Shane Rogers set-up S & S Building Contracts in 2017, they did so with the intention of one day running a construction firm which would be renowned by clients for their high-quality work.
Today, the company is thriving, with last year seeing its turnover doubling as the growth continues for this Dublin-based construction firm.
With 10 full-time staff on its books, S & S Building Contracts also uses a team of regular subcontractors to deliver its projects which are primarily situated throughout Dublin and the capital’s outskirts.
Building Ireland caught up with Shaun Gallagher to discuss the ins and outs of the business and his and Shane’s hopes for it going forward.
“Mainly, we do one-off houses, from start to finish,” he outlined.
“We do almost everything ourselves from groundwork to block laying and carpentry. We subcontract the electrical and plumbing work.
“Before that, myself and Shane started off as two carpenters. Then we got into a couple of small extensions and renovations and things took off from there.
“Now we’re mainly new builds. At the moment we have seven new builds on, an office block, an apartment block and four houses.”
He added: “Shane would be more hands-on and I do a lot more organising and paperwork. That’s just where it’s at.”
Both Shaun and Shane completed carpentry apprenticeships after finishing school, with the former going on to work for Wogan Build Centre as a sales rep for five years.
After that, the two men would eventually take the decision to set-up their own construction company, officially launching S & S Building Contracts in July of 2017.
Getting things off the ground initially was a challenge that they both embraced.
“Obviously, there were only the two of us, so we did what we had to. It probably wasn’t a bad time to be going out on our own because things were starting to get busy again,” said Shaun.
“I had a good few contacts of builders that I was dealing with and the minute they heard that I was going out working for myself doing carpentry, we immediately had a couple of months work ahead of us.
“Both myself and Shane worked for small builders when we did the apprenticeships, so building was more our background than carpentry.”
Fast-forward to today and Shaun’s happy to report that the company is flourishing.
“Last year was one of our biggest years. Our turnover probably doubled last year,” said the company co-director.
“So, obviously, every year is still growing, thankfully. Last year, we continued 12 new builds and then we started the job in Balbriggan with the apartments and the houses.
“That kicked off in the middle of last year and then we did an office block renovation as well in Duleek at the end of 2024. It kind of just rolls from one week to the next.
“Our turnover last year was over €3m. This year we’d expect to be €4.5 to €5m.”
So, what has been the secret behind the success?
How has a small start-up grown into what is now very much a thriving construction business which holds an excellent reputation amongst its clientele?
The way Shaun sees it, the work that S & S Building Contracts carries out speaks for itself and is the integral reason why the company earns the repeat business that it does.
“It’s all word of mouth. We don’t advertise really at all, so we look at it as how you finish your job is how you get your next job,” he stated.
“Everyone to a certain extent is down to price, but we try our best in all aspects to keep every job looking clean, looking well, even down to the groundwork, like mounding the clay and topping it all off; anything that makes it look more presentable.
“For anybody even driving by that knows nothing about building, we try and have our sites as tidy as possible throughout the whole build.
“Myself and Shane, both will walk through and do our own snag list at the end of a job, individually, so we’re kind of cross-checking everything, and one of us will be on site throughout.”
As the growing trend for the company continues, Shaun says that the hope is to add four to six new staff members within the next 12 months all going well.
Along with that, S & S Building Contractors will be looking to become more involved in residential build projects in the future, according to the company’s co-founder.
“We’re aiming to reduce the one-off builds and go into small residential developments between 20 to 30 houses is our aim,” said Shaun.
“That job in Balbriggan is on-going. We want to get into more of that kind of work because it’s obviously volume. Volume is turnover, and I know profits and margins are everything, but the more you do it, the better you get.
“We want to get into more development work, small residential sites and stuff like that.”
It’s another step in this successful journey for S & S Building Contractors to date.
S & S Building Contracts
Balbriggan,
Co Dublin.
Mobile: 085 161 6014
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: sscarpentryandbuilding
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, September, Vol 11 No 10
featured, S & S Building Contracts
