However, there is one local plumbing business that is determined to break these stereotypes and they are doing it convincingly, as they were named 2018 Business of the Year at last week’s Illawarra and South Coast Local Business Awards.

Curran Plumbing and Pipe Relining owner Pat Curran was absolutely elated with the win, likening the award to a “Gold Logie”.

“Not only was it brilliant to be recognised amongst such stiff competition, but the award gives Curran Plumbing the chance to continue to shine a light on what can be achieved when pursuing excellence in the plumbing industry,” Pat said.

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The Curran Plumbing team are very proud to have won both the Outstanding Trades and Services category as well as the big one – Business of the Year that was awarded out of 8850 nominations and 29 categories.

This was the first year that the business has entered the awards. They decided to take part because they are proud of their achievements and wanted to highlight to their team the importance of their role in that success.

Pat believes that Curran Plumbing won because of their values and excellent customer service. Their diverse team is committed to achieving the best outcome they can for the customer.

“We want to overhaul the image people have of a “tradie”. People often have a preconceived image of a plumber as somebody with their bum-crack showing and a cigarette in their mouth! To combat this, we ensure all our staff are incredibly well-groomed, always polite and extremely professional,” Pat said.

Pat and Kerrie Curran started the business in 1990 and Curran Plumbing has been operating in the Shoalhaven and Illawarra regions for nearly 30 years. They currently employ a team of 15 including apprentices and a female plumber.

The Curran Plumbing team visits schools in the region to share with students the benefits of a career in the plumbing industry, and also supports an industry excellence award for TAFE students.  

Curran Plumbing is all about the people in the team, who learn the values of trust, integrity and professionalism. Pat often says in team meetings “the magic will happen”, meaning that if his staff are happy in their work and personal lives, that will rub off on the customers they visit.

“Curran Plumbing gets quality results from highly skilled people who are constantly learning. The work culture is very positive; the members of the team are happy and have input into the business,” Pat said.