Ever walk into a venue and really just ogle the space? Yep, us too. And is it just us or does it seem new venues across the Gold Coast have really stepped up their fit-out game recently? A few venues spring to mind when it comes to ones that deserve a feature on the ‘gram; of which include the new Surfers Pavilion, and the reinvigoration of The Star Gold Coast’s Atrium Bar. Both of which were projects of Brisbane & Gold Coast company, Zero 9 Constructions. We were fortunate enough to get to know the founders of Zero 9, Karley & Ryan McAlpin, to talk all things Commercial & Residential construction and boy do they have some big projects in the pipeline! Watch this space!

How long have you been Gold Coast locals?
Karley: All my life, I was born and bred on the GC. (Except for a few overseas adventures!)
Ryan: All my life. Born and bred in Tweed (I’ll claim that as the Gold Coast) haha

Tell us about how Zero 9 Constructions came about?
Ryan: The burning desire to do what I was doing, but better! Shopfitting had this almost ‘unspoken rule’ that you did big hours, nights, never saw your family, and quality was never valued as the space would get re-fit in 3-7 years… Why? Why can’t quality of finish, and quality of life exist in this sector? This is where we focus our values as a company, on quality, detail and professionalism. We’re not about getting a job done purely to get the job done, our values lie in providing our clients with an experience that is seamless, detailed and exceeds their expectations. That is our passion and where the business started and continues to grow.

Can you tell us the meaning behind “Zero 9”?
Ryan: People often assume it is the year we started the company, but there is a bit more of a love story behind it. 2009 was the year Karley and I met, in Canada, on a snow mountain. Even though we both lived on the Gold Coast, it took us both being in Canada, at the right time for us to find each other. When toying with the idea of starting the business, the name just felt so right, a year that was sentimental to us. And with that, this is where the name Zero 9 came about.

What do you love the most about being in the construction industry on the Gold Coast?
Ryan: Being part of such a dynamic, ever-evolving part of the Gold Coast. Having the ability to create new opportunities and be a part of the community growth is really special to us. Not to mention the people we work with and places we work, we’re currently working on the old Pizza Hut site at Kirra and you couldn’t find a more beautiful part of the world (not to mention how sentimental it is with all the birthday parties I had there). It truly is special to be involved in the future of the Gold Coast and shaping it for the generations to come.

What are your areas of expertise?
Ryan: Our brand started in the Commercial Construction industry with the development of restaurants, cafes, bars, clubs, gyms, office spaces; practically we bring any space to life. Finding recent demand for our level of quality and detail in the Residential industry, the Zero 9 team has expanded into architectural home builds, renovations and extensions. Our team work collectively through the design and construction of these spaces to add value to our clients lives.

Whilst it may be hard to pick, have you got a particular favourite project of Zero 9 Constructions?
Ryan: Tough one… If I had to narrow it down to two, I would say Surfers Pavilion and Burleigh Brewing HQ. Both absolute monster projects with unique challenges and great clients!

What can we expect from Zero 9 Constructions in the next 12 months?
Ryan: Massive things!! Epic rooftop spaces, iconic GC venues, and some of the most beautiful homes the GC and Northern NSW has ever seen.

What are your Gold Coast favourites…
Café: Here Coffee at Zero 9’s Burleigh HQ (obviously), but also VERY hard to go past Tarte in Burleigh.
Coffee spot: Here Coffee at Zero 9’s Burleigh HQ (obviously)
Restaurant: Lucky Bao in Mermaid. Absolute pocket-rocket of a place that is our absolute go to!
Bar or pub for a drink: As we have four young kids, our drinking is usually done at home with a Burleigh Brewing Big Head, or a pack of Hard Fizz. If we are lucky enough to have a night off, it’s hard to beat Burleigh Pavilion for the location and atmosphere.

How do you choose to spend your weekends? 
Ryan: As mentioned above, four young ones keep us VERY occupied. (Thank goodness for the backyard pool, incredible Gold Coast weather, as well as family and friends close by!). During the glimmers of silence, you will normally find us in front of a laptop or Netflix. Basically just sitting in silence…

Where: 1/14 Rothcote Court, Burleigh Heads
Phone: 0481 279 984

STORY SPONSORED BY ZERO 9 CONSTRUCTIONS

Do you ever find yourself randomly scrolling through real estate websites and admiring those totally pinterest-worthy homes that are listed? Because same. And one you may have stumbled across is ‘The Eagle‘ (side note – what a name), located on Eagle Avenue in the picturesque Burleigh Heads. So of course, with such a dreamy home, it’s only natural to want to find out a bit more about the build; and who else to find out from than the builders themselves? Enter Burleigh Constructions. We got to know the founders David and Nicole Brazenall, and learnt about their recent achievements and upcoming projects across the Gold Coast and Northern NSW region!

How long have you been Gold Coast locals?
I have been here 20 years and my wife (Nicole) has been a local for 27 years.

How did Burleigh Constructions come about?
We bought in Burleigh 15 years ago and set the company up 3 years later when we were pregnant with our first child. I was working as a carpenter and had a strong passion to become a builder and start my own company. Nicole’s background is finance so it made sense to team up!

Tell us the story behind the iconic Eagle house!
We have owned the property for 15 years, and during this time have gotten engaged, then married, and raised three boys (along with our Labrador Bodhi); but it wasn’t until 3 years ago that we actually had the idea to build an iconic home on the property. The location is only a few hundred metres to James Street and Burleigh Point and on a large prominent corner block, so we knew we had to build something special. We researched local architects and Nicole came across Justin Humphrey’s Cove House located in Sanctuary Cove. It was exactly the style we loved. I set a meeting up with Justin and we clicked straight away and began the journey of creating The Eagle.

Congratulations on taking home the 2021 HIA Building Award in the Small Commercial Projects category. What was it like building the award-winning Moana Bikini HQ?
This was such a fun project with great clients, and we got to work with Justin Humphrey again. We also really like building boutique factory fit-outs for local businesses; so this project ticked all the boxes.

What do you love the most about being in the construction industry on the Gold Coast & Northern NSW?
We love to build luxury custom new homes in fantastic locations, we also now offer a design, manage and construct service which we are really excited to expand this part of our business. We feel with the population growing quickly on the Coast and a lot of interest from down south there will be more of a demand for these homes and designs which we love building in our area.

Whilst it may be hard to pick, have you each got a particular favourite project you have done since the inception of Burleigh Constructions?
We can’t go past our Eagle House. It’s such an iconic home and unique to the area. The level of architecture and detail is second to none and by far the hardest and time-consuming project we have completed. Our next 2 favourites are Cashmere 1 on Burleigh Hill and La Viva in Surfers Paradise. Both houses are also unique and fit right into our niche market.

What can we expect from Burleigh Constructions in the next 12 months?
We have numerous projects locked in around Burleigh and surrounding suburbs. They are all high-end luxury homes that will set the benchmark for their area. Stay tuned as we can’t wait to reveal these very soon on our socials!

What are your Gold Coast favourites…?
Café: We can’t go past Forreal Kitchen in Nobbys Beach for a great breakfast with the family.
Coffee spot: Nicole loves Quest in James St Burleigh.
Restaurant: We both love Etsu in Mermaid Beach and Red-Hot Cod in Burleigh for takeaway. We don’t take our 3 boys out much haha!
Bar or pub for a drink: Burleigh Pavilion as we are living on the point now and it’s an easy walk!

How do you choose to spend your weekends?
Kids sports, surfing, and catching up with good friends.

STORY SPONSORED BY BURLEIGH CONSTRUCTIONS.

Is it just us, or does buying gifts (for any occasion, whether it be: Christmas, birthdays or Father’s Day) for the gents in our lives, often a very difficult task? Which (let’s be honest) usually results in you settling with the usual plain old socks and jocks combo or if he’s reallllly lucky perhaps a cologne of some sort. So we are pretty chuffed to say that Australian boxers and socks brand, SWAG is here to change the gift-giving game (and self-gifting game for that matter). Trust us when we say, you or the gent in your life will never look at socks and jocks the same. Think outlandish colours and your favourite characters and brands plastered all over the comfiest of materials. So naturally, a brand that decides to shake up the competition deserves our (and your) attention ahead of this gift-giving season; so we interviewed the founders of SWAG Australia – Jonathan Cullen & Murray Courtis.

Tell us about what SWAG is.
Jonathan (J): SWAG is a collection of outlandish boxers and socks made from quality materials, that offers a huge range of designs from fashion to iconic pop culture to household names. Like Kelloggs, Bubble O Bill and Sriracha just to name a few.

How did the business come about?
Murray (M): Coming from a lifetime of wholesale apparel experience we felt the market was filled with boring basics and uncool undies, dominated by a few major brands. It seemed that underwear throughout time had somehow been overlooked to include personality, fun and humour in the designs. Through this line of thinking, we developed a brand focused around not only using the world’s most comfortable fabric, infused with features and benefits, but also adding the fun, nostalgia and humour that our prints bring to each and every style.  Our undies are anything but basic.

How did you both meet?
J: Murray and I worked together in sales & design for one of Australia’s largest wholesale design, import & manufacturing companies at the time, which was about 15 years ago now!

Do you have any high-profile SWAG wearers?
J: Not yet that we are aware of, we only launched our product online a little under 6 months ago so we haven’t quite cracked the celebrity market yet…
M: If there are any high-profile readers that want SWAG, feel free to give us a call LOL!

What makes SWAG better than other underwear and sock competitors?
J: Well it’s like asking what makes Netfilx better than other streaming services, because they’ve got the best and broadest range of content and you know there is something for everyone.
M: We see SWAG in the same way, we’ve got a design for everyone and the best and broadest range of globally recognised brand designs (which continues to grow).
J: We are always on the hunt to add to our portfolio. Don’t tell anyone but we’ve just signed Transformers, Monopoly, GI Joe, My Little Pony and Hungry Hungry Hippos just to name a few.

If you both had to pick one of your products, which are your favourites?
M: Mine are both the Bubble O Bill matching boxers and socks.
J: Mine without a doubt is The Simpsons: Mr Sparkle boxers and the Rick & Morty: Pickle Rick socks!

What is your favourite collab line?
M: I can’t choose just one, so for me it is the Streets Ice-Cream range & The Simpsons.
J: I can’t go past Warner Bros because they give us so many options to get creative with like Harry Potter, Scooby-Doo, DC Comics, FRIENDS, Space Jam, and well, the list goes on!

What is the process to obtaining the rights to use such big-name brands, logos/symbols?
J: How long have you got, ha! It’s essentially a process that involves a lot of pitching, negotiating, designing and trend forecasting to get to a point where all involved agree to move forward.
M: Luckily we’ve both forged very strong relationships with all of the key players over the past 20+ years, it helps when you need a favour every now and then.

What can we expect from SWAG in the next 12 months?
J: We can’t give too much away but let’s just say there has been a pretty big demand for women’s specific ranges as well as t-shirts… watch this space!

With Christmas fast approaching, where can we get our hands on a pair of SWAG socks or boxers?
J: You can simply head to swagboxers.com.au where you’ll find our whole range of boxers and soxers, see what we did there!

When you are on the Gold Coast, what are your favourites…
Café: J: Tarte in Burleigh
M: I second that, hard to go past it.
Coffee spot: J: Easy one for me I think Social Espresso is hands down the best coffee on the GC.
M: I’m a big fan of Blackboard Coffee in Varsity Lakes.
Restaurant: J: The North Room in Mermaid – it’s so good!
M: I don’t think you can beat Etsu for Japanese.
Bar or pub for a drink: J: I’m easy when it comes to a drink, I’m totally happy at almost any surf club having a beer whilst checking out the surf.
M: Burleigh Pavilion for a cold beer on a Sunday afternoon, great views right up the Coast.

How do you choose to spend your weekends?
M: For me, it is either jumping on a pushbike for exercise or a motorbike for a bit of fun around some winding roads
J: I’ve got a young family, so my weekends are taken up spending time with them either at the beach, parks or just at home.

INTERVIEW SPONSORED BY SWAG BOXERS AUSTRALIA