Local construction firm Rob May Builders celebrates a significant milestone with 20 years in business this year. Owner Jonathan McCullough reflects on the company’s journey and his deep commitment to family and community in everything he does. 

Specialising in high-end building and renovation projects, Rob May Builder’s team has built a reputation for their exceptional work and commitment to quality, integrity, and craftmanship in contributing to the growth and development of Cambridge. 

Strong leadership and culture have always been the foundations of the business, laid by directors Jonathan (Jono) and Paula McCullough two decades ago in 2005. 

“We have an amazing team and I’m proud of them and all they do. A few have been with Paula and I almost from the beginning – we feel more like a family than colleagues,” says Jono.

Cameron van den Broek is one of those team members who joined Jono and Paula in 2007 as their first employee as an apprentice. A local from Cambridge, Cameron has since qualified as a tradesperson and has worked his way up to become Jono’s second-in-command and top foreman.

Today, Jono and Paula have 15 pairs of hands on the tools, project managing, creating seamless customer experiences, and transforming visions into beautifully crafted spaces. 

In the beginning
Jono moved to Cambridge from Katikati in 1990 on his 20th birthday. He took a full-time building role with another well-known local builder and community figure, Frank Gies. 

While working with Frank, he met Paula, a local girl employed by Weddel Crown. Paula’s family had lived in Cambridge for over four generations.

After seven years with Frank, Jono and Paula took a leap of faith and Rob May Builders was born. 

The business started mainly with decks, fences and alterations while the couple built up a pool of local connections and established their reputation in town.

Jono says the early days in business were “bloody tough”. Like any new business owner, it took the couple guts and grit to get going. But they had faith and trust in the bigger picture, and the confidence that they would succeed, a mindset that now runs deep.

Inspired by family
Jono was motivated by his grandfather, Robert McCullough, who at 16 emigrated alone from Northern Ireland to New Zealand in the 1920s, seeking a better life. Jono credits his business career to his grandfather’s strength and determination.

“This is where the building legacy for the McCullough’s began; my grandfather went into building, then my father, and now me.”

For Jono, family is everything and this is perfectly reflected in the name of his business. 

Rob – after his grandfather Robert and May after his wife Paula’s grandmothers. Rob and May are also the middle names of their adult children Logan and Ashlin, who were only two and a half and nine months old when the family-owned business started.

“Every time I hear Rob May Builders, I think of my kids, my grandfather, and Paula’s grandmothers. This reminds me of where I’ve come from, why I do this and the fighting Irish spirit of my ancestors.”

Jono and Paula’s third child and baby of the family Tayla was born three years after Rob May Builders was established. Jono laughs when talking about Tayla and the business’s name, saying that they fondly refer to Tayla as the “Limited”.

Having been in Cambridge now for nearly 30 years, Jono has seen building companies come and go and the town change substantially.

With Cambridge going through a huge economic growth spurt and out-of-region developers and builders coming into town, Jono’s loyalty to localism goes beyond just words. 

It’s woven into every project they undertake, supporting local suppliers, employing local talent, championing local charities and sports clubs and investing in the growth of Cambridge and the surrounding area. 

This sentiment is also evident in how the Rob May team interacts with their clients. Whether undertaking a new build, a renovation, or a large-scale commercial project, they provide care, dedication and personal attention that only a locally-owned and operated business
can offer.

“Our clients aren’t just customers - they’re our neighbours. We live here, we build here and it’s as simple as that.”

“The boys are on site early, they take pride in their work and what they do and are just a genuinely great bunch of people”. 

Congratulations to the Rob May Builders team, for 20 years of building dreams, creating connections, supporting the community and shaping the landscape of our town.