With 16 years of experience under his belt, Marcus Luscombe has gone from an eager 17-year-old apprentice to proud business owner of paint company, Vivid Coats.
Leaning into his creative side and taking a job on a whim has led Marcus towards a rewarding career as a tradie.
“My friend Ryan said that his boss was looking for another apprentice and put in a good word for me. I called him up, started a trial and began my path from there,” Marcus said.
“At the time I was 17 and had just finished VCE. I’d also experienced a great loss with my dad passing away. The distraction of getting out and working was great for me.”
Marcus described how his two mentors helped prepare him for opening his own business.
“Shane taught me to take pride in my work and always try to do the best job you can for the client. Paint it to last,” Marcus said.
“Gav taught me to give newer methods and approaches a crack and seek perfection.”
“Combined they both taught me to try to have fun at work and work to live, not live to work.”
Opening a business
Marcus opened his business Vivid Coats, and said it was a ‘natural process’, after years of working outside of work hours.
“While working for Gavin, I was taking on smaller jobs that I did by myself on weekends or after work,” Marcus said.
“This work kept coming steadily and after doing a little project for a family member I was able to create a connection with a builder who was doing the job.”
“He was stoked with the quality of my work, and I was able to rely on some consistent work through him.”
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Opening in 2017, Vivid Coats mainly focusses on new builds and repaints.
“We focus on the high end custom new builds, as that aligns with what we are looking to produce for people,” Marcus said.
Transforming a space and creating a new feeling to a room is a key motivator for Marcus and his team.
“We create spaces from nothing, give it a feeling and character,” Marcus said.
“I love that we can give something a new lease on life by creating spaces for them that they will enjoy and make memories in.”
Travel and golf
A father to three boys, Marcus and his wife Steph enjoy travelling around Australia in their caravan when time allows.
“Away from home and work I’m very keen on golf,” Marcus said.
“I was bitten by the bug pretty hard. I can’t wait for my boys to be involved and grow to hopefully love the game too.”
Marcus and his team have their eyes set on growing the team at Vivid Coats.
“We teach our staff really well,” Marcus said.
“I’d love to look back in 20 years time and see our staff all excelling in the industry and hopefully teaching their own apprentices the same way.”