Shop-fitter

Job overview
Every shop should display a special character in its decor and fittings to attract the attention of passing customers.

Shop-fitting is considered one of the more creative trades in the building industry.

What do people do in this job?
For qualified shop-fitters their work is never dull or uninteresting. No two jobs are ever the same and very few fittings are standard.

Each shop should have an individuality of its own according to the needs of the owner and the size and shape of the premises.

The work of fitting out a shop takes place first in a workshop or factory, and then in the shop itself.

Furnishings are manufactured in the workshop and then assembled and finished off in the shop.

Two, materials, aluminium and timber, are the basic materials used in shop-fitting.

What kinds of people are suitable for this career?
Shop-fitters should have a natural ability for handicrafts, sufficient versatility to improvise from time to time and be neat workers able to achieve quality finishes.

What qualifications are needed?
There are no formal qualifications, but good school-leaving results in mathematics, art and handicrafts are an advantage, together with post-school training at a technical college.