The apprenticeship.
I left Nelson College on my 16th birthday and started a carpentry apprenticeship that week. The trade taught me that progress is physical: measure accurately, make the decision and finish the job.
01 / STORY
Builder first
Everything started on the tools.
I left school at 16 to begin a carpentry apprenticeship. At 17, I started my first company. From decks and fences to housing developments, the work has grown. The responsibility has grown with it.
From my archive
Learning the trade.
My route into business began with a building apprenticeship. Completing it gave me a practical foundation I still value. Learning did not end there: work, books and conversations with other people remain part of how I develop my judgement.
Working on the tools. Original archive post (opens in a new tab).
Read how I keep learningThe first company.
My first company, Matthew Horncastle Builders Limited, was incorporated on 1 June 2011, when I was 17. That same company is now registered as Williams Energy Limited. The early work included decks, fences and small building jobs. It was where I began taking responsibility for the whole job, not just the building work.
Blair and Williams Corporation.
Blair Chappell joined me in 2012. The business adopted the Williams Corporation name in 2014. We moved from building work and spec homes into well-designed infill housing in places where people wanted to live. The company grew because the work was useful and repeatable.
The build.
Land, design, consenting, construction, sales, marketing and finance all have to meet. More than 2,500 settled homes later, I still see the company through the eyes of a builder: every plan eventually becomes someone’s home.
The downturn.
Fast growth can disguise weak systems. When the market turned, output fell hard and we had to make painful changes. I got decisions wrong. The lesson was not to retreat from ambition, but to support it with stronger cash discipline and clearer accountability.
What changed.
We simplified, measured what mattered and rebuilt around execution. I became more direct about risk, more demanding about operating detail and less impressed by activity that did not create an outcome.
What I believe.
New Zealand should be a place where useful work is rewarded, property rights are secure and it is easier to build. More homes, more productive businesses and clearer rules would do more for prosperity than another layer of slogans.
What comes next.
My completed work includes buildings of up to six storeys. Our current development work includes Williams on Worcester in central Christchurch, with a published design for a 10-storey apartment tower. It is in development, not yet complete.
09The context
The people behind the work.
My father, Bill Horncastle, worked in property development. Growing up around the industry gave me early exposure to it. My own route began on the tools, before I started the building company and Blair joined me.
In 2016, my mother, Kathryn Marshall, joined the business, bringing her property-development experience to the team. The business was moving towards a more focused housing model, with Kathryn, Blair and me contributing different experience to the work.
What matters