Despite writing for well over 20 years, John’s earlier career began in an entirely different field. After completing a motor mechanic apprenticeship, he worked in the trade for about 10 years before looking for an alternative pathway to use his skills. Several years in mechanical warranty claims were followed by the role of fleet manager for a 350-car national fleet. A move to the U.K. saw John transition through various jobs before getting the offer to join a London advertising agency where he wrote product compendiums for upcoming GM Opel vehicles. This involved regular trips to Russelsheim, Germany, to gather information from designers, engineers, etc. Having returned to Australia for the new millennium, John took up the role of editor of The Refinisher from issue 1, 2001.
“Basically, my role involves researching and writing all the articles you read in The Refinisher. Although I am listed as editor, it’s a real team effort to put it together four times per year. This includes the publishers, who lay everything out so beautifully, the super-helpful PPG Refinish Marketing team at Clayton and all the PPG experts who provide the technical details for the informative articles.”
“Over the years, I have thoroughly enjoyed ‘interviewing’ PPG users for various articles – they tend to be so positive! I believe everyone has a story to tell and it has been a lot of fun transferring them into words. The biggest challenge is getting decent photos to go with the words. Many people think a phone is a reasonable substitute for a camera but, for print quality, it’s not. Like any job, it has its stressful moments but what makes it easier is the people I work with. It’s a such a positive, can-do environment – what’s not to like!”
- Favourite hobbies/pastimes? Tennis, fiddling with our cars, veggie patch
- Favourite food? Really, really good ice-cream
- Favourite drink? Muscat
- Favourite music / band? Hunters & Collectors
- Favourite car / motorcycle? Ferrari Portofino / KTM 350EXC
- Favourite holiday destination? Italy