NattyShedLife

In this episode of the NattyShedLife Podcast, producer Ross steps into the role of host to speak with Cara and Nicola about not just their leadership roles at Gillies & Mackay, but how they hold each other up every day.

This is a conversation about trust built over time, decisions made under pressure, and the responsibility that comes with leading people you genuinely care about. Cara and Nicola reflect on how their relationship began, how it’s been tested, and how it’s grown through moments of uncertainty, conflict, resilience, and belief.

They talk openly about leadership that feels human – we cover the emotional cost of doing the right thing, and the importance of having someone beside you who sees the full picture when things get heavy.

This episode is an honest reflection on partnership, care, and what it really takes to keep moving forward together. Oh, and boy do we have a lot of fun.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s

Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

Website: https://nattyshedlife.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!

Before the sheds, before the awards, back where it all started… there were three people building something out of nothing: Grant, John and Caroline.

In this special episode, Cara looks back at the real beginnings of Gillies & Mackay – not as a company, but as a young family trying to make a life.

Working in an old farm, raising five children, borrowing tools and favours, learning as they went… they created a business that's over 35 years in now, built on the foundations of love, graft, courage and pure belief.

This is the story of where G&M truly started – in a home, in a family, and in the hearts of three people who gave everything to build something that would last.

This penultimate episode of Season 1 of the NattyShedLife Podcast is a warm, honest tribute to the people who made it possible.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s

Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

Website: https://nattyshedlife.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!

Dean’s story is all about grit – the kind that comes from showing up even when it’s hard, learning the long way, and holding yourself to a standard no one else can see but you.

In this episode, Cara sits down with Nic to talk about one of the workshop’s most heartfelt grafters: the effort, the setbacks, the expectations he carried, the pressure he put on himself, and the growth that came from all the moments he thought he wasn’t getting it right.

This is a quiet, powerful episode about the kind of growth you don’t always see – the growth that happens on the inside first. Dean is a reminder that becoming good at your craft means becoming good with yourself, too.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s

Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

Website: https://nattyshedlife.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!

Gordon has been part of Gillies & Mackay since, basically, the very beginning. From laying slabs with John and Grant as a teenager, to becoming the operations director and Cara’s right hand man in leading the legacy forward.

In this episode, Cara reflects on the man who has been in her life since childhood: the funny, warm, endlessly hardworking “big brother” figure who helped raise not only her, but the business too – and helped steer it through some of its hardest eras.

We revisit the turning points that reshaped Gordon and Cara's relationship: cultural turbulence, leadership transition, COVID crisis, and the moment Gordon stepped forward to help Cara carry the weight.

Gordon isn’t just a company director – he’s one of the strongest foundations within the business.

This is the story of the man who shows up, every day, for everyone – and the legacy he’s still building.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s
• Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

• Website: https://nattyshedlife.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!

Every day really is an adventure when you’re Ross and Darren – the dynamic delivery duo at the heart of G&M’s delivery team, and the last people customers see before their building becomes real. SO exciting.

In this episode, Cara and Nic take us behind the scenes of the team who have to navigating tight access, wild weather, unpredictable ground, and all the curveballs that come with delivering and assembling our wonderful buildings in the real world.

You’ll hear honest reflections about leadership, teamwork, on-site realities, trust, responsibility, and what it takes to do the job to perfection – day in, day out.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s  
• Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

• Website: https://nattyshedlife.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!

Chrissy has been part of Gillies & Mackay for as long as anyone can remember – literally.

He grew up around the business, started sweeping up as a kid, trained as a master craftsman, and became the person who can build the most complex structures G&M has ever produced.

In this episode, Cara and Nicola look back on 17 years of Chrissy’s impact – in the workshop, in the culture, and in their lives.

From the summers spent island-hopping with the G&M “family cult” to the early days on site, right through to becoming Workshop Manager, Chrissy’s story is woven into every piece of the company’s history.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s  
• Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

• Website: https://nattyshedlife.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!

Every business has its protectors. And for Gillies & Mackay, that’s Cath and Ailsa.

The women who keep the wheels turning, the money right, the systems tight, the stress level survivable, and the whole operation alive.

In this episode, Cara and Nicola go deep into the unseen work behind the scenes – the hard graft, the responsibility, the loyalty, the emotional labour and the absolute brilliance of the two women who hold G&M HQ together.

This is the story of two extraordinary, loyal, razor-sharp, big-hearted women who don’t stand in the spotlight – but who make everything possible.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s  
• Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

• Website: https://nattyshedlife.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!

In this episode, Cara and Nicola talk honestly (and a wee bit emotionally) about the girl who grew up watching Cara grind through late-night spreadsheets, then walked into the marketing department and quietly blew everyone out the water.

From writing newsletters that customers adore to supporting the younger ones in the family, Sophie brings a softness and a strength that makes all of us proud.

You’ll hear about the pride (and the tears) that come with watching her grow up around the business, and is now quietly becoming one of its brightest talents.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s  
• Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

• Website: https://nattyshedlife.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!

Cara always jokes that Amy's marketing department is all “rainbows and fairies” (seriously offensive, really)

While she's definitely making magic happen, Amy's not here to sprinkle glitter ✨ she’s got serious work to get done.

You've maybe seen her in G&M's Instagram reels – Amy's the sharp, creative, no-nonsense mind behind so much of the brand’s content strategy. She's the one who turns ideas into reality, chaos into systems, and Cara’s wildest thoughts into campaigns that actually make people care about what we do.

Amy brings everything – humour, clarity, colour, and intelligence to every corner of the marketing department – and she does it with a kind of ease that’s, honestly... unfair.

This episode is all about Amy.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s  
• Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

• Website: https://nattyshedlife.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!

Lewis Duncan’s journey at Gillies & Mackay has never been simple. He came in like a lightning bolt – fast, full of energy, ready for anything.

Then he left. And when he did, it broke hearts 💔

But the story didn’t end there.

In this episode, Cara revisits one of her most emotional chapters in the business – the story of Lewis Duncan’s journey into G&M, his departure, and his triumphant return.

From wood-cutting chaos during covid, to finding his pace, his confidence, and his purpose – this episode is a story about growth, perspective, and the power of coming back stronger.

🎙️ About NattyShedLife

NattyShedLife is where we share the stories, people, and lessons that shape Gillies & Mackay. From team spotlights to behind-the-scenes chats, this is your place to hear what really goes into building a business with legacy at its core.

🔔 Subscribe & Listen

Never miss an episode – subscribe for free on your favourite platform:

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NattyShedLife
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nattyshedlife/id1691999360
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6PTAxiE6p5T7ITHST05h3s  
• Alitu: https://nattyshedlife.alitu.com/

📲 Connect with Us

• Website: https://nattyshedlife.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nattyshedlife/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NattyShedLife/

💌 Got a question or idea for the pod? Drop us a message at [email protected]!