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Mariano Croce is an Argentine entrepreneur who relocated into Queenstown with his young family just before the first COVID lockdown in 2020. He has a background in prefabrication, having co-founded a modular building company in Argentina when he was 24. More than 15 years on, Mariano has created Modulo.nz to provide architecturally designed, high-performance, modular homes built in New Zealand.
Market Research
The year before relocating into NZ, Mariano joined PrefabNZ. He contacted Pam Bell and explained that he wanted to start a Modular business in Cromwell. She said that before even thinking about this, he should travel and attend the Colab 2019 held in Auckland, which Mariano says he did “without hesitation”.
Mariano stayed in New Zealand for a month and made as many contacts as he could. On the last day of his visit he applied for an Entrepreneur visa which was granted two months later and six months after that, he moved his whole family to Arrowtown, just outside of Queenstown.
Modulo model
Mariano and his family were greeted in New Zealand by a lockdown. He took the opportunity to contact Architectural practices with the intention of engaging one for the design of a showhome. He found that there were many great design options that he didn’t want to discard and decided to work with multiple architects to create designs for modular homes.
Modulo has started with three styles of modular homes and is looking to sign up for additional design practices.
Modulo values
Regardless of where the design comes from, Modulo adheres to three core values.
- Asthetics
- High performance
- Locally sourced natural materials
Mariano is convinced that there is a growing market for houses built with those three simple values and he is proud to be part of something so important, building better houses that will be used in the community for at least 50 years.
The Process
Modulo offers a fixed price and a fixed delivery timeframe. Clients can decide on their preferred design then the order is confirmed along with any minor adjustments. Modulo will manage the building consent application, engineering, supply of materials and build the house at their construction location near Queenstown. They can also assist with the site works such as foundations and sewage.
Mariano explains that many people underestimate the number and cost of all the parties usually involved in a building project. The aim of Modulo is to make the process easier.
Homestar
Modulo Homestar will be designed to achieve a Homestar rating.
To find out more, check out Modulo.nz.