Geary Group Architects: the rising star in Aotearoa’s architecture industry

Sometimes remarkable things can come out of unusual, unforeseen circumstances – and this is true of the founding of Geary Group Architects, one of Aotearoa’s youngest architecture firms. 

If there was any shred of trepidation at the prospect of entering New Zealand’s architecture industry as an independent, boutique outfit in 2021 you would never know it if you talked to Geary Group’s Co-Founder and Director Whitney Geary. The fledgling company, which Whitney runs with her husband Corey Nock, arrived on the scene with a marked flourish, determined to make a serious impact on an industry already inundated with talent and creativity.   

“We knew our combined skillset of architecture, construction, Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA), and management was a secret formula that we couldn’t wait to unleash on the world,” she says.

Despite the hard work and significant upfront financial investment involved in setting up a brand new practice, it was all worth it for Whitney and Corey to be their own bosses and helm their own projects.  

“This actually enlightened us as we’ve become building science nerds; we’ve watched a lot of webinars, visited manufacturers and suppliers, listened to lectures, attended exhibitions and built up our own toolkit of office standards.” 

This passion for learning on the go, combined with their enthusiastic embrace of the shifting norms and standards in the industry, make for an energetic team environment, Whitney says. More and more clients and fellow architects are focused on creating good quality, high-performance, energy-efficient buildings – something that neatly aligns with Geary Group’s ethos. 

“We are part of the movement away from the ‘just put another jumper on’ attitude, and towards the expectation that we should wear t-shirts inside a well-ventilated, well-insulated home in winter. We welcomed the recent H1 changes with open arms, and we’re really excited to be part of the tides of change.” 

Their passion for building sustainability extends beyond boosting just the efficiency of Aotearoa’s indoor spaces – it also encompasses enhancing the long-term liveability of our homes, too. This has led them to align Geary Group with the Living Future Institute, a non-profit organisation dedicated to promoting sustainable and regenerative practices in the built environment, as well as the Passive House Institute.    

Founding an architecture firm at this critical juncture in the industry also means they can start from scratch in a ‘new era’ for Building Code minimums and medium-density residential standards. Their status as a ‘boutique’ business also has its perks. 

“All our clients know us or know someone who knows us,” says Whitney. “So this allows us to have worked on home alterations and extensions, to new-builds from scratch. We’ve worked on a number of minor dwellings for people wanting to capitalise on their underutilised yard space – and when we find time, we work on the drawings for our own whare for our piece of paradise in the Bay of Islands. 

“We’ve also worked on several commercial projects in our careers, and we’re planning for Geary Group to get into commercial work, too. In time we would really like to get a substantial project to sink our teeth into.”

One of Geary Group’s first independent undertakings, a concept design of a residential project on a newly subdivided farm site in Kerikeri, has just been completed by and for the owner of Black Rocks Construction – Sam Corbett and his young whānau. Whitney mentions that she and Corey recently visited, and were happy to see them enjoying their new home.

“At the heart of Geary Group Architects is our desire to create good buildings that are good for people and good for the planet,” Whitney says. “We borrow the earth from our children, and we will feel proud to return it to them.” 

Learn more about Geary Group Architects.