Celebrating World Youth Skills Day: Young People on Building a Career at Gilcrest

Gilcrest Manufacturing has always depended on skills passed from experienced hands to those starting out, and several of our team are early in their careers, learning their craft across different departments and already shaping the work we do.

World Youth Skills Day, marked each year on 15 July, was established to recognise the skills young people need to begin and build a career. The theme for 2026 is Skills for a shared future, the idea that the skills young people develop today are not only their own, but the foundation of what their workplaces and communities become.

To mark the day, three of them share their experiences in their own words: how they got here, the skills they have built, and how they are helping to carry the business forward.

Callum Blackmore, Marketing Apprentice

How did you begin? I joined Gilcrest as an intern in the sales and marketing team, and when my placement ended I chose to stay on as a degree apprentice rather than go to university full time. It meant I could start my career straight away and keep building the marketing skills I had begun developing, while putting them into practice on real projects from day one.

What are the skills you have learnt? Most of my work has been hands-on creative design: email designs, branded templates, product datasheets and presentation resources the team still uses, along with a promotional video I edited for the company’s LinkedIn. It has sharpened my eye for detail and taught me how to shape content for a specific audience and present technical information clearly. Just as much has come from working closely with the sales team and the wider business, which has shown me how the different parts of a campaign fit together and improved how I communicate and collaborate.

How are you contributing? Those skills now feed directly into how Gilcrest presents itself, from the branded materials the sales team relies on to the content that reaches our audience online. Having grown up with digital tools, I am able to bring that fluency to how we tell our story. Looking ahead, I want to finish my degree with Gilcrest and keep developing as a marketer, help the brand evolve further and establish a more consistent presence as it grows.

Ben Wyatt, Sales Estimator

How did you begin? I joined Gilcrest as a manufacturing apprentice in July 2020, starting out on the factory floor. It was a great place to begin, giving me the chance to work with all sorts of people both inside and outside the business and to learn how our products are actually made. After completing my manufacturing apprenticeship, I moved upstairs into the sales team to take on a new challenge as an estimator.

What are the skills you have learnt? Most of my day is spent turning customer enquiries into accurate quotations: reviewing technical drawings and specifications, working out the panel solutions a project needs, and pricing it so the numbers are right for both the customer and the business. That has taught me to read technical drawings quickly, to understand our cleanroom and acoustic systems in real detail, and to keep a close eye on accuracy, since a small error on an estimate can carry through a whole project. Just as much has come from working alongside the sales and production teams, which has sharpened how I communicate and how I balance what a customer wants with what we can realistically deliver.

How are you contributing? Getting an estimate right is often the first step in winning a project, so the work feeds directly into how Gilcrest grows. A clear, accurate quote gives customers confidence and gives the business a solid footing to deliver from. Looking ahead, I want to keep developing on the commercial side, taking on larger and more complex projects as Gilcrest continues to grow.

Aleks Iwan, Technical Solutions Analyst

How did you begin? I joined Gilcrest as an apprentice contracts co-ordinator in October 2022, co-ordinating orders from enquiry through to delivery. My direction changed in 2023 when we introduced Acumatica, our cloud ERP system. I was made the department superuser, which meant learning the system inside out, and that is where I found the work I wanted to do.

What are the skills you have learnt? From there I taught myself the basics of C# and SQL so I could understand how the system and its databases actually work, design reports, and start customising the application rather than just using it. That grew into my current role as a technical solutions analyst, improving our ERP through code and low and no code solutions, building automations and integrations, and looking at where tools like AI can help the business. Just as much has come from working across finance, production and contracts, learning how each department uses the system and translating what they need into something that works for them.

How are you contributing? Our ERP sits behind almost everything the business does, so improving it and helping colleagues get the most from it feeds directly into how efficiently Gilcrest runs. Looking ahead, I want to keep developing on the technical side and take on more complex projects as the business continues to modernise and grow.

“Supporting young people at the start of their careers is something we take real pride in. Our apprentices bring energy and fresh thinking, and the skills they build today are what Gilcrest will be built on tomorrow. Callum, Ben and Aleks are a credit to themselves and to the colleagues who have helped them along the way.” – Sarah Fowke, Managing Director

Supporting people at the start of their careers is how Gilcrest builds for the long term. Callum, Ben and Aleks are proof of what that investment produces, and they are only a few of the young talents developing across our teams. If you are considering a career in manufacturing, through an apprenticeship, work experience or a first full-time role, you can find out more on our careers page.