Family legacy flows on for Seth Hall

Seth Hall, a young plumber from Gisborne, is aiming to become the second member of his family to win the Plumbing World Young Plumber of the Year 2025 national final after topping his regional event. He’s a third-generation plumber, following in the footsteps of his grandfather, father, and two brothers. 

Seth says participating in the competition is an opportunity to see how other people work. “You meet other young people and make strong connections in that process,” he says. “It’s cool to be out there and be able to compete, to test yourself. 

“We all do things differently because nobody is taught the same way. And as you work throughout the competition, you meet many different suppliers that you wouldn’t normally interact with. You might have used their products for years, but don’t know the people behind them.”

For Seth, it’s not only a personal challenge but also a way to represent the small, family-run plumbing businesses that form the backbone of New Zealand’s trades community and economy. 97% of New Zealand businesses are small businesses, and most plumbing businesses fall into this category.

He’s part of Hallrite Plumbing & Gasfitting Limited, a family-owned Gisborne business founded by his grandfather, Brian Hall, in 1970. The company has built a strong reputation for quality workmanship and community service, offering plumbing, gasfitting, and drainlaying across the East Coast. Today, Seth continues to carry forward the Hall family’s legacy of reliability and craftsmanship.

His involvement in the Young Plumber of the Year competition reflects Hallrite’s broader commitment to professional development and industry excellence. The competition, supported by NZPM and Plumbing World, celebrates the best emerging talent in the trade while strengthening relationships between apprentices, employers, and suppliers nationwide. 

Seth left high school in Year 12 to become a plumber. “I remember hanging around the workshop, sweeping floors, and doing apprentice-level jobs like it after finishing my school work. I went through high school unsure of what to do, but it was an easy decision to go with the family business and continue the legacy. I was taught by my older brother, and of course, we had our moments, but it was always good fun.”

Seth’s older brother, Cody Hall, won the national Young Plumber of the Year title in 2023. But Seth hasn’t picked his brother’s brain for tips and tricks on taking the title out. “He hasn’t told me much because I don’t want to know. I want to work it out on my own. I love problem-solving, being able to look at something playing up or not working and changing things, seeing how they interact.”

Seth has since trained his younger brother, Brad, in the same way Cody trained him. He says that there was never any pressure to join the family business, only the enjoyment of continuing it. “My grandpa and dad have made such a name for themselves, and I’ve always wanted to do a trade. Many people can attest that I cannot sit still. I walk around in circles until we are ready to go. Being active and gung-ho, I think I was always going to end up in trades.”

Seth encourages young people not to shut out the idea of pursuing a trade. “All through high school, I was told to go to university, not to drop out, not to go into trades.” Yet now he has zero student debt, has earned while learning, and has built real-world skills across many trades, not just plumbing. 

Recently married, Seth hopes to slow down after the national final, buy a home, settle in, and continue advancing in his career while promoting opportunities and community in the trades. “You can make such a great life and such great, life-long friends through trades. And you know who to call when you need a good tradie yourself. You can’t beat it.”