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READER FOCUS Stephanie Cornwall talks to Jeanette MacIntyre, Founder Director and owner of Indeglas Ltd, about the current climate and her future aspirations for the industry. SHEDDING SOME LIGHT 14 www.thefis.org A FTER more than three decades working in construction and fit-out, during which she has helped to shape innovation and become a well-known and respected industry leader, Jeanette MacIntyre has weathered many a challenge. The advent of COVID-19 and its subsequent repercussions have been incomparable to any challenges she’s faced over the past 30 years. But rather than being disheartened, she is embracing it as a new challenge and facing it head-on. “Without doubt, the last four months have been more transformative than any other period I can recall on a personal, business, or industry sector level,” said Jeanette. “As with most fundamental shifts, there are positive and negative impacts and, being one of life’s eternal optimists and a great believer in the theory ‘What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’, I’m focusing on embracing the new direction. I firmly believe the interior sector can benefit if we are supportive of each other and continue to collaborate and innovate.” Jeanette, who acts as Co-Vice Chair on the Governance Board of the Construction Scotland Innovation Centre, has always been a keen advocate of new innovations. She believes this, and a more collaborative approach throughout fit-out, will be the key drivers to helping the industry move forward and re-shape itself. “I believe it essential that we continue to foster the collaborative approach our sector has demonstrated throughout the last four months. Several alliances have been born out of necessity to support our sector and I would advocate that we continue to look out within our immediate sector for innovation we can adopt while continuing to share best practice,” she said. “Trusted good practice, innovation and collaboration have the potential to propel our industry sector forward for mutual benefit.” Jeanette’s own career journey began back in the 1980s. After graduating with a Diploma in Interior Design from Edinburgh Napier University, she set up her first business, an interior design consultancy called Into Design, in Edinburgh a year later. She was part of the teamwhich established Zenith Contract Interiors in 1992, a company which grew to a turnover of £8 million. “My first ever real project, having newly graduated, was to design and manage the refurbishment of a function suite at the Pharmaceutical Society’s headquarters in York Place, Edinburgh,” said Jeanette. “I then went on to design and project manage a number of other areas within the same building and am indebted to the management team there for their trust in me, as the kudos of having such a prestigious client brought numerous other commissions.” In 2000 Jeanette co-launched DEKO Scotland to focus purely on the design, supply and installation of internal glass screens with the global brand, DEKO of Denmark, as its key product range. She completed the management buyout of her present company in 2012 and the company re-branded as Indeglas in 2017. “We wanted to reflect the fact that it is a Scottish company, with its own special identity, proud of our past but defining an exciting future, targeting growth and innovation in internal glass system design,” said Jeanette.