A new digital marketplace designed to overhaul how the construction industry handles materials and labour has launched its early access phase. The platform, Dinkum, connects developers, builders, subcontractors, and merchants within a single digital environment. The initial rollout targets the Auckland and Gold Coast markets, with plans for a wider release across New Zealand and Australia.
The platform was founded by William Trafford, a technology sector veteran who previously worked on scaling global platforms like Meituan and Memrise.
“My family has been in construction for generations, so I know exactly how much heavy lifting goes into managing a site and pricing jobs,” Trafford said. “I wanted to take the kind of marketplace infrastructure we use to run global tech platforms and hand it directly to the trades.”
The system functions as an open exchange for the building sector. Developers and homeowners can post project scopes on Dinkum.Build to secure main contractors. Builders are then able to tender their material schedules and labour requirements directly to local merchants and vetted tradespeople.
This structural change directly addresses the daily friction of securing work and finding available trades.
“Tradies spend an incredible amount of time and money on marketing agencies and social media just to get work,” Trafford added. “Dinkum gets rid of that entirely. For clients, it means less endless phone calls to people who aren’t actually available to do the work. It also ensures pricing is always competitive.”
Drawing on legal training, Trafford also structured the platform to handle the financial realities of site disputes. Dinkum includes an internal mediation framework designed to resolve issues before they escalate.
“Disputes, however rare, are a reality of the industry,” Trafford said. “Our legal support means any issues can be managed within the system by our mediating teams, rather than having our users face the possibility of losing their shirts in legal fees.”
Subcontractors using Dinkum can view and bid on live labour tenders that match their specific trades. At the same time, builders merchants have access to active material tenders from local sites, enabling them to bid competitive rates on volume orders directly with main contractors through Dinkum.Build.
The core objective of the platform is to ensure transparent pricing and efficient operations across the supply chain. The service is available now directly at Dinkum.Build, and as a dedicated application on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
