21/10/2025
Hello Everyone, and what a great way to start a great week with some well desired rain and wet weather. But to bring us to a shining moment, let's come together and celebrate Kayla Phillis with her achievements and profile below. 👏
My journey with Steve White General Builders began back in 2016 in a part-time front office role, when my daughter Shilah was just a baby. Over the years, I’ve embraced every challenge and opportunity, helping grow the business from 7 employees into a thriving team of 18. From creating systems that now support 40+ bathroom renovations annually, to launching our social media presence, marketing and creating design packages for new builds, and leading the transition to a modernised company, my role has grown into Company Manager – supporting both our people and projects to succeed. One of the best moments of my working life was being awarded the Whyalla Business and Tourism, Business of Year for 2024. I will never forget Steve's face. Moving the business to the Moyles Building on McBryde Tce, and restoring and renovating the space was one of the most exciting times for the business as it really showed how much we had evolved as a business and as a team.
Beyond construction, I’ve built a passion for photography and property styling, and now working with Harcourts Phillis Whyalla to showcase homes and commercial spaces within the real estate space. I am currently studying interior property photography and styling with a very successful Sydney based photographer, who's work appears in Home Beautiful and Adore Magazine, just to name a couple. I’ve also proudly volunteered my skills to local businesses like Eyre Peninsula Produce, helping them tell their stories through marketing.
In 2021, after my daughter’s stepmother Linsey lost her life to cervical cancer, I joined her family in establishing Linsey’s Legacy Gynaecological Cancer Foundation, where I have served as Vice Chair and now as Marketing Co-Ordinator. Supporting this cause is deeply personal and something I hold close to my heart.
In October 2025, I was proud to stand as a finalist in the HIA Building Industry Business Women of the Year Awards in South Australia – a moment that felt both surreal and humbling.
I’m grateful to my family, Brandon, Shilah and Henley, and extended family for standing beside me in every chapter and encouraging and supporting me in every professional role I've taken on.
To Steve, Pearce and Justin, and all my colleagues for your patience, guidance, and willingness to teach, it has been instrumental to my success and the success of the Steve White General Builders. I am especially thankful for the way you've consistently treated me as an equal within the business, valuing my voice and respecting my perspective. Your support has helped shape the professional I am.❤️