POS counters
Custom point-of-sale counters designed to brand standards and customer flow.
Custom Joinery · Australia-wide
Shopfitting in Australia — Custom-Built by SteepWood
Your retail environment is your brand made physical. Before a customer picks up a product or speaks to your staff, your shopfit has already communicated whether your brand is premium or budget, considered or careless, worth their time or just another shop. At SteepWood we design and build custom shopfitting and retail joinery for businesses across Australia — from boutique fashion stores and specialty cafes, to pharmacies, medical centres, beauty salons, and flagship retail spaces.
Shopfitting facts — quick reference
- Retail shop fitouts in Australia range from AU$400–AU$1,500 per square metre for mid-range custom joinery Hipages shopfitting guide.
- Premium hospitality and boutique retail fitouts can exceed AU$3,000 per square metre with imported finishes HIA retail benchmarks.
- SteepWood manufactures display shelving, counters, and cash desks in Newcastle for national rollout programmes SteepWood shopfitting.
- Landlord approval drawings and council-compliant documentation are supplied on commercial tenant projects SteepWood commercial process.
What is shopfitting & retail joinery?
Shopfitting is custom retail joinery — display shelving, counters, fitting rooms, and service desks — built to your brand planogram and landlord requirements. SteepWood manufactures shopfit components in Newcastle for boutique, hospitality, pharmacy, and medical tenants Australia-wide.
Shopfitting is more than assembling shelves and a counter. It is the precise integration of custom joinery, lighting, flooring, signage, and customer flow — all executed to a brief that reflects your brand, meets your landlord's conditions, complies with council requirements, and opens on time. We manage the full process: initial concept design, documentation for landlord and council approval, manufacture of custom joinery, co-ordination of trades, and on-site installation.
Our retail joinery is manufactured in our workshop using commercial-grade Laminex and Polytec panels, CNC-routed MDF profiles, solid surface counters, and custom metal fixtures where the brief demands them. We work to planograms and brand style guides, and we are experienced in replicating a fitout across multiple store locations when rollout consistency is required.
Shop fitout costs in Australia vary widely by scope and finish level. Basic retail fitouts: $400 to $800 per square metre; mid-range custom with bespoke joinery: $800 to $1,500 per sqm; premium luxury fitouts with imported finishes and architectural metalwork can exceed $3,000 per sqm. Most established retail fitouts fall in the mid-range tier.
Contact SteepWood to discuss your retail fitout brief. Free initial consultations, fixed-price quotes, clear programme timelines.
What's included
Display fixtures
Fashion, pharmacy, beauty, and medical display units built to planogram.
Shelving systems
Wall and freestanding shelving for retail, hospitality, and specialty tenants.
Showcases
Product display showcases with lighting integration where required.
Back-of-house storage
Staff storage, change rooms, and BOH cabinetry for retail operations.
Landlord approvals
Documentation and co-ordination for landlord and council compliance.
Materials & finishes
Retail joinery uses commercial-grade Laminex and Polytec, CNC-routed MDF profiles, solid surface counters, and custom metal fixtures where the brief requires them. Finishes are selected for durability under daily customer traffic.
Shopfitting joinery cost Australia varies more by finish level than by floor area. Basic retail fitouts in melamine and laminate sit at $400 to $800 per square metre; mid-range custom retail joinery with bespoke counters, fixtures, and 2pac doors runs $800 to $1,500 per sqm; premium luxury fitouts with imported finishes, architectural metalwork, and feature lighting can exceed $3,000 per sqm. Most established retailers we work with land in the mid-range tier, and we provide a fixed-price quote against the planogram and brand style guide before manufacture starts.
Our retail joinery is manufactured in our workshop using commercial-grade Laminex and Polytec panels, CNC-routed MDF profiles, solid surface counters, and custom metal fixtures where the brief demands them. We work to planograms, brand style guides, CAD files, and brand-mandated suppliers, and we are experienced in replicating a fitout across multiple store locations when rollout consistency is required.
Where projects cross between retail and head office or back-of-house — typical for flagship stores, hospitality groups, and clinic chains — we co-ordinate scope with our commercial joinery service. Commercial joinery fitout cost Australia tends to be a bit higher per linear metre than pure retail because boardroom, reception, and storage-wall pieces are one-off rather than modular. For mixed-scope or back-of-house work, see our commercial joinery service page at /commercial-joinery/.
Every shopfit comes with a 10-year structural joinery warranty, a 12-month builders' warranty on workmanship, and the manufacturer's hardware warranty (25 years on Blum). Shop drawings, landlord documentation, and council compliance paperwork are co-ordinated by our project team — not handed back to the tenant.
Our shopfitting process
- 01
Retail brief
Sector, brand standards, landlord conditions, and opening date established upfront.
- 02
Concept and documentation
Landlord and council documentation prepared before manufacture begins.
- 03
Manufacture
Boutique fitout (50–150 sqm): 4–8 weeks. Flagship (>300 sqm): 10–16 weeks.
- 04
Install and fit-off
On-site installation with co-ordinated trades and defect-free handover.
Shopfitting across Australia
We deliver shopfitting nationwide. Pick your closest workshop hub for local information:
Newcastle
NSW Coastal · 0 — Newcastle is home
Shopfitting in Newcastle →
Sydney
Capital City · ~2 hours via M1
Shopfitting in Sydney →
Canberra
Capital City · ~5 hours
Shopfitting in Canberra →
Melbourne
Capital City · Freight delivery (~9 hours road; 1-day truck transit)
Shopfitting in Melbourne →
Central Coast
NSW Coastal · ~1 hour 15 minutes via M1
Shopfitting in Central Coast →
Hunter Valley
NSW Inland · ~45 minutes
Shopfitting in Hunter Valley →
Gold Coast
Capital City · ~9 hours (freight delivery)
Shopfitting in Gold Coast →
Wollongong
NSW Coastal · ~3.5 hours
Shopfitting in Wollongong →
Brisbane
Capital City · ~9 hours (freight delivery)
Shopfitting in Brisbane →
Perth
Capital City · Freight only (3–5 day transit)
Shopfitting in Perth →
Byron Bay
NSW Coastal · ~9 hours (freight)
Shopfitting in Byron Bay →
Port Macquarie
NSW Coastal · ~3 hours
Shopfitting in Port Macquarie →
Coffs Harbour
NSW Coastal · ~5 hours
Shopfitting in Coffs Harbour →
Adelaide
Capital City · Freight only (2–3 day transit)
Shopfitting in Adelaide →
Bathurst
NSW Inland · ~3.5 hours
Shopfitting in Bathurst →
Orange
NSW Inland · ~3.5 hours
Shopfitting in Orange →
Frequently asked questions
How much does a shop fitout cost in Australia?
Shopfitting joinery cost Australia varies widely by scope and finish level. Basic retail fitouts: $400 to $800 per square metre; mid-range custom with bespoke joinery: $800 to $1,500 per sqm; premium luxury fitouts with imported finishes and architectural metalwork can exceed $3,000 per sqm. Most established retail fitouts fall in the mid-range tier. For comparable budgets on office and head-office work, commercial joinery fitout cost Australia typically runs slightly higher per linear metre than retail because office reception and boardroom joinery pieces are one-off rather than modular.
What's included in a joinery quote from SteepWood?
The joinery quote what's included Australia question gets asked a lot, because tenants have been burned before by quotes that exclude freight, install, or scope creep. A SteepWood shopfitting quote always covers: shop drawings, panel and hardware supply, manufacture in our workshop, freight to your site, installation, fit-off, snag and final clean, plus the 10-year structural joinery warranty. Excluded items are listed line-by-line — e.g. electrical, plumbing, signage, flooring, and any landlord-mandated trade restrictions in your lease — so you know exactly what is and isn't in the number.
Do you also do non-retail commercial joinery — offices, healthcare, hospitality?
Yes. We do all of it. If your scope crosses into office reception, boardroom credenzas, healthcare casework, or hospitality back-of-house, see our commercial joinery service page at /commercial-joinery/. Commercial joinery fitout cost Australia is quoted on the same basis as shopfitting — fixed-price against shop drawings, freight separately itemised, single project manager from brief to handover.
What is the difference between a shopfitter and a builder?
A shopfitter specialises in tenancy-scale fitouts, fixtures, joinery, and retail-specific compliance (POS, lighting, customer flow). A builder typically handles whole-building construction.
How long does a typical shop fitout take?
Boutique fitout (50–150 sqm): 4–8 weeks. Larger flagship (>300 sqm): 10–16 weeks. Cafe/hospitality with kitchen exhaust: add 2–4 weeks for council approvals.
Do I need council or landlord approval for a shop fitout?
Landlord approval is almost always required. Council DA only triggers for structural changes, signage above certain sizes, or change-of-use applications. We manage both.
What is included in custom retail joinery?
POS counter, display fixtures, shelving systems, wall panelling, back-of-house storage, change rooms (for fashion), product display showcases — all designed to brand standards.
How do I choose the right shopfitter?
Look for: completed retail portfolio in your sector, public liability $20m+, MBA or HIA membership, willingness to provide fixed-price quote, and references you can call directly.
Can a shopfitter work to a brand style guide?
Yes — we routinely receive brand bibles from franchise and chain retailers and execute to planogram. CAD files, colour codes, and brand-mandated suppliers all incorporated.
What warranty should I expect from a shopfitter?
10-year structural joinery, 12-month builders' warranty on workmanship, manufacturer warranties on hardware (Blum 25yr), and statutory warranties under Australian Consumer Law.
Ready to design your shopfitting & retail joinery?
Free design consultation, fixed-price quote within 5 working days, no obligation.