Mr Broom, 42, is the new owner of Fowler Homes Dunedin, saying it is the sort of opportunity he has been looking for since he retired from cricket.
Broom played the second-most first-class games for Otago during nearly 20 years with the side. He also had two stints playing for New Zealand, eventually playing two tests, nearly 40 one-day internationals and a handful of T20 internationals.
He also played a couple of seasons of county cricket for Derbyshire in England.
The right-handed batsman, who played outside Dan Carter when playing first XV rugby at Christchurch Boys’ High School, retired from cricket in 2022.
He had been doing a few things since hanging up the whites but felt the decision to get involved with Fowler Homes was the one for him.
‘‘One of the reasons I have taken on something like this was I had got into some of those roles but it was not quite what I needed. But this is something that will get me out of bed every morning,’’ he said.
‘‘It is sort of like what I have done. It is your own stuff, there is pressure to perform — like playing professional sport.’’
After retiring from playing, Mr Broom had worked for hire companies and done events work and also spent time in the United States coaching and helped out Otago teams. He also had his own cricket academy, which he had started before he retired.
Fowler Homes had started in 1984, and was now owned by Queenstown man Jason McGirr, whom Mr Broom went to school with.
‘‘We started having a few conversations and it just evolved from there. I’ve always had a passion for construction and the building industry.’’
A father of four boys and a girl, Mr Broom, a qualified builder, was keen to provide a service to the community and provide warm, affordable homes into the market.
He had a couple of houses on the go already at the new development Flagstaff.
