22 year old Sarah Levavasseur is a 2nd year painting & decorating NVQ student at the Caen CFA. She also won silver in the French finals of the World Skills competition. Let’s take a look at multiple perspectives of a multi-facetted trade with her mentor, Guillaume Dufour in Saint-Pierre-de-Semilly, Manche.
What painting and decorating involve from Sarah Levavasseur’s perspective
Sarah: It involves prepping and painting walls, ceilings and floors. Basically, we start by prepping the surface: protecting it, applying a coating, sanding it down then finishing it with paint or wallpaper… I’m currently only working on walls at my company. There’s always something different depending on the standard of renovation and the condition of the walls. I think 70% of your time is spent on prep work and 30% on the finish.
Guillaume: Up to 80% of our work is with the general public, working in renovation and construction, painting the structure, flooring, wallpaper etc. We also work on external surfaces with restoration and woodwork.
What do you like about your job?
Sarah: It’s pretty varied! I do a lot of renovations which means I work on different surfaces. I like meeting the clients too. I prefer working with wallpaper and paint, especially colour. I really love decorating, the building world and the blend of both of them with manual work.
Guillaume: I like talking to clients, seeing how happy they are when the work is complete in spite of any doubts they may have had. We’re lucky in that we work with an interior designer. We can give our own advice but it’s an added bonus for our clients and it’s what people want nowadays.
I've loved drawing and decorating my bedroom since I was a child. I wanted to be an interior designer. I also wanted to be a policewoman at the time, working in HR, but painting won the battle.
Which qualities do you have to have to work in this job?
Sarah: You have to be good with your hands, calm and patient because it demands precision.
Guillaume: Yes, you have to be thorough, have good people skills, be a little bit OCD and able to adapt to different workspaces.
After the 2nd year of the NVQ
“After that, I couldn’t decide between specialising in interior design or flooring, which both last one year. Flooring suits me better; if I do well at the European WorldSkills in Denmark in September 2025, it will open up more doors to me.”
How do you think the job will change in the future?
Guillaume: It’s changing the right way, especially in terms of sustainability. Suppliers are making products and paints that are less harmful to people and the environment.
Sarah: I think it’s an industry that can’t be replaced by technology. Yes, the products can change. Especially in terms of recycling. We’ve made a lot of progress already: we use a lot of water-based paint and far less oil-based paint, which is bad for the environment and people. It also dries very fast and damages rollers and brushes, making them harder to reuse.
The focus is more on renovation than new builds. They're two different areas of expertise: you get more surprises in renovation, there's more technique in it as you have to adapt to the surfaces, existing paintwork, cracks etc.
How was the test at the regional competition?
Sarah: It was pretty stressful. It was a bit tough on the last day, having to cram everything into the last 4 hours to rank in the top 3. It required a lot of concentration and there were a lot of people watching us.
Guillaume: Whatever happens, it’s a good thing for the company and trade… And it’s all positive for Sarah: she’s a thorough, motivated young woman who always wants to do well. Obviously she still has things to learn, but that’s what apprenticeship is for.
What do you think sets Normandy apart for you and your trade?
Guillaume: Every region has painters but Normandy is a thriving market – property sales soared after Covid and they need a lot of renovation. There’s a lot of work at the moment, we’re not complaining. I grew up in Saint-Lô, I’m from Normandy. We have it all: the sea next-door, a bit of rain… which can make restoration tricky!
Sarah: I love nature and I adore horse riding – my mare’s stable is at Écurie de l’Olivier and I regularly ride around Saint-Lô with her, or on a motorbike.
Pro tip
“If you want to find out more, take a course to get a taste for it then do an apprenticeship. I didn’t want to take on apprentices when I was an employee but since then, I’ve been lucky and it’s a joy to teach them. You do have to be motivated, curious and interested.”
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