At the age of 22, around 1886, he followed his brother to Gawler, South Australia, where he found employment at James Martin's "Phoenix Foundry", living with the Roediger family at nearby Buchfelde (later named Loos).
[1] He next worked at Port Adelaide, then as foreman for John Danks & Son of Melbourne.
He returned to Adelaide and started his own business with the purchase of James Wedlock's "Cornwall Foundry", the transfer of that factory to new premises Perry Engineering at Mile End, and the purchase of the James Martin & Co. workshops in Gawler.
He took on his nephew Frank Perry, who became managing director and company chairman on his death.
[2] He married Mary Jane Rofe (died 9 August 1924) of Port Adelaide on 7 March 1894; they had a daughter, and lived at "Brier Holme" at Grove Street, Unley Park.