Sunshine Coast agent Mark McGill is no stranger to winning real estate industry awards, but his latest accolade is by far the sweetest.
On 29 October, his boutique agency, The McGill Group, picked up the Real Estate Institute of Queensland award for Small Residential Agency of the Year.
It was an achievement made all the more impressive due to the fact that Mr McGill only launched the business, in partnership with the Agents’Agency, just over two years ago.
Mr McGill explained, although he has been nominated as salesperson of the year nine times in his 13-year career and taken out the prestigious title twice, this year’s win was particularly meaningful.
“It recognised our team effort as a whole, including our commitment to customer service and was especially exciting as we’re pretty much a brand new business.”
Small Residential Agency of the Year wasn’t the only category The McGill Group were finalists in at the recent REIQ awards either.
Mr McGill received his 9th nomination as Salesperson of the Year, while property manager Holly Amon was a finalist in the Residential Property Manager of the Year category.
“We are only a small business with a boutique rent roll so to be recognised among the best of the best in the state so early in our business life is big,” Mr McGill reflected.
Mr McGill launched the brand in March 2020, just as Covid lockdowns were being implemented across Queensland.
But rather than seeing that as a deterrent, he viewed it as an opportunity to get the foundations of his business right from the outset.
“I started in real estate in the global financial crisis and opened my own business at the height of Covid,” he said.
“Tough markets don’t scare me. Whenever it gets challenging, I see opportunity.”
When he opened the doors to his new brand, he had a small team in tow, including his sales assistant Alana Luchetta and Ms Amon.
Together, they worked out of an industrial shed in the central Sunshine Coast suburb of Buderim.
Now that team has expended to nine, including four sales agents and additional property managers.
Mr McGill noted many of his team members are working mums who job share, and it was this flexibility and inclusive culture he hoped to bring to his own business.
“My main reason for going into my own business was because I wanted to do things my way,” he explained.
“I wanted to be able to adapt and change as quickly as the market does.”
Mr McGill noted he opted to join the growing network of the Agents’Agency as it allowed him the freedom to run his business as he wanted to, yet still enabled him to receive ongoing administrative support.
“It’s been fantastic,” he reflected, looking back on the partnership so far.
“The support is sensational. They look after accounting, including paying my suppliers, payroll, and trust accounting.
“The reality is agents are normally skilled at selling properties, but not necessarily at running a business.
“Their support allows a skilful agent to operate a business and still focus on doing what they do best.”
Mr McGill also noted his affiliation with the Agents’Agency allowed him to grow his business in income-producing areas, without the need to take on additional administration staff.
Agents’Agency Chief Executive Officer Manos Findikakis said The McGill Group’s award win and three nominations were testament to the standard Mr McGill had set for his brand.
“He was looking to create a business that provided a great experience for his clients and this award recognises that,” Mr Findikakis said.
“In the process, he’s developed a phenomenal team and we’re thrilled to see them acknowledged.”
Mr Findikakis said from the outset it was apparent Mr McGill had milestones he wanted to achieve within his own business.
“He’s worked tirelessly on the front of house and focused on his brand and clients, while we’ve been able to provide the back-end support to assist.
“And that’s exactly what we’re all about.
“We’re here to support agents as they create their own brand and their own business, with complete freedom and without restrictions.
“We want to see them succeed in terms of lifestyle, financial reward, professionalism and well-deserved recognition.”
Mr Findikakis further noted the entire network was thrilled to see The McGill Group recognised by Queensland’s peak real estate body.
“A big part of what we offer is collaboration as a network of hundreds of agencies across the country.
“While the Agents’Agency might provide the back-end support, you can’t discount the power of having a network of people who collaborate and all want to see each other succeed.”
As for Mr McGill’s future plans for his business, he said a new office space was in the works, with the site yet to be revealed.
“Our staff have worked incredibly hard and they deserve a new home,” he said.
