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How To Sustain + Grow A Business In A Challenging Economic Environment

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And Why Being Nimble, Flexible + Embracing Technology Is The Key

 

It’s been an interesting [nice way to put it!] few years for Southern Highlands business owners and this year has brought a fresh set of challenges from an economic perspective thanks to rising inflation, interest rate rises and cost of living pressures. 

So, how does a local business in rural Australia not only continue to trade through these times but actually grow and thrive? 

It can be done. 

 

And we know because we’ve seen plenty of Highlands businesses do just that. One of them is run by Robert Simpson of Loan Market Bowral.

While Robert and his wife, Trudy opened the office in May 2019 – yep, just before the proverbial everything hit the fan – and were fortunate to ride the wave of the property market going a bit crazy during the pandemic, they’ve also had to navigate a tricky start AND 2022’s interesting economic challenges. 

And yet, still they grow, now employing a local team, and promoting one of their own just last month to the role of Mortgage Broker at Loan Market Bowral – congrats Ben Mitchell!

 

So, we were curious as to how they’ve done this and seeing a lot of our wonderful Fold readers are business owners themselves, thought it would be handy to get some practical advice from another local business owner who has been navigating similar choppy waters.

Here’s our chat with Robert.

 

 

1 The Fold Southern Highlands Loan Market Bowral Small Business Growth

Robert Simpson

 

1 :: Let’s start at the beginning. What did you find most challenging about opening a new business in the Southern Highlands? 

 

There was [and still is!] some fantastic businesses in the mortgage broking and financial services industry in the Southern Highlands that were well established and respected so establishing a new brand and business in that space was challenging to start with.

We did a lot of market research, market testing and focused on bringing the Loan Market brand to life.

One of the ways we did that was opening the office in a highly visible area.

 

 

2 :: What were the key learnings for you when you opened the office and how did that impact your early success? 

 

We invested heavily – both financially and with some real hard work and elbow grease – in creating the Loan Market office on Station Street in Bowral.

The branding on the building was clear and obvious and as I said before, highly visible.

So, when we started to advertise locally and sponsor local organisations such as the Bowral Blacks Rugby Club, brand recognition among locals was easier to achieve.

 

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3 :: What else can a business owner do to help their business thrive in challenging times? 

 

Helping potential customers even if they don’t initially become clients was really important to us. 

Giving good advice even if we couldn’t actually help a local with our product offering, and creating content that is helpful for locals even if they’re not actually looking for finance options at that time has become a really useful way to build credibility and trust among locals. 

Then when someone IS ready to engage our services, we’re front of mind for them already. 

We added value to their lives through some good info and helpful advice. 

They’ve had a positive experience with us already and they reach out.

 

 

2 The Fold Southern Highlands Loan Market Bowral Robert Simpson How To Grow A Business

 

 

4 :: Being able to change your business model quickly helped too.

 

That’s right. When we first opened, everything was face to face with clients but of course that all changed with lockdowns. 

So, we did what a lot of businesses did and changed the way we operated.

Everything moved online, we invested heavily in technology to allow us to run our processes remotely and efficiently and, as it turned out, that technology has become key to us being able to grow and scale up our business. 

We had to embrace a different way of doing business and now it works because we can give our clients an element of choice – face to face or online? 

Having the systems in place to support our processes and procedures and make the experience quick and stress free for our clients, as well as giving them the option of how they want to work with us, has led to lots of positive testimonials and word of mouth recommendations.

 

 

5 :: What advice would you give to business owners looking to build their team? How did you guys do it? 

 

Employ people who are a cultural fit.

People who understand what you’re trying to achieve as a business, who fit with the ethics and values of the brand, and are invested in the success of the business. 

I know it’s hard to find staff across all industries at the moment and maybe we’ve been lucky, but we’re building a great team who’ve been a huge part of our growth cycle.

They’ve been there for some big milestones and goals we’ve achieved so have a real sense of ownership over the success of not only their own roles but also the whole team and the business. 

Have the right people in the right positions and if you can financially afford it, employ staff six months before you need them so that they can hit the ground running when you reach that point.

They already understand the goals, the values, and the engine that runs the business. You’re not chasing your tail inducting someone, training them and hoping they’ll be a good fit AFTER the point at which you need them. 

It’s a good way to get on the front foot and if you have clear goals and a vision for your growth, you should be able to plan ahead for when you’ll need your next team member.

 

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3 The Fold Southern Highlands Loan Market Bowral Ben Mitchell

Ben Mitchell

 

6 :: And of course, knowing your numbers is part of that planning ahead, right? 

 

Staying close to your numbers – checking them weekly at least – will allow you to manage costs, stay nimble and respond to any changes in the business or the environment quickly and positively. 

Understanding what your return on investment is, whether that investment is in marketing, technology, people, products or whatever it may be, is important too. That allows you to see what’s working and what isn’t and you can change things up quickly if that needs to happen. 

 

 

7 :: Now, is having a good work / life balance possible for a small business owner?

 

There will be sacrifices, that’s for sure. Trudy and I worked really hard when we started the business, the kids were often in the office with us, I was doing long hours and it was a little hardcore to start with!

Now it’s working out for us and we have the right team around us and the technology to support that team and our clients, the balance is definitely better. 

I actually just got back from having lunch with Trudy, which was nice! 

But here’s the thing. Mortgage broking isn’t a 9-5 job and I chose this industry because it’s a lifestyle choice. I’m happy to work late if I need to because I chose this job. I chose this business. I chose this lifestyle because I love it and really enjoy helping people achieve their financial goals and objectives. 

We’ve got the freedom to choose where we put our time now and that includes me choosing when I want to work. And if I need to do something later at night because I’ve left the office early to run my child’s rugby training, then that works for me, the family AND our clients.

 

 

8 :: Anything else you’ve learnt when you opened Loan Market Bowral? 

 

Don’t try to be everything to everyone. Recognise what your skill set is, understand how that will deliver success to the client and to the business and dive into that. 

And if you need to diversify, employ people with experience in those new areas. Don’t spread yourself too thin, trying to be a jack of all trades and a master of none. 

I did that to start with. My specialty is in residential lending and a bit of commercial but I was also working with asset and business lending which I wasn’t as confident in.

So, I invested in an expert and that’s when Alan Walker joined the business. He’s been with Loan Market since 2018 and was Loan Market’s number one asset finance broker nationally in 2020 and 2021. 

And now our clients benefit from all that experience and knowledge, and I can continue focusing on my areas of expertise, as well as growing the business. 

It’s always good to have headspace as a business owner for strategy and growth.

I feel like that has made a huge difference to the growth of Loan Market Bowral since we opened three years ago.

 

 

 

So great! Thanks Robert!!

 

And if you didn’t already know, Robert and his team can help with Asset Finance and Commercial Lending too.

So, if you’re a local business operator and you need a bit of help on that side of things, or maybe you’re keen to refinance or increase your cash flow with everything that’s going on at the moment.

Either way, it’s worth giving Robert and his team a buzz on 4862 1215 to start chatting about how they can help you.

 

 

The Loan Market Bowral team is committed to helping locals secure the right loan for their immediate and future goals – whether that’s for a first home, third investment property, refinancing, business investment or buying a new car. Excellent customer service is the core priority and are always happy to chat to Southern Highlanders keen for lending advice and expertise. 

Contact the team via their website here or call the office on 4862 1215.

 

4 The Fold Southern Highlands Loan Market Bowral Robert Trudy Simpson Rural Family Business

Trudy Simpson

 

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This blog features friends and advertisers of The Fold Southern Highlands and is fully endorsed by The Fold Southern Highlands. We strongly believe in the businesses and all the information we share with you on The Fold and we’re excited to share the amazing stories and adventures of our local businesses. We want to say a BIG thank you to you for supporting our sponsors who help make The Fold possible.

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