Stephan Siegfried started his One Agency business with a modest team of two, and is now, four years later, seven strong and based in an prime main street location in Redcliffe, QLD.
For him, it was an easy transition to the One Agency brand set up, and gave them the opportunity to not only flourish as a real estate business, but to be in a position to give back to their local community.
Stephan and his team recently won a One Agency Community Service Award 2017 in Recognition of Services to the Community for their work with not for profit organisation ‘The Breakfast Club’, helping local homeless people, or people in need.
“The club provides free meals and other essentials such as clothing, haircuts, meal and laundry services to people who are experiencing hard times, no questions asked,” says Stephan. “The local community thinks of it largely as looking after homeless people but that is only the tip of the iceberg.”
They were involved as major sponsor and raffle co-ordinator for The Rockin 4 the Homeless Concert which showcased over 20 local bands and ultimately raised over $53,000 last year. Stephan and The Breakfast Club are only looking to expand their services in 2018 through raffles and being involved in projects like the Rockin4 the Homeless 5 concert which will take place on the 28th of April with the Hoodoo Guru’s headlining.
The blatant juxtaposition of Stephan’s work in real estate and his charity work for the homeless provides a model of integrity for businesses in any field looking forward into the new year, proving that you can better your own business and life by doing the same for those around you. A much needed sentiment of giving back in our current global climate.
The blatant juxtaposition of Stephan’s work in real estate and his charity work for the homeless provides a model of integrity for businesses in any field.
“I'd rather do this than spend $20,000 on having our business on buses or billboards. We don't just give money - we give time and marketing expertise, which helps create additional funds. The locality of the work connects us directly to the community and vice versa.”
“Plus it is just a nice thing to do,” he says. “The people who look after the day to day running of the Breakfast Club are angels. Everyone is a volunteer. Our whole office becomes involved and we get a lot of feel good as a by-product. I'm pretty sure that the local community as a whole sees this and appreciates it. If they don't it doesn't really matter because we are helping people that otherwise are often forgotten and that is a good thing!”
The Breakfast Club provides six meal services a week, and for many people experiencing difficulty, it may be the only decent food that they get along with a happy face and social interaction.
The organisation is totally manned by volunteers with no person on the payroll. Therefore just about every cent goes to the cause, there is inevitably rent for premises and the cost of running a vehicle and Stephan’s business pays the registration and insurance on the van.
Last year Stephan and his team donated a $21,000 Harley Davidson and ran a raffle and this along with the ticket sales from the concert was where the bulk of the funds were raised. Angry Anderson and Rose Tattoo were the headline act for the show which was live streamed and watched by people in the UK and USA.
Stephan is also a man of integrity in business matters too and with the support of One Agency, his New Year’s resolution for “healthy sustainable growth” is undoubtedly achievable. “We’ve no plans to be the biggest, cheapest, fastest,” he says. “We just want to be a rock solid, local member of the business community. One Agency is a sustainable model that allows us the freedom to grow organically without unnecessary influence.”
This is where One Agency swayed Stephan from the traditional franchise business model - without the added pressure of the head office hassle and the labour intensity of starting from scratch, he was able to focus on the essence of his individual business and get “straight into the job of selling from day one. The marketing is hot, the support is there when I need it, however, they don’t meddle with my business, they let us do what we know we do best.”
To him having the support network was “especially important in the early days as the team was very small” and being apart of a bigger group gave them more clout in the Queensland real estate landscape.
“Group ethos and culture comes from the top, and One Agency is a prime example of how this works”. Stephan was particularly impressed by Paul Davies, the Founder and CEO of the group, from the start of their transition, and admires his honest and caring qualities. “There are always people prepared to help and assist, sharing and caring amongst the group just happens if you ask”.
Stephan we congratulate you as you enter your fifth year with One Agency, and for the great work you do in your local community, you are an inspiring member of our One Agency family!
Contact Stephan:
At One Agency we are always open for a conversation and very happy to help if you have any questions, obligation free and in complete confidence, so please contact us.
T 1300 79 23 88 (Australia)
T +61 2 8039 2110 (International)
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