Next came the Mac computer, which allowed Hickey to go from making an ad in four hours to four minutes. Following this, digital photography was the next big innovation.
“We were the first to introduce colour photos to real estate, we were the first business in Melbourne to introduce digital photography,” he says.
“We went to Perth and watched a demonstration of the camera and came back with one for $50,000. Then we told the real estate clients we were going digital and their reaction was strange. They were dubious and asked why we had to change, but when we demonstrated to each client what it would do we switched them over.”
Having been in the industry for around 38 years, Hickey says competitors have come and gone.
“There’s always someone new… They love saying Tomorrow Agency has been around forever because that’s their only way of fighting us, trying to pretend that we’re old-fashioned,” he says.
But in reality, Hickey says it’s “so much harder to replace a client than keep the one you’ve got”, so he’s worked hard at establishing long-term relationships with clients.
“Fitzroy’s have been with us for 32 years and I can name another 20 which have been with us for over 20 years. We treat staff retention the same way – a third of our staff have been with us for a decade or more. I think it stems from being a family-based company.”
Hickey says 80% of the company’s new customers are attracted to the business’s reputation, and only 20% are transient.
Having started the business at a young age, Hickey says he didn’t have any fears.
“To start a business today it wouldn’t be as easy as it was 36 years ago. Then you could do it with little overheads or threat. We didn’t make much money, but had a good time,” he says.
“From my perspective there are a lot of opportunities when you’re in the right place at the right time… but the harder you work the luckier you get. I’ve never minded working a 10 hour day. I’m not smart or really clever, but if you work hard enough you get better and smarter at it. There is no short cut.”
The two most formative moments in Hickey’s career have stemmed from the financial crises.
“Before the GFC we were riding high and business was good. When there are years and years of it being too easy, you start to spend too much and over-staff too easily. The GFC brought us back to ground and when we started again we were turning over the same amount of money with six less staff. It taught us to stay lean,” he says.
During the 1990 recession the impact wasn’t as severe on the business, but Hickey was forced to buy out his original business partner in order to survive.
“It was a horrible time, but the GFC was worse. They were really down times, but our clients and suppliers helped us a lot. Our clients understood that I had to drop some staff and do things differently and one of our biggest creditors gave us some extended credits.”
Now, the business is owned by Hickey, his wife and two of the younger directors in the company. The decision to give the younger directors a chance to buy into the business was motivated by Hickey’s desire to prepare for his retirement.
“It was a combination of succession planning and spotting two people in the business who were ideal and the timing being right. Their names are Anthony Bray and Lars Weisenberger, they’ve been here for a long time and from day one they worked liked the owned it.
“I would have struggled to have continued to stay motivated without them. They’re also great with keeping up with technology and ensuring we’re ahead of the pack.”
As well as playing sport at least five times a week, Hickey is also a passionate about snow sports.
“I was a passionate skier for 20 years but then I turned to snowboarding at age 38. We are a mad skiing family. I have two daughters and my eldest daughter went to the Vancouver Olympics and competed in the snow cross and is now commentating at Sochi. My other daughter has finished her degree and she’s living out of home,” he says.
“We’re a very sporty family, both daughters are athletic and great snow boarders. We always went to Mt Buller as the kids were growing up. My other passion is golf.”
Looking forward, Hickey says he wants to split up the business into different components.
“We’ll create businesses within the business, with Tomorrow Agency as the master brand to slightly change the way we’re seen,” he says.
“Personally, over time I want to step back and work four days and then three days, but nothing’s set in concrete. It’s going very well at the moment, but we meet regularly and make sure we spend time working on the business and not just in it.”
Hickey says if he walks away from the business is five years he’d like to think it was still going strong.
“My advice to other entrepreneurs is to work toward your goals in the business, but don’t take your eye off the entire package – family, recreation and sport. There are too many successful business people who I don’t think are successful in life, you’ve got to look at the whole picture.”
