ON the heels of a failed partnership that threatened to break her spirit, Judy Benjamin decided to fight negative self-talk and start her newest business, Benjamin’s Realty Service, a real estate company.

Benjamin’s Realty Services Ltd, which had its start in April 2019, operates from a home office space.

When venturing into running her own business, Benjamin was able to tap into experience as a realtor while working as an employee at other real estate companies. She has worked in the industry for 25 years, starting as a sales associate at Century 21 Heave Ho.

Back then, she said, as a young mother she soon realised that the best returns would come from running her own business. More experience came from her role as sales manager at JN Real Estate Company, which allowed her to learn how to manage a full-scale operation.

From there, Benjamin recalls, “I was transferred to Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS) as the sales manager in the marketing department, which was a very exciting time as I was a part of the team that introduced and developed mortgage sales teams within JNBS.

“I had a distinct approach to business management which I wanted to implement. The flexibility that comes with owning a business is unmatched, even though doing this successfully is not an overnight process.”

All of this experience “developed my confidence, expanded my knowledge base and, of course, I was able to network and made the relationships that were vital to me stepping out on my own”, Benjamin shared.

In 2009, she started a partnership (LLC) with the intention of taking the real estate community by storm.

Benjamin says, “We were the fresh faces of real estate. We created a vibrant logo and were both knowledgeable in the business. We were focused and had a great synergy, but the world of business is difficult. Some of the expected targets were not met and we started to flounder.

“We reduced spending, cut back on whatever items we could, and we still were not able to survive.”

As a result, her business partner resigned from the company and Benjamin had the responsibility to run what was left while winding up that company and starting a new one.

She recalls, “It was tough, but many lessons were learnt during this time. I will always hold to the view that sometimes you must step back and reassess and start over. Never be afraid to step back, reduce expenses and possibly lose some market share to get yourself on track, to change direction and move forward.

“It was difficult, emotionally, and financially, as I had to wind up a business which I had poured myself into while starting a new one, which was all me, from start to finish.”

The entrepreneur says the process was not easy “but God came through, my friends rallied around me, and with encouragement, prayers, seed money and visioning sessions I created a vision and worked towards that vision. One friend became my assistant and really held things together while I restructured”.

The journey to remain a business owner once more was not an easy decision. Benjamain faced the fears, insecurities and uncertainties of dealing with a failed business.

The realtor states, “It was my Christian beliefs and my connection with Jesus Christ that allowed me to have peace despite the many demands that I needed to meet. I also learned from a colleague about the importance of rest on the Sabbath, and even though I am not a Seventh-day Adventist, I realised the importance of a time of refreshing. After years of building a business, I realised I had to create my business around the life I wanted so that there was synergy and balance.

Benjamin’s Realty Services Ltd, although operating from a home space, today has a team of seven realtors, two administrative staff members, and two consultants. The company moved to operate remotely since the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The company’s major shareholder is the qualifying director, Judy Benjamin, with the board composed of Lincoln “Happy” Sutherland, an ex-insurance marketing executive, as chairman; and Pamela Sutherland, a retired banker, as company secretary. In addition, it has a board of advisors.

Benjamin Realty operates an islandwide service that offers sales, rentals, leases, property management, and a relocation concierge service. They operate in both the residential and commercial markets.

The CEO says, “We are a boutique operation which means our structure is almost flat, so I can influence my team to operate in Judy’s way, which is defined in our mission statement.

“It also means that we are small in numbers and are not trying to compete with the larger entities, we are handling our clients like family and long-lost friends. If you want personalised service, call us, but you have to be prepared to go through the process we have, which makes you a client. I take real estate seriously, and so does my team.”

Benjamin comments, “Lucky for us, Jamaicans are driven to own their own homes, so, of course, sales and rental are important, and with the increase in multifamily communities coming on the market, property management services are in demand and in need of management. However, my all-time favourite is sales, the margins are greater, and it brings the most satisfying feeling.”

She says that the company’s target market is “anyone who appreciates the way we work, but we attempt to attract individuals such as first-time buyers and investors; truthfully anyone who is overwhelmed by the real estate process and who is interested in working with a close-knit team. On the property management side, we have specific packages that we offer, and on the sales and lease side, we operate with serious ready-to-buy clients. With our personalised service, we walk the client through what we can do, and the client then decides whether to work with us or not.

“For us, real estate is a people-centred industry and the best advertising is referrals. Being a boutique business, this is important to us. Our clients are making a huge investment and a big decision so we hold their hands through the process and we work closely with our clients and past clients who trust us to work for them.”

The entrepreneur estimates the total value of her targeted market as high, “because Jamaicans are focused on purchasing property and real estate has become attractive to many people as an investment. Our percentage of the market is a small slice of the pie, but we anticipate that this will change as more people know about our unmatched services”.

She said that some of the lessons learnt were:

• It is important that I follow my God-given instinct

• Never follow anyone blindly, don’t let things slide, and always say what you believe

• No matter how long it takes, ensure you understand everything

• Always take time to get to know your business partners

• Ensure you are keeping up with your commitments and responsibilities within a partnership

• Pray together

• Pay your tithes

She also advises other entrepreneurs, “Try to be and remain debt-free or live within the salary you pay yourself. I thought that was impossible, but real estate is a service that does not need expensive infrastructure, so I was able to keep my cost down. I had to step back from renting an office space and move my operations to a home office.

Benjamin also recommends hiring the right talent.

“I had to invest in someone to assist me in running the business. Initially, it was difficult to trust someone else with the business, but I had to hand over aspects of the business so I could focus on growing the business. I was very careful with staff selection; I actually had the candidates selected go through a second interview process with a panel that assessed not just skill and knowledge, but the character of the candidates to see which would best fit with my vision and culture. A friend once told me that I should always invest in a good accountant and good legal advice, so I did that and that has been a good business decision for me.”

Current challenges include the effort to get a grant or special loan to assist in creating an operational manual for the business. She explains, “I believe it is critical to have everything documented to establish processes and procedures and to document how things are done so that I can grow. I believe it is important because everything is in my brain and I need to share that with my team so there is greater business continuance. I think it is critical for small and medium businesses to have that so that the owners can concentrate on growing the business.”

Benjamin says that she has invested just over $1.6 million since starting in 2019, and recouped that amount many times over.

“We have been fortunate to pay all our bills and have been able to reinvest in the company…Profits are increasing. We have seen a 75 per cent increase so far this year in comparison to the corresponding period of 2021. Our year ends on March 31st.”

Benjamin states that being selected for the JMMB Accelerate Programme was a turning point for her business.

Current plans include expanding the number of properties under management and developing the sales team.

“We are also focusing on improving our internal processes and procedures for greater efficiency. We will also be improving our referral programme through our existing client base,” she says.