For the past 14 years, Nicholas and his wife Shona have operated Century 21 Armstrong Smith in the heart of Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs, growing their business through genuine relationships and community engagement.
Nicholas’s passion for property started early, dragging his parents to open home inspections while still at school.
“I loved property and I used to go around to open for inspections with mum and dad, drag them around and have a look at all these different properties,” Nicholas said.
After finishing school, he pursued PR and marketing, but his heart remained in real estate.
A strong foundation
His first role was at Meriton Apartments, where he spent four years selling apartments off the plan across Sydney.
“It was tremendous and a really good experience and a really good learning ground on how to sell real estate when you’ve got the owner of Meriton breathing down your neck in meetings,” he said.
“As a young 19-year-old, you learn a lot.”
The experience enabled him to purchase his first investment property, something he encourages young people to do today.
“I always say to people, start purchasing when you’re young,” he said.
“The first property might not be perfect, but it can lead from one thing to the next.”
An international perspective
Nicholas then moved to the UK, where he worked for Barnard Marcus for four years. It was there he met Shona, who would become both his wife and business partner.
The couple returned to Australia and worked together at Ray White before taking the leap to purchase their own business 14 years ago, acquiring a long-established agency that had been operating in Bondi Junction for 30 years.
The Bondi Junction market
Nicholas describes Bondi Junction as the centre of the Eastern Suburbs, with a diverse property mix that keeps the work interesting.
“There’s a huge mixture of properties here which is what I like about it,” he said.
“There’s great downsizer apartments in beautiful buildings with tennis courts, older style blocks of four, and then you’ve got semis and terraces and freestanding houses as well with some properties now transacting for 10 plus million dollars.”
The agency has sold everything from car spaces for $160,000 to houses worth many millions, along with many retail and commercial spaces.
“You’re not pigeonholed to just sell in a twenty-million-dollar waterfront house or whatever,” he said.
“You really have a huge mixture of properties.”
A people-first approach
Nicholas attributes his success to effective communication and a genuine desire to help people.
“I like to communicate with people effectively,” he said.
“We’re transacting real estate every day but the average person does it once or twice in their life.”
He rejects the stereotype of the pushy salesperson.
“I’m not a pushy salesperson that needs a flashy car and all that stuff,” he said.
“I think if you just have a good solid business, do the right thing by people and communicate effectively with people then you have a business for the long term.”
Growing the team
The business now employs eight people across sales, property management, marketing and reception, with Shona managing the property management portfolio while Nicholas handles most of the selling and leasing.
The couple continues to see consistent growth each year, with net gains in both property management and sales.
“Real estate’s a long game,” Nicholas said.
“We’re on a great corner here in Bondi Junction with great exposure and we’re growing steadily.”
Recognition and awards
Nicholas has achieved significant recognition within Century 21, recently winning a Century 21 annual award placing him in the top 2% of salespeople worldwide for the sixth time.
“There’s 47,000 Century 21 agents throughout the world, so it’s good to get the award,” he said.
However, he values local recognition even more highly.
“I probably prefer the local awards actually, like the Waverley Council Awards and the Australian small business awards that we’ve won,” he said.
“You get presented them for doing good in the local community.”
He maintains perspective on the accolades: “It’s not about all this plastic, it’s about the relationship really that you have with your clients and the community.”
Community engagement
The Armstrong-Smith team is deeply embedded in the Bondi Junction community. Nicholas is part of the Bondi Chamber of Commerce and the business sponsors events at the local sailing club and soccer activities.
The agency also runs community initiatives, giving out flowers on Valentine’s Day and dressing up to distribute sweets at Halloween.
“You really just integrate yourself as part of the community,” he said.
The Century 21 partnership
Nicholas has remained with Century 21 throughout his 14 years of business ownership, valuing the stability despite acknowledging nothing is perfect.
“I do know that agents chop around and if they’d stay in one spot it’d probably be better for them even if it’s not perfect,” he said.
Looking ahead, the Armstrong-Smiths plan to continue growing their property management portfolio and sales team as their children are educated in the area and their network continues to expand.
“As we continue to know more and more people, it just seems to keep on going,” Nicholas said.
For Nicholas, that ongoing momentum is less about rapid expansion and more about building lasting relationships – the kind that continue to grow, year after year.