There is nothing more powerful in the world than female friendship as entrepreneurs Stef Paterson and Jade Flannigan have proved as they shake up the Aberdeen property industry in style.
Within just 18 months, the friends, who have been inseparable since teenagers, have transformed their property investment and development business The Property Duo into a global success with clients in China and Hong Kong.
While both Jade and Stef have years of experience of working at the top of the corporate world, they say their success is a story of female empowerment.
“We’re very strong on female empowerment as we believe women should lift each other up rather than pulling each other down,” said Stef, 37, who lives in the city.
“With Jade and I both working in the corporate industry, we’ve felt both sides of that and have always said that in property we will always support other women within it.”
‘Women should lift each other up’
Down-to-earth, super friendly yet razor sharp when it comes talking about their plans to continue sourcing and transforming tired Aberdeen properties into attractive rental opportunities, it’s clear to see why one part of their business made six figures in a matter of months.
“The sourcing side has been really good, it has been a six-figure business for us in the last six months so we’ve done really well with that, “said Stef.
“I think that has been a combination of our social media and the fact that clients like working with us.”
Female empowerment
Describing themselves as ‘soulmates’, the term best friends doesn’t do Jade and Stef’s unbreakable bond justice.
Ever since high school, the best friends, who are originally from Edinburgh, have had each other’s backs, forever spurring the other on to pursue their dreams.
Twenty-six years later – and even a five-year stint apart when Stef worked as an HR director in Hong Kong – their bond is stronger than ever as they took a leap of faith to launch their business.
“That’s the special thing about our friendship as the other one always, no matter what situation, can pull the other one up,” said Jade, 36, who also lives in the city.
“I think that’s what works so well in this business together is that even if one of us is having a bad day or an off day, which we all can have, the other one can take on the slack and pull the business in a forward direction.”
Over 7,000 Instagram followers
With over 7,000 followers and counting on their Property Duo Instagram page, it’s clear that Jade and Stef are already high up property ladder.
But their success has attracted some unwanted attention from online trolls.
“You’re always going to get people who judge you for the way you look,”” said Jade.
(Use the slider above to see a before and after of a bathroom transformation at one of their property renovations in Union Grove)
“We’ve had a lot of male hate, with comments like “you only get far in life because of the way you look”, it’s people trying to drag you down and it’s ridiculous.
“But it’s now at a point where they can’t get to us, they just get blocked and we move on from it.
“We’re so confident in our ability to actually get the job done so the way we look is second to that.”
Inspiring other women
This experience has only fuelled the women’s steely determination to unapologetically own their power in business and to inspire more women to follow suit.
“We’re used to working in male dominated industries and I don’t think we’ve noticed it as much because we’re used to those environments, said Stef.
“But there isn’t a huge amount of powerful women in property so I’m glad we’re putting our own stamp on the market and changing it up a little bit.”
Selling Sunset
With their killer business instinct and a love of power dressing, it’s no surprise that Jade and Stef – like millions of us – are fans of the hit Netflix show Selling Sunset where a group of tenacious female estate agents in LA sell some of the world’s most luxurious homes.
“We love Selling Sunset, “ said Stef.
“I didn’t hear from Jade in two days after she started watching it.
“We’ll bring a bit of glam to the industry as well.
“We’ve had a lot of haters through social media but we that we know we’re smashing it and we’re going to continue to as well.”
Although the women are rightly celebrating their success so far, they’re under no illusion that they still have lot of work to do.
“This year we’re really concentrating on aggressively building our portfolio and raising finance for that so that we can focus on bigger developments as we go forward,” said Stef.
(Use the slider above to see a living room transformation at one of their projects in Bedford Place.)
Keen to inspire more people, especially women, to work in the property industry, the friends now run The Property Network.
“It’s at the Norwood Hall Hotel on the first Wednesday of every month,” said Jade.
“It’s open to everyone, even if you’re not in the property world and you want to get involved.”
To find out more about The Property Duo check out their Instagram, LinkedIn or website.
