Norman Sarraf

A scare with cancer was instrumental in forming Norman Sarraf’s unflagging commitment to children’s charity Camp Quality, but his authentic upbringing was the true genesis of his unwavering work ethic and loyalty to family. It’s always twenty-four seven with Norman, but it’s never work for this extraordinary business visionary.

As a child growing up in the inner Sydney suburb of Lewisham, Norman Sarraf knew more about traffic than real estate.

Thousands of vehicles would drive past his family’s house every day, which he thought was normal. He had no understanding of good or bad areas in which to live, whether a street was busy or quiet, or what was a renovator’s dream or ideal for the investor.

“We lived in a little semi on the corner of Old Canterbury Road and Barker Street; there was a panel beater behind us and a railway above us.”

Norman recalls that “it never dawned on me it was a main road, or that we lived in a semi and that was the lower end of the scale of homes until I was about twenty-one. It was just home.”

Perhaps not your average background for your average real estate agent. But there’s nothing normal or average about Norman Sarraf.

The first ‘light bulb moment’ Norman recalls happened when he was about ten. “These guys came to our house to tell my parents how much it was worth. I realise now they were real estate agents, but to a ten-year old they were guys dressed in fine suits, carrying pens and clipboards, and they looked very important.

“I remember thinking then, ‘that’s what I want to do’. I had no idea what they did, but I wanted to do it. I wanted to be just like them.”

That image was embedded forever into Norman’s mind, and after Year 10 he thought seriously about leaving school and buying one of those suits. The drawback was he didn’t yet have his driver’s licence so it would be difficult to get a job so he decided to stay and complete Year 12.

On the academic front Norman was middle of the road, but he made up for it with incredible motivation and a strong work ethic.

Norman recalls that “midway through Year 12, while I was studying for my HSC, I was stacking shelves at the local supermarket on weekends to make a bit of pocket money and I also decided to attend night school and do the real estate course.

“It was weird, I’d rock up at Petersham TAFE in my school uniform and everybody would look at me like I was in the wrong place.”

People would ask him ‘can’t you wait until next year?’ and he’d say “I just wanted a head start.”

There were three other men in that class who had finished school several years earlier, and they became his friends, good friends he still has to this day.

That’s another aspect to the Norman Sarraf story which has proved pivotal to his success: the length of his relationships. Whether it’s friends, colleagues or clients, relationships have been the backbone of his business.

Proudly, Norman can testify that “we have clients who’ve been on our books since the day we started.”

The value Norman places on relationships shines through when he recalls a strata meeting with a group of prospective new clients.

Norman walked into the meeting and immediately recognised the project and who had done it. “I introduced myself to the group and said I first worked with that builder twenty-seven years ago and the landscaper was on the very same project with us. I said I still work with that builder and that landscaper, and I do so because of the quality of their work.

“They were in awe. It was a powerful moment.”

That regularly happens to Norman. He often tells prospective clients there are going to be a hundred people telling you they’re the best, most cost-efficient and their service is second to none.

He then proudly adds, “I’m not sure they can say they have a group that has been together for decades, have clients that have been with them for that same amount of time and I seriously doubt they could match our work ethic.”

It is with the same amount of pride that Norman talks about the team he works with.

“No one works for me, we work together in this office. Our general manager, Annette, started with us when she was seventeen, that’s over twenty years ago. I still remember her interview. Peter’s been with me since 1992, Angela joined us in ’98.

“We have staff here I knew before they were born; their parents are friends.”

Norman began his real estate career working for a firm in Kogarah. “I needed a street directory to get there,” he recounts, laughing.

He applied for jobs in his local area, but so did everyone else studying the real estate course, and only one of those firms replied to his letter. It was a polite ‘thanks, but no thanks’.

Eventually a friend told Norman about this job in Kogarah, to which he replied “where?” His friend put in a good word for him and he started working there in January 1990.

From the start, Norman’s real estate career was centred on selling development sites and it enabled him to build a strong network. His keen motivation and strong work ethic meant his network was built fairly quickly.

In 1995, at the age of twenty-three, he decided to open his own office. He approached current partner Peter Love and that was the beginning of an amazing relationship. “We’ve been business partners for over twenty years, but we’ve been working together for the best part of twenty-five years.”

Norman regards his relationship with Peter as his greatest business achievement.

“I don’t know how many business partners have been together for as long as we have. I don’t think we’ve ever had an argument. A fair bit of the community in our industry are from my cultural background so they like to deal with us.”

Norman adds that “even allowing for Peter’s ‘Anglo’ background he’s seen as an extension of me. We even live next-door to each other. We’re like family, there’s nothing we wouldn’t do for each other. Those things are important to me.”

For the second time, Norman had a ‘light bulb moment’ after his business was more established.

He was doing well in the development business and his brother was doing well in the strata business, “so we thought why not combine the two?”

That became the case and “now we do the strata work for some of the biggest companies in Australia, we’ve certainly taken over the majority of the mid-tier developers.

“And it’s all come through referral, word of mouth, and our network simply saying ‘there’s a gap in the development/strata area and he’s bridged it’.”

There wasn’t a standout mentor for Norman and he didn’t learn lessons about relationships from reading books. There was no one standing over him whipping him into line, to make him work harder.

Looking back, Norman says “I guess it was just what I learnt growing up. Growing up in a relatively poor environment, although I didn’t think it was poor at the time, I learnt the values I have today.

“It taught me what I know, what I do and how I treat people. It was a good thing, it was a positive environment.

“Most importantly, I grew up being taught to treat people the way I wanted to be treated.”

A key point for Norman is that, “if you treat me like you’re a better person than I am, I just won’t do business with you. It shouldn’t matter how big or small you are, treat people the way you want to be treated and relationships will last a long time.”

It’s the same principle Norman passes on to his staff: “they don’t work for me, they work with me”, and he makes it clear from the moment they join his business.

From day one Norman says to his staff “where I go you go. I say to them they own this business as much as I do, and if they keep doing the right thing, one day they WILL own it.”

Norman continues, “I’ve never asked anyone to do anything I wouldn’t be prepared to do myself. I’ve never asked anyone to do something for me that I wouldn’t do for them. And that goes for colleagues, friends and clients.”

Norman’s philosophy is based on trust, and so much so, he often pays tradesmen he works with before they’ve even completed the job.

Norman’s perspective is that he puts himself in their shoes. “They’ve got a family, a mortgage, school fees, bills that have to be paid, and the last thing you want is to be chasing what’s owed to you.”

He illustrates by saying, “imagine I’m a tradesman working on a job and the guy running the job treats me well, says ‘good morning’ to me by name and shows genuine interest in me as a human being, I feel special.

“Then I get paid for the job upfront, or at least before it’s finished – it builds a bond, a bond based on trust, trust for each other.

“What do you think I’m going to do the next time he calls offering a job?”

When it’s needed, “I’ve had tradesman drop what they’re doing and come right over. I have many tradesmen I know who are only a phone call away. They’ll respond immediately, especially if they’re working for someone who holds off payments or doesn’t treat them properly.

“Paying upfront won’t affect what I get for the job, it won’t change my life, but it might change theirs.”

Norman admits there are times he’s been let down, but his response is simple: “really, they’ve let themselves down.”

Because he’s worked hard on building the relationships within his network, and his network is large, those who have ‘let themselves down’ miss out on many other opportunities.

He has many personal examples of how that’s worked.

Norman recalls one of those by saying, “when I started in real estate, it was just selling development sites, and I would often need Michael Dakhoul’s services. There was no crossover business between us, he would work for me because I was giving him a job. He’d do the job, and often I’d pay him up front.

“We nurtured a personal and professional relationship and so when we opened up the strata arm of our business it would be an understatement to say it’s come back in droves, given the size to which his business has grown.”

Wisely, Norman concludes by adding “don’t be fooled into thinking all relationships provide immediate blessings: the biggest blessings usually come from relationships in which you’ve invested a lot of time.”

ADVICE

When asked for advice on what makes a successful business, businessman or entrepreneur, it would come as no surprise that relationships would be at the head of Norman’s list.

Perhaps predictably he notes “it’s the strength and the length of relationships. Because I’ve worked on relationships from the beginning, it’s no accident we still have clients who started with us twenty-five years ago.”

In summary, he adds, “work on your relationships and your business will not only grow, it will last.”

Also Norman cautions to “remember, you don’t only build relationships with your clients, you also have to be conscious of the relationships you have with those you work with, like your staff and tradespeople – anyone who plays a part in your business.”

Then there are the basic fundamentals of success that never change.

“Whether it’s real estate or computers, hard work, honesty and reputation are key ingredients of success,” Norman comments.

Norman’s work ethic was imprinted early in life: “my work ethic was second to none from the beginning. It wasn’t something I learnt, it was who I was: I worked hard.”

Family values provided the next element. “Honesty was another thing that came naturally to me, it was how I was raised and is crucial when building a business.”

Bringing these together creates the whole package according to Norman. “Then when you combine work ethic and honesty, your reputation will take care of itself. If people feel you care they will stay with you. If they feel you don’t care, they’ll leave.

“It’s not something you can fake; you have to be genuine.”