Professionals Real Estate 
John McGarry, the principal of one of South Australia’s largest LJ Hooker offices, has joined Australia’s fastest growing real estate network, Professionals, in a move inspired by a post-pandemic business review to set his business up for future growth.
Mr McGarry has operated as LJ Hooker Fleurieu for the past 22 years, with offices at Aldinga and Seaford in Adelaide’s coastal south. The new office will be known as Professionals Aldinga & Seaford.
His decision to join Professionals was a sea-change moment that coincided with a review of the business after a long run of success in his local market.
“COVID has caused us to look at a lot of things differently, including our business, and that has driven my decision to join Professionals,” said Mr McGarry.
“We’ve had a really long-term connection with the Hooker brand, but it just came time for us to look at what we were doing and where we were heading going forward.”
Mr McGarry’s office was started by his father-in-law in 1979, and the rebranding to Professionals will mark the end of its 42-year connection with the Hooker brand. Mr McGarry acquired the office 22 years ago and he concedes he has never looked to change until now.
“I was quite happy where I was at, but it’s only on the back of COVID that we started looking at aspects of our business – and one thing led to another,” said Mr McGarry.
“We’ve been reasonably successful for a long period of time, but under the franchise model you tend to pay for success. We were drawn to the Professionals because of their not-for-profit network structure.”
Professionals Aldinga & Seaford will operate from its existing two offices, at 80 Aldinga Beach Road in Aldinga and at 3/1 Main Street in Seaford.
With two offices, Mr McGarry is looking froward to a more localised approach to marketing afforded by the Professionals network.
“I have only good things to say about LJ Hooker from my experience, but from a purely business point of view, as a Professionals office, I can reinvest money from my business back into my local market, into the community through sponsorships and the like,” said Mr McGarry. “That’s hugely important for us to grow the business further.”
Professionals Aldinga & Seaford has a team of 12 across its two offices with plans to grow this number further under the Professionals banner.
The Professionals real estate network operates on a lower-cost membership system rather than a franchise, while still providing members with a comprehensive suite of tools and support services for their businesses. Established more than 40 years ago in Queensland, Professionals have expanded Into New Zealand, Fiji and Papua New Guinea, and now boasts a network that comprises more than 225 offices.
Professionals Aldinga & Seaford officially opened on July 12.
