“I have always harboured a strong passion for justice and fairness and for being treated with respect.”
Having been unsuccessful at securing permanent employment in a contracted economy, Véronique Lutchmaya of Unique Tenants Consult realised that she had to pivot from the accounting and human resources management sectors, which she had enjoyed working in.
Véronique shares, “It was a very sobering time as I came face to face with various forms of ageism at play. However, I was confident that I had acquired the transferable skills set and professional work ethics to take the leap and found my business.”
Véronique had always harboured a strong passion for justice and fairness and for being treated with respect. Véronique believes that every single person has an innate worth that deserves respect. As a tenant, Véronique has been on the receiving end of unprofessional and unethical customer service in the rental landscape. Despite reaching out to consumer rights advocates and the residential tenancies regulatory body on several occasions whilst experiencing countless stressful rental grievances, Véronique realised that there was no organisation that could assist her with the services that she needed.
Following her in-depth market research about tenants’ frustrations with their rental relationships, Véronique’s burning desire to assist residential tenants resolve their grievances and to empower them with accurate rental knowledge, grew stronger, with the aim to create a meaningful, enduring impact in the residential property management market, to help shape a professional, respectful, symmetrical environment in which tenants are perceived and treated as key stakeholders so that they can enjoy living in their rental homes.
Now, at Unique Tenants Consult, Véronique helps frustrated and distressed residential tenants reclaim their dignity and respect in their relationship with property managers/licensees. Her services include advisory, advocacy, educational and bookkeeping support to empower renters to negotiate confidently with their agents.
“The HerBusiness Network provides connection and relationship-building amongst members that provides a safe and conducive climate for accelerated learning”
Véronique has been a member of the HerBusiness Network since 2020, and is an active member of the community, attending events and programs over the years, including the recent Leadership Lab 4-week program.
Véronique strives to surround herself with positive and successful women entrepreneurs, and HerBusiness’s supportive culture gives her invaluable momentum for her personal and professional growth.
Véronique says about the Network, “It is a truly professional, world-class, resourceful and nurturing community to be associated with, which facilitates access to a wide pool of knowledge, skills, courses, training and education in a very dynamic and supportive environment. The collaborative culture and the focus on connection and harnessing relationship-building amongst members provide a safe and conducive climate for accelerated learning. The warmth and eagerness of peer female entrepreneurs to problem-solve and offer suggestions is priceless. I love the approach to networking and I am always excited about learning, sharing, helping, brainstorming with like-minded business women so we can grow, personally and professionally and achieve our respective strategic objectives.”
Who’s your favourite entrepreneur and why?
I have absolute respect and admiration for all female entrepreneurs who have conquered economic and societal challenges especially in patriarchal systems and in under-developed countries. So, I cannot possibly single one out.
Why did you start your business and what gave you the idea?
My reasons for starting my business are two-fold…
- Having been unsuccessful at securing permanent employment for five years in a contracted economy, I realised that I had to pivot from the accounting and human resources management sectors which I had enjoyed working in. It was a very sobering time as I came face to face with various forms of ageism at play. However, I was confident that I had acquired the transferable skills set and professional work ethics to take the leap and found my business.
- I have always harboured a strong passion for justice and fairness and for being treated with respect. I believe that every single person has an innate worth which deserves respect. As a tenant, I have been on the receiving end of unprofessional and unethical customer service in the rental landscape. Despite reaching out to consumer rights advocates and the residential tenancies regulatory body on several occasions whilst I was experiencing countless stressful rental grievances, I realised that there was no organisation that could assist me with the services that I needed. Following my in-depth market research about tenants’ frustrations with their rental relationships, my burning desire to assist residential tenants resolve their grievances and to empower them with accurate rental knowledge, grew stronger. My aim is to create a meaningful, enduring impact in the residential property management market, to help shape a professional, respectful, symmetrical environment in which tenants are perceived and treated as key stakeholders so that they can enjoy living in their rental homes.
What do you enjoy most about running your own business?
First and foremost, I fully appreciate the flexibility aspect of running my small home-based business. As a solopreneur, work-life balance is somewhat unachievable but I have learnt to set boundaries which enable me to prioritise personal and family commitments. Whilst being disciplined about working a predetermined number of hours every day, I love having the discretion of working when it suits me.
Having control of operational and strategic decisions and infusing my brand with my personal core values underpin the customer-centric support that I provide to my clients.
What three pieces of advice do you wish you’d been given when you started?
- Prior to launching your business, ensure that you have a financial nest egg to support you for, at least, the first six months.
- If you plan on having a website, also plan to have the funds to pay for it to be developed by professional consultants (technical and copywriting.) Time is money so don’t spend your scarce resource doing it if it is not your area of expertise.
- Put your big girls’ pants on and network, network, network from Day #1. Show up to increase your and your brand’s visibility.
What advice would YOU give someone thinking about starting a business?
- Invest in your self-education, make professional development a priority, develop a thirst for lifelong learning.
- Surround yourself with positive, like-minded, successful people who lift you up.
- Make time for your self-care practices, schedule holidays and regular catchups with family and friends.
What skills and knowledge areas would you recommend those starting out in business get acquainted with quickly?
- Perfect your communication and interaction skills – listen actively, empathise, connect.
- Learn and harness your emotional intelligence attributes.
- Become an expert in your product/service industry – study, read, subscribe to relevant newsletters, attend relevant seminars/webinars. Be so good at what you do that they can’t take their eyes off you.
What does your IDEAL business look like? Even if you’re not there yet, what would it look like if your business was ideal?
In my ideal business, I will identify several income streams from a suite of services that I will provide.
I will be a sought-after renters’ consultant and advocate to deliver in-person workshops to several segments of tenants’ cohort i.e. Year 11 and Year 12 students, tenants support employees at community housing providers.
I will have a seat at the table of residential legislation and policy decision-makers.
What problem does being a Member of the HerBusiness Network solve for you and your business? And, how?
The HerBusiness Network is a truly professional, world-class, resourceful and nurturing community to be associated with. The network is similar to a ‘one-stop-shop’ which facilitates access to a wide pool of knowledge, skills, courses, training and education in a very dynamic and supportive environment. The collaborative culture and the focus on connection and harnessing relationship-building amongst members provide a safe and conducive climate for accelerated learning. The warmth and eagerness of peer female entrepreneurs to problem-solve and offer suggestions is priceless. I love the approach to networking and I am always excited about learning, sharing, helping, brainstorming with like-minded business women so we can grow, personally and professionally and achieve our respective strategic objectives.
Under the progressive leadership of Suzi Dafnis, the culture of the network is very embracing and removes the feeling of isolation that I experience as a solopreneur.
I’ve always endeavoured to associate with reputable and prominent organisations. Surrounding myself with positive and successful women entrepreneurs in HerBusiness’ supportive culture gives me invaluable momentum for my personal and professional growth.
I feel very privileged and blessed to be a member of HerBusiness.
Learn more about Véronique and Unique Tenants Consult.
