A shared philosophy on the direction of the real estate industry has seen the merger of two top brands with the acquisition of Gold Coast firm M-Motion by Queensland Sotheby’s International last week.

Queensland Sotheby’s International Realty CEO Paul Arthur said the addition of M-Motion would be a “wonderful complement to the existing enterprise”.

“We are genuinely excited about what this does for Queensland Sotheby’s. The M-Motion culture is a perfect fit for our business,” Mr Arthur said.

He said the Main Beach office of Queensland Sotheby’s International had been operating for 12 months and over this time Mr Arthur and M-Motion founder and CEO Michael Mahon had been in discussions.

“I really like the ethos that M-Motion has. It’s a privately held boutique agency that also wanted to have a very different speak and way of practising real estate,” Mr Arthur said.

“The way Michael has mentored, coached and groomed his team has created something very special. They have a much more consultative and pragmatic approach to sellers’ and buyers’ requirements than many other real estate agencies.

“I like that because it very much fits with what Sotheby’s is all about and our brand – we’re not a brand about high pressure but about finding real solutions for buyers and sellers.

“M-Motion were certainly doing some unique and creative style of marketing and media too in the way they prepared properties for markets, their property booklets and the way they would package their marketing leading to highly-successful outcomes.”

The acquisition took place last week (Monday, September 18, 2017) with a rebranding and all M-Motion’s nine staff moving into the Sotheby’s Main Beach office.

Mr Mahon has taken on an executive position as director of sales.

“Having Michael on board with his wealth and depth of talent is fantastic for our brand,” Mr Arthur said.

“Both Michael and I are very excited of the prospects for the combined team. It’s going to be fantastic to continue to grow and develop with such quality talent. With the addition of the M-Motion staff it takes the head count at our Main Beach office to 27.”

He said the acquisition also meant Sotheby’s acquired M-Motion’s rent role which would be the “springboard to launch our offering in property management. It’s a great addition to our core offering.”

Mr Mahon described the merger as “very positive” saying it would create a “formidable force in the Gold Coast property market”.

“Myself and Paul have known each other for a couple of years. We realised we shared a philosophy as to where the real estate industry is going and how agencies need to evolve to remain on the cutting edge and provide great value to the clients,” Mr Mahon said.

“It is this shared ethos that underpinned the idea of a merger. It was originally touted about six to eight months ago and it just made sense in so many perspectives.”

He said while letting go of the M-Motion brand on a personal level was difficult, joining the Sotheby’s brand had many advantages, not just for his team but also their clients.

“There is literally not another real estate brand on the Gold Coast that I would have considered aligning myself with,” he said.

“Having been in the real estate space for about 19 years, I can genuinely say that I have been impressed with the Sotheby’s infrastructure, their networks and their reach both at an interstate and international level.

“We share a philosophy of client representation and going the extra length to make sure we are not a cookie cutter agency – every client is dealt with as an individual.

“Both myself and Paul are looking forward to creating a new standard of real estate representation on the Gold Coast – and it will be a standard that traditional agents will find difficult to compete with.

“The Sotheby’s family have welcomed myself and the team with open arms and moving forward there is no doubt we will have a significant impact on the Gold Coast property market”, he said.