Lifestyle Management, Melbourne

Organisation is her business
Foot in the door, The Age, Saturday September 1, 2007

Getting down to business
Cover Story, City Weekly Magazine, Thursday, 31 August 2006

Concierge with the personal touch
Business Owner, Herald Sun, Thursday, December 1, 2005

More than just running errands
National Australia Bank, Private Banking Magazine, Private Word Article
Summer 2005 Edition

Who you gunna call?
The Age, Sunday April 12, 2009
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If you can't settle the baby, don't know what to wear or are sick of the dog running you ragged, it might be time to bring in Melbourne's problem solvers.

Rachelle Unreich meets some people who can make your life easier.

NICOLLE HRABE, PERSONAL CONCIERGE

The problem You're time poor and wish you could hire someone else to do .. everything.

Who she is With a corporate background, Hrabe often worked 12-plus hours per day, seven days a week and wondered how people got everything done. Almost six years ago she launched her own business to give clients back their time.

What she does Anything you need doing. She has sourced bands for weddings at the last minute, done the final inspection on a country house before settlement and found nannies for working mums. "It's anything from running errands to relocating businesses," says Hrabe.

What she says "When I was working in an office, I knew what people were feeling: stressed and overwhelmed and not having enough 'me' time. I thought that there should be someone out there who can help. I've had clients ringing late at night saying, 'I need a babysitter at five o'clock tomorrow morning,' and we've met those obligations. Recently, a client went to Brazil, and called me six hours before his flight for a satellite phone. I got it to his house in time. We've organised a 50th birthday bash and found housecleaners for people. Some regular clients give me their credit cards, and I'll have to buy things for them."

The price About $50-$100 per hour.

Contact utilize:mytime www.utilizemytime.com.au, 0407 512 585

Organisation is her business
Foot in the door, The Age, Saturday September 1, 2007
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After graduating, I rang, visited and sent off my resume to so many companies and finally landed an eight-month contract as a development coordinator with Very Special Kids (which supports children with life-threatening illnesses). It was fun, fulfilling work; the type that made me realise I could combine giving with earning a living.
I met a manager of the Victoria Titans National Basketball League club on a Very Special Kids family day and was soon offered a job there as operations and events manager, controlling game operations, merchandise, organising company events and some marketing.
Fifteen months later, in mid-2002, the club folded, so I returned to the super industry because it was easy, good money, and stable. After several years working long hours, I was itching for change. I’d lie in bed on Sunday mornings wondering how people do it all - the cleaning, the washing, the errands – when they work so much.
I started really assessing my key skills and thought about the ways I could use my love of organisation, working under pressure and juggling tasks to help others.
I did the eight-week Certificate IV in small business management at the Box Hill Business Enterprise Centre and did some serious research on my business plan, surveying over 200 people in corporate Melbourne. For my efforts, I won the centre’s best business plan award.
Then in 2003, I officially started my business: utilize:mytime. I also volunteered for Meals on Wheels during this period.
I became a member of the International and Concierge Errand Association and now have two women working with me. On any given day, we’ll be asked to organise personal relocations (organising packers, removalists and unpackers); do food, goods or gift shopping; internet research; organise tradespeople; utility hook-ups; coordinate dry cleaning or car services; holiday itineraries; and restaurant or theatre bookings. My key work tool is my phone and PDA, which links to my computer. I also have to know so many codes and use a traditional diary to visualise the spread of what’s on.

Hired Help Gets Down to Business
City Weekly, 31 August 2006
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But these days, employing a gardener, personal stylist, cleaner or dog walker is becoming part of everyday life for many people. And it’s easy to see why: according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics Labour Market report (October 2005), one in five Australians works more than 50 hours a week. That’s a lot of people with very little spare time for chores and errands. Hrabe began her personal concierge service, utilize:mytime, in 2003. The idea for the business came when Hrabe was working long hours, six or seven days a week. “I just couldn’t work out how people got things done,” she says. “It occurred to me that there was a real need out there for personal assistants for people who are time-poor. A lot of people who employ me have an executive PA for work and it’s simply an extension of that to have a PA for home.” Hrabe out sources certain services for her clients (such as finding a reliable gardener or cleaner) and runs some errands herself. Since beginning, the utilize:mytime client list has grown steadily. “Three years ago no one had heard of a personal concierge,” she says. “When I did market research before I started my company I only found one other company in Melbourne doing something similar.” The rapid growth of this service industry was first documented in 2002 when Entrepreneur Magazine ranked concierge and errand service businesses to be among the top 10 start-ups in the US. Since then, the industry has continually grown to what is now estimated to be a $1 billion industry worldwide. The boom in the business comes as no surprise to Hrabe. “Everything these days is so time consuming,” she says. “This morning I was working for one of my clients in Fitzroy. He needed to change some shares over and it took so long, just sitting on the phone. Busy people don’t have time to do that.” One such busy person is Mal Smith, the CEO/Fund Secretary of REI Super. He has hired Hrabe for all sorts of chores over the years, from taking the car to the mechanic to getting his plasma screen fixed when it broke down in the middle of the World Cup. “It’s great to be able to throw someone the house keys or car keys and know that they’re going to get the job done and use a bit of discretion,” he says. “I find it ends up being quite cost effective. You’re better off paying someone to do these things rather than trying to do it yourself. Your free time is just so precious.” A reason often cited for the increase in personal assistant services is that females traditionally stayed at home and did the household chores. With more women opting to maintain a professional career, the need for domestic help is increasing.

It’s a point echoed by Hrabe. “Essentially, people are buying back the time,” she says. “If we have someone come and clean the house, we’ve bought back that time to go shopping with our girlfriends or spend time with our families and to many people, that’s worth a lot.

Concierge with the personal touch
Business Owner, Herald Sun, Thursday, December 1, 2005
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Her company, utilize:mytime, is tapping into the growing personal services market, tailored to busy people who work long hours but don’t get the time to do some of the things they need to do.

On any given day Ms Hrabe might run an errand, carry out food and gift shopping, internet research, post office collections, holiday itineraries or restaurant, cinema and theatre bookings.

In addition to her corporate events role with the Titans, Ms Hrabe had done public relation roles at the Australian Tennis Open, tour guiding at such events as Pentridge Prison and worked in the superannuation industry for a decade as a funds manager. “My skills and knowledge are very diverse from my background experiences, which gives me a great fit for the services that we offer our clients,” she said. “I am passionate about helping other people and making life easier for them.”

Ms Hrabe has dabbled in the industry since 1998 but launched the business in earnest three years ago. She started through word of mouth. “I spoke to more than 200 people when I was doing my initial market research to see if there was a market for people doing bits and pieces,” she said. “The way I see it is that people outsource cleaning and gardening so it is just an extension of doing that.”

On one occasion, Ms Hrabe was asked to track down some prints of birds required by a client starting a new business. In the end she commissioned someone to paint the egret, flamingo and cygnet required.

This week she is helping a client organise Carols by Daylight, at Federation Square, on Saturday. She said the client bought the time for his wife to use but she decided to utilise Ms Hrabe’s event management skills to help with organisation of the event. Ms Hrabe said her professional relationship with her clients varied. Some will use her services for a few hours a week or buy a block of 10 hours and use them over six weeks.

More than just running errands
National Australia Bank - Private Banking Magazine - Private Word Article -Summer 2005 Edition
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