“I thought I was only ever going to be a mum” that’s the words of estate agency business owner Katrina Knowles from Scotland. Katrina is one of one hundred and twenty women who in the last two years have taken the step to business ownership, entrepreneurialism and wealth building through the real estate industry. Katrina, 54, launched her business during the COVID pandemic in 2020 following a chance meeting with another local estate agency business owner – who shared the opportunity offered by Keller William’s in the UK. Keller William’s who have been announced for the second consecutive year as one of the top female-friendly companies to be a part of worldwide.

Katrina is one of the women within the UK franchise group running and building their own estate agency businesses, she recently celebrated the win of four separate awards recognising highest gross commission generated through her sales. Having launched her business following a career in Early Years Childcare and Education Katrina has been supported to offer her clients a personalised property service which challenges the ‘corporate model’ of estate agency. Katrina describes the Keller William’s franchise as ‘a business in a box, which doesn’t put you in a box’. Later this year Katrina is proud to have her daughter Bianca joining the business as a Director looking after the operational and back-office systems, who has recently given birth to her first son.

Moving further down south Tanya Baker, aged 29, launched her own business ‘Tanya Baker -- Bespoke Estate Agent’ in August 2021. This followed a career which began in retail and customer service before pivoting into residential lettings initially in 2012 before she settled into the industry in 2015. Tanya who lives in Kent with her partner and four dogs, thrives through the ‘people driven role’ which she finds estate agency to be. Tanya’s business supports both those looking to buy and sell as well as landlords and tenants across London. During her first seventeen months Tanya shares “my biggest challenge has been struggling with imposter syndrome, I am my own biggest critic. Running your own business can at times be mentally challenging, it is a rollercoaster one day to the next however that is why I love being backed by Keller. I know I have people around me who understand, can listen, and more importantly empower me to keep going and overcome any challenges I face”. Tanya recently hit the headlines thanks to her internet success through social media platform TikTok with one video having received an impressive 1.7million views and 323,000 likes.

Having started her professional and personal life in Russia, Nataliya Makhonina-Byrdan, made the decision to bring her already established business ‘UK Property Advisors’ (UKPA) into the Keller William’s UK network in February 2020 – following a four-year period of trading. Nataliya began her career working within account management and business development roles in financial services before latterly transferring her strong people-focused skillset to the property industry in 2015, six years after moving to London. During her initial role as Head of Business Development for an international consultancy business who supported high net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals as well as their families with investment strategy, property management and support with tax planning as well as immigration support. Combining her experiences Nataliya identified a clear opportunity to launch UKPA as a boutique estate agency providing a personalised service for HNW and UHNW clients in regard to residential property sales and acquisitions, property sourcing, lettings, and management. During her three-year period with Keller William’s Nataliya has quickly transformed her business, using the franchisor's models to build her team, grow her profit margins, and deliver exceptional service to clients.

Working with clients and their families across Kensington, Belgravia, Knightsbridge and central London – as well as representing international clients from Europe, USA, Asia, and the Middle East; Nataliya has firmly established herself as a trusted adviser to her clients. This is seen through her continued success recognition through KWUK’s quarterly awards. Three years in - Nataliya reflects “Joining Keller Williams has been a critical step in the development and success of my business. Leveraging the tools, systems, and advice available to me has seen unprecedented growth – whilst allowing me to focus on the areas of the business I enjoy and thrive in. As a woman, I recognise it can be particularly challenging to make a change such as launching your own business – however I would encourage anyone, male or female, to consider who they want to be in life?”. She continues “by asking that simple question, one can then consider the areas where they need to make changes, the knowledge they need to learn and research the next steps. Once you have firmly identified your vision – it is time to articulate it to those around you and take the first step to leading the life you’ve dreamed of.”

Keller William’s is the world’s fastest growing estate agency, having just recently launched new offices in both Germany and Japan. Within the UK, the business is pushing continually to improve the standards of service and expectations for customers – through the training and development of estate agents across the country. At the start of quarter one KWUK proudly recognised that 30% of their top agents nationwide are female, a statistic which they are working to increase yet again. With localised market centres providing ongoing in-person support, the franchise invites individuals to consider if they too would like to lead a life by their own design?

You can learn more and organise an initial discovery session by visiting kwuk.com/careers.


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