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STRATA | Ace Body Corporate Management
ACE BODY
CORPORATE
MANAGEMENT A leading Australian-owned strata management company
Australian Business Network
STRATA | Ace Body Corporate Management
Ace Body Corporate Management is a household name in the Victorian strata industry and is aiming to be the same Australia wide. The company has an enormous national presence, offering its strata management services to over 60,000 lots in properties across every major state and territory in Australia (besides ACT) and is continuing to grow its portfolio across the board. At the centre of this ongoing growth story is CEO Stephen Raff, who founded Ace in 1995 and has since developed the company from a part time hobby to one of the largest Australianowned strata management firms. Over 20 years later and he remains as enthusiastic as ever about delivering the best possible service to Ace’s vast array of clients in strata communities across the nation.
Australian Business Network
the company has expanded its presence in
Franchising
within the area that they are marketing in
“Over the last 12 months our organic growth
numerous regions in NSW, Queensland and
The franchising model allows Ace’s
and can service the area until the cows come
has been around 15% across Australia and
Victoria.
employees to take up ownership in the
home.”
we have lost very few properties in this time,”
business, which brings a whole host of
Raff reveals. “Overall, our net gain was about
Ace’s growth has been particularly rapid in
benefits to the company and its clients alike,
Therefore, Ace’s recent growth in regional
14%, which is pretty high for the industry.”
Victoria, where it has built up its presence
not least the fact that franchisees essentially
markets can be largely attributed to the
in areas such as Mildura, Bendigo, Ballarat,
emulate the role of a localised shareholder.
additions of new franchisees to local
Breaking down Ace’s business into regional
Geelong, Gippsland and other regions.
markets reveals the impressive level of
branches over the last year. “It’s been very evident that franchising really
consistency in the company’s growth across
The majority of this growth is organic and
appeals to regional areas, and I think that’s
Ace now has 120 franchised areas nationally,
several states and territories. For instance,
driven by Ace’s hugely successful business
because they are geographically located
with many bricks and mortar offices on
model – franchising.
display throughout the country.
STRATA | Ace Body Corporate Management
Australian Business Network
The firm has picked up three new franchisees
Operating in the same region as a client
for the greater Sydney area, adding to the
means franchisees can be on-call to handle
two already active prior to this year. In
any queries or problems which may arise.
addition, two more franchisees joined Ace in Queensland, while Victoria’s regional ranks
Furthermore, as active members of the
have swelled to seven after four more were
community and owners of the business, Ace’s
introduced during the last 12 months.
franchisees are passionate about maintaining the highest level of service, resulting in a very
“The interesting thing is that people often comment saying you must have saturated
satisfied client base.
the market by now, and my response is that
Embracing technology
it will be a long time before we saturate the
Clearly Ace puts a significant degree of
market because with the franchising model,
emphasis on delivering a five-star service,
our service is quite unbeatable,” asserts Raff.
which is achieved through its staff attempting to uphold high standards of communication
Raff believes that the geographical proximity
with their clients.
of Ace’s franchisees to their clients is a crucial contributing factor to the company’s
However, the business cannot remain at
unbeatable service.
the forefront of this burgeoning industry
Resource GlobalNetwork Network Australian Business
STRATA | Ace Body Corporate Management
with these traditional skills alone and is fully
their clients dual access to portals containing
aware of the modernising currents flowing
documents such as AGM minutes, progress
through the strata sector at present.
sheets, insurance details and financials.
Subsequently, over the last few years Ace
Another innovation being trialled by Ace
has embraced a number of new technologies
involves an app used by tradespeople to
which are accelerating its services and
upload live data, including photographs,
creating a more efficient and inclusive
condition reports and other crucial
experience for its clients.
information from the building.
“One of the things we’re starting to do is
The app is then accessed by strata managers
move into video conferencing and tele-
at the other end for them to put work orders
conferencing for AGMs, so clients can now
through.
tune into AGMs from home or at work and vote on ordinary or special resolutions
“A lot of technology is being adopted by
online.”
Ace and we hope that in the next two years we will be leading Australia in terms of
The company has also invested in specialised
technology in the strata industry,” says a
strata software which allows franchisees and
confident Raff.
STRATA | Ace Body Corporate Management
Australian Business Network “The government is now going to institute audits across Australia, but we are encouraging our owner’s corporations to conduct audits to see what type of cladding they have got.” Other safety concerns hanging over the industry include cases of exploding glass and faulty electrical cables imported from abroad and installed into properties across the nation. These safety issues are one of the biggest challenges facing the wider strata community today. Returning to Ace, the company is looking to maintain its current growth levels through continued recruitment of talented franchisees and is aiming to start acquiring
Strata Community Australia
small businesses within franchisee areas, “We have an enormous affiliation with
and clients of various state and national
in order to boost organic growth through
government now and they’ve officially
legislative changes.
referrals.
In addition, Ace gives a more generic update
With the ongoing property development
on new and proposed strata laws at its bi-
boom across Australia, Raff believes the
annual conference.
opportunity to grow the franchisee business
Outside of Ace, Raff continues to hold a
recognised SCA as being the key body for the
presence in Strata Community Australia
industry.”
(SCA) on a national and state level, and is approaching 20 years on the SCA Victorian
However, one of the biggest challenges for
State Board.
all strata management companies remains
is almost unlimited over the next 15 years.
to be keeping up with the rapidly occurring
Safety in strata
His ongoing participation in SCA gives him
changes in legislation relating to strata title
After the fire at the Lacrosse building in
Having risen to the upper echelons of the
great satisfaction in the knowledge that he
properties from state to state.
Melbourne’s Docklands in 2014 and the
national strata industry under Raff, Ace is
recent tragic fire at Grenfell Tower in London,
perfectly positioned to continue its growth
In recent years, Queensland and NSW have
Raff has noted heightened concerns over
story in the coming years.
gone through a phase of significant legislative
safety within shared properties across the
“I get a huge buzz out of being able to
changes in the strata industry, while WA and
country and in the strata industry.
contribute to a fantastic body that liaises
Victoria are also currently in the process of a
with government to change legislation,
wide-scale review of its strata laws.
is part of a united industry moving forward together.
to meet the needs of our owners living
“There has been an enormous amount of pressure put on government in terms of
in communities in strata schemes across
Therefore, to keep its staff and clients
finding out what type of cladding has been
Australia.
firmly in the loop, Ace publishes a monthly
put on buildings.
newsletter which provides updates to staff
Published by Anderson Murray Media Ltd
To tell the business market your story, contact michelle@ausbn.com.au
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