Let’s take a closer look at the man behind the moniker. From paper rounds and pancake parlours to selling some of Victoria’s finest homes. This is the story of one of Melbourne real estate’s most prominent (and well-liked!) faces.

This is Gary Peer – as you’ve never known him before.

 

‘The man in the middle’: Gary’s early Elsternwick experiences

Born and bred in Elsternwick, Gary’s always been a local boy.

Growing up in southeast Melbourne in the ‘60s and ‘70s, he was surrounded by people from different countries and backgrounds: from all walks of life.

Even the dynamics of his own family gave young Gary a healthy respect for diversity. And a canniness for getting on the same page with a wide range of people – with deeply contrasting sets of views.

“I had parents with very different outlooks,” he explains, “with their own priorities and political biases. My mother was a very sharp and keen businesswoman: astute and tough. My father was an academic: a left-leaning engineer with a strong social conscience. I was the man in the middle!

“That exposed me to different views. It allowed me to see both sides of the story. And understand that, while we may not always agree with the points of view of others, we should always try to understand where they’re coming from.”

It was an outlook that would set him up for success.

 

No smoke without fire: A friendship (and a restaurant) ignites

At the age of 12, Gary sat on a crowded bus, ready to depart for summer camp. Only the seat next to him remained empty, until fate filled it – when a boy named Phillip plonked himself down.

Three hours later, the two were best mates, and – though the camp lasted mere days – the friendship would last a lifetime.

“Phillip and I connected well because neither of us felt we belonged to the ‘gang’: we didn’t fit in with any particular crowd. We both felt like outsiders in many ways, and saw individuality in each other – a reticence to be like everybody else.”

Facing their teenage years together as the ‘70s rolled into the ‘80s, Gary and Phillip shared jobs: working at the market on weekends, and as waiters at the local pancake parlour. (That was, at least, until Phillip overloaded the fireplace – smoking out the restaurant, enraging the boss, and earning both lads their marching orders.)

“We’ve worked in different ways and capacities together. We’ve laughed together. And, while we’ve had our challenges in business, we’ve had very few challenges with each other as friends.”

 

 

A date with destiny, and a brochure: Gary finds his career

A self-confessed “awful student”, Gary has always felt more comfortable working than studying.

Lacking the passion and patience for academia, his 15-year-old self preferred hitting the streets on his paper round to hitting the books.

Then one day, Gary’s mother brought home a real estate brochure. And as Gary sat – poring through the pages, transfixed – destiny dawned.

“I said ‘that’s exactly what I want to do. It’s perfect’. I knew I’d found my career. From that point, I’d take the property section in the paper to read on the school bus.

“To this day, I still count myself so lucky to have parents that understood me, and what I was likely to be good at. To fall into what I loved early – and to have remained in love with it.”

 

‘What do you know when you’re 23?’: A business blossoms

Fast-forward to 1986, and Gary and Phillip – armed with no regular income, no external funding, and a lifetime ban at The Pancake Parlour – established their first office on Orrong Road.

“We took an each-way bet,” Gary chuckles. “We opened shop on the corner of four suburbs – Caulfield, Armadale, Prahran and St Kilda – with the hope that at least one of them would like us!”

All did. And these days, Gary Peer & Associates employs almost 200 people. But back in ‘86, it was only Gary, Phillip, and a part-time receptionist.

“We didn’t know how we’d go, really. We were 23. What do you know when you’re 23?

“But we were hungry to work, and to do good work: to provide an excellent customer experience. And we could see there was an opportunity, in the real estate space, to go above and beyond in a way that others weren’t.”

 

 

Gary Peer & Associates: Telling the stories of its people

Over 25 years later, Gary Peer & Associates is one of Melbourne’s leading independent real estate businesses.

So, what keeps Gary going? What gets him out of bed in the morning?

It’s the people.

“My story’s been told – but the stories of our people haven’t. I have an almost paternal approach to the people we work with. It’s fantastic to see where they’re at; to help them grow. I love seeing them progress and succeed.

“It’s not about me, or Phillip, but our people. Where do they want to go? That’s the interesting story!”

 

 

Want to read this article in its entirety? Find out where Gary’s unquenchable desire for good customer service takes him – from Sydney to Singapore to San Francisco. And get his responses to the big questions.

What are his three key ingredients to success? What’s it like working with his son? And what does the future hold for Gary – and Gary Peer & Associates?

Get your hands on a copy of January’s issue of The Peer Review to find out.