It was back in the UK at age 16 when Rebecca Tomic (pictured) first got a taste of what it’s like working at an insurance brokerage. Now, many moons later in Australia, Tomic is finally running her very own broking business – a long-time aspiration that became a reality when Insure Gold Coast Pty Ltd began trading this month.
Speaking with Insurance Business, Tomic shared where she aims to take the Community Broker Network corporate authorised representative and why it’s a case of ‘quality over quantity’ for the principal broker.
“My plan, from a growth perspective, would be to take an admin person at some point during the first 12 months, and then possibly grow to having two brokers and an admin after that,” she said.
“I don’t want to grow massive, to be honest. I don’t want to end up being in a position where I’m just managing staff and not being a broker [myself].”
After all, it’s the work of the insurance broker that has kept Tomic in the industry for the past 17 years – over six of which were spent visualising her own firm.
“I’m one of those weird people that love insurance,” stated the stalwart, who is now back in full swing, career-wise, after working on a part-time basis to spend “that beautiful time” with her three-year-old daughter. “I really do love my job.
“I think it’s the relationship building and being there when someone’s having their worst possible thing happen. If you’ve got that relationship and you’ve advised the client properly and they’ve got everything covered, you can [at claim time] swoop in and save the day and everything’s going to be fine. I think that side of it is just so rewarding.”
Currently Tomic is busy with her top 10 clients, who she brought along with her through a formal and amicable agreement with her previous company.
She told Insurance Business: “I think one of the key things is to give yourself a portfolio of clients that you can service to the full potential. You have to be careful to find where you want to place yourself in the market and not end up having to take on lots of stuff and then not reaching your own goals.
“The key for me is to keep it at a level where I feel like I can give the best possible service. Then as that grows, and if I take on another broker down the track, I would still want to cap it. It’s nice to be able to take that step back and go, ‘OK, this is how I want to look after my customers’. It’s exciting.”
A member of the “1% for the Planet” global network and a proud volunteer for child protection organisation Bravehearts, the new brokerage will mainly focus on clients in the Gold Coast and Northern New South Wales. Tomic is donating a portion of every Insure Gold Coast policy to Bravehearts.
