Fletchers

Real Estate Excellence: The “Fletcher’s Way”

A Century of Service, Local Expertise, and Best-Practice Real Estate

Longevity in business is never accidental. To remain relevant for more than a century, a company must continually evolve while staying true to the values that built its reputation in the first place. For Fletchers, one of Australia’s most established real estate groups, that enduring success has been shaped by a unique blend of heritage, professionalism, systemized service, and an unwavering commitment to quality.

Now celebrating 107 years in business, Fletchers has grown from a single office into a respected network spanning 25 offices, with 24 locations across Victoria and one in New South Wales. With around 300 staff, a combination of company-owned and franchise offices, and a long track record of industry recognition, the group continues to stand out in a highly competitive marketplace by doing what it has always aimed to do: deliver best practice in everything.

At the center of that mission is a clear philosophy, a strong internal culture, and a service model known simply as “the Fletchers way.”

A Legacy More Than a Century in the Making

Fletchers traces its roots back to 1919, when the business first began in Kew. In 1939, it moved to Balwyn North, where it has maintained a continuous presence ever since. Later, in the early 1990s, the company established its head office in Surrey Hills, where it continues to operate today.

What makes the company’s history especially notable is not only its age, but its continuity.

“We’re 107 years old this year, which is an incredible accomplishment,” says Bradley Brown, Director and CEO. “And it’s had continuous ownership, inclusive of the Fletchers family, that whole time.”

That continuity has given Fletchers something many companies spend decades trying to build: a deeply embedded identity. Over the years, the business has expanded thoughtfully, growing its office network while maintaining a strong sense of consistency in how it presents itself, trains its people, and serves its clients.

Along the way, Fletchers has also built an impressive record of industry recognition. Among its many achievements, the group was named Best Large Agency in Australia in 2013, becoming the first Victorian agency to receive that honor.

The real estate leader has also won Best Agency in Victoria five times, along with a long list of individual and network awards. More recently, the group was recognized as Best Network Under 40 Offices in the Country, while its Canterbury office earned the title of Best Real Estate Customer Service Agency in Australia.

For Brown, those accolades are not simply symbolic—they are the byproduct of a business built on systems, service, and standards.

Values That Define the Business

At the heart of Fletchers are four longstanding core values: quality service, integrity, commitment, and local knowledge.

For Brown, those values are not abstract statements. They are the foundations of what a real estate company should be.

“Local knowledge means really understanding your local market,” he explains. “Not just the recent sales and the properties on the market, but the schools, churches, public transport, amenities—everything that buyers and renters need to know.”

That knowledge matters in real estate because property decisions are rarely based on the home alone. They are shaped by neighborhoods, lifestyle, convenience, and the confidence that comes from dealing with someone who genuinely understands the area.

Alongside local knowledge sits commitment—both to internal excellence and to the client experience.

“Our commitment is to ourselves, to be the best that we can be, and to our clients, to offer quality service without compromise,” Brown says.

Integrity is equally central. Fletchers places strong emphasis on accountability and transparency, especially when things do not go to plan.

“As our former chairman Tim Fletcher said, ‘You can’t excuse the unexcusable,’” Brown notes. “So when we make a mistake, we own up to it.”

That mindset extends beyond clients and staff to the company’s wider ecosystem of partners and suppliers. In a business where marketing a property can involve dozens of moving parts, Fletchers sees supplier relationships as integral to service delivery, not peripheral to it.

Supplier Relationships Built over Decades

Real estate is often viewed through the lens of agents and clients, but behind every listing is a network of service providers who help bring campaigns to life. Fletcher’s has long recognized that reality and built strong supplier relationships accordingly.

“We work very, very closely with our supplier group,” Brown says. “There may be 20 or 30 different suppliers involved in putting a property on the market with a proper advertising campaign.”

Some of those relationships stretch back decades. Briner, which provides boards to most Fletchers’ offices, is one such longstanding partner. So too is Neo, the company’s print supplier since the 1960s, continuing to support brochures, drops, and campaign materials with the fast turnaround the business requires.

Then there is the National Australia Bank, with whom Fletcher’s has enjoyed one of the longest continuous business relationships in the country.

“We’re either number one or number two in terms of longest-standing clients in Australia for NAB,” Brown says. “I always think that’s pretty amazing.”

Briner Signs is also a long-standing and incredible partner to Fletchers, providing Fletcher offices with their external and internal signage. Briner supplies the company’s sales and rental property boards in all sizes and community boards.

Briner also represents a major supporter of Fletcher’s events throughout the calendar, by making banners and flags for all occasions.

These partnerships reflect Fletcher’s broader philosophy: suppliers are treated as part of the extended Fletcher’s family, and those relationships are nurtured with the same level of respect and consistency the company expects in return.

The Fletcher’s Way

In a crowded real estate market, consistency can be one of the most powerful differentiators. Fletcher’s has built that consistency through a fully integrated service model it calls the Fletchers way.

The Fletcher’s way is more than a slogan. It is a documented, deeply embedded operating system that guides how sales and rental services are delivered across the group—from prospecting and listing presentations to opens, auctions, leasing, maintenance, and long-term client care.

“We developed a fully integrated sales approach and rental approach to servicing our clients,” Brown says. “That outlines every aspect of servicing a client, from prospecting to client for life.”

Every Fletchers team member is trained in these methods, which are supported by a comprehensive internal learning and documentation platform known as Mavim—short for

Managing Amazing Volumes of Information Magnificently.

Mavim houses an extensive library of training materials, recorded sessions, templates, process documents, and operational guides accumulated over decades. Brown says the system is frequently praised not only by staff joining from other brands, but by external training companies and industry peers who are surprised by how comprehensive it is.

When agents and staff follow the ‘Fletchers way’, clients experience a high level of consistency across offices, whether they are attending an open for inspection, sitting through a listing presentation, or engaging with the rental division.

“If you go to Fletchers opens, or Fletchers auctions, you’re going to see a really consistent approach and style across all our offices,” Brown explains.

At the same time, the company allows room for individual flair.

“We work on an 80/20 rule,” he says. “We want our people to follow it 80 percent of the time and use their own uniqueness and creativity for the other 20 percent.”

That balance between systems and individuality is a big part of what has enabled Fletcher’s to scale without losing the local, personal touch that remains essential in real estate.

Training as a Strategic Advantage

If the Fletchers way is the framework, then training is what keeps it alive.

Fletcher’s has invested heavily in professional development for years and sees training not as a support function, but as a strategic pillar of the business. Brown describes the company’s program as among the strongest in the country, and the industry has repeatedly validated that view by shortlisting Fletcher’s for the best real estate training program multiple times.

“We know we’re really quite elite in our training program,” he says.

The company runs a dedicated two-day Fletchers Way course several times a year for new starters, along with refresher sessions known as the Fletchers Way cook’s tour. In addition, training sessions are routinely recorded and made available through Mavim, allowing staff in remote or regional offices to access the same materials as those based closer to the head office.

At any given time, Fletcher’s has a large on-demand library of recorded training available internally, supported by PowerPoints, templates, checklists, and practical reference materials.

This training culture is especially important as Fletchers continues to grow selectively across geographies and needs to ensure that new offices and new hires can quickly align with the brand’s expectations.

Technology Integration Without Chasing Hype

Fletchers is also known for using technology well, though Brown is clear that the company’s approach is disciplined rather than impulsive.

Rather than trying to build proprietary systems in a crowded prop-tech landscape, Fletchers focuses on identifying strong technology partners and integrating the best available platforms into its operations.

“We look for really leading, but not bleeding-edge tech businesses that can support Fletchers,” Brown says.

Over the years, the company has assembled robust tech stacks for both sales and rentals and continues to refine those systems through deeper integrations and API connections. Brown and members of the operations team remain closely involved with key providers, sometimes serving on advisory boards and helping shape product development based on real-world real estate needs.

In several cases, Fletcher’s has helped pioneer platforms now used more broadly across the industry, contributing the practical logic required to make those systems effective for agency operations.

“We’ve helped launch three or four different tech platforms that are used by us and the industry now,” Brown says.

The company is also paying close attention to changing search behavior, including the rise of AI-driven search and the evolving role of Google. Website functionality, digital visibility, and online service experience all remain under constant review as Fletchers works to keep its systems aligned with best practice.

Selective Growth and New Opportunities

While Fletchers has a substantial footprint, Brown says the company remains highly selective about expansion.

“We’re not looking for growth for growth’s sake,” he explains.

Instead, Fletchers looks for quality operators who want to embrace the brand’s systems, service standards, and ways of working—not simply use the Fletcher’s name while operating independently.

That disciplined approach has helped preserve consistency across the network and will continue to shape growth plans in the years ahead. The group sees opportunities to expand into additional municipalities in Victoria, while also remaining open to interstate growth where the right fit exists.

Because the company’s systems, technology, and training infrastructure are already built to support dispersed offices, Fletcher’s is well-positioned to scale without compromising service standards.

“Whether you’re in Ballarat or Wollongong or somewhere else, it’s really the same experience,” Brown says.

Multi-Channel Marketing in a Changing Landscape

Like every modern agency, Fletcher’s has seen the marketing side of real estate change dramatically over time. What was once a relatively narrow set of advertising channels has expanded into a complex, multi-platform environment where visibility must be managed across print, portals, social media, search, video, and culturally specific channels.

For Fletchers, the principle remains the same even as the channels multiply: prepare the property to the highest standard possible, then create a broad, targeted campaign to maximize buyer interest and competition.

“Our goal with every property is to create a multi-channel marketing approach to capture as many potential buyers as possible, both active and passive,” Brown says.

That may include Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, WeChat, TikTok, Little Red Book, and traditional print materials, depending on the audience and the nature of the property. The challenge, Brown notes, is not only to stay current but to do so in a way that remains cost-effective for clients.

A Legacy of Leadership

For Brown, the future of Fletchers is about more than expansion, systems, or market share. It is also about leadership—developing it, distributing it, and ensuring it continues long after any one executive has moved on.

He has personally championed a 13-week leadership development program run every two years, open to Fletcher’s staff and, at times, supplier partners as well. The program is designed to build what Brown calls “leadership quotient” throughout the organization.

“My goal is to create as much leadership quotient within Fletcher’s as possible,” he says. “I don’t want just our leadership team to think leadership. I want everybody who works there to think about leadership.”

That belief speaks to the company’s broader culture. Leadership, in Brown’s view, is not confined to titles. It shows up in initiative, care, service, problem-solving, and a willingness to take responsibility for outcomes.

When asked about the legacy he hopes to leave, his answer is immediate and deeply aligned with the company’s long-term philosophy.

“My legacy is to have as many good leaders as possible at Fletchers,” he says.

“So when I do move off into the sunset, there are plenty of people there to continue this incredible brand.”

For a company with 107 years of history behind it, a focus on the next generation may be the clearest sign of why Fletcher’s has endured—and why it is so well positioned for the future.

AT A GLANCE

Who: Fletchers

What: A legacy real estate company with more than a century of expertise behind it

Where: Melbourne, Australia

Website: www.fletchers.net.au

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