Tradewinds Realty: Sharing Nova Scotia with the World

NOTE: The following feature story was written by Amy Spurway for the Nova Scotia "Come to life" initiative. "Come to life" is a public-private sector initiative that markets Nova Scotia as an excellent place in which to live, work, invest, play and visit.

Like so many remarkable ideas, the origin of Tim Harris' business can be traced back to the fine Nova Scotia tradition of meeting up with a friend to share a beverage and shoot the breeze. That's essentially how Tradewinds Realty began.

After an eight-year stint in the High Arctic working in construction engineering, Harris, broker and president of Tradewinds, found himself back home in Chester on what was supposed to be a ten-day vacation. But when the boss called asking him to return to the Arctic early, he had already realized that he needed to "re-root" himself in Nova Scotia. He told his boss, "No, I'm not going back. I'm home. I'm done."

With no concrete contingency plan, Harris decided to act on a suggestion that emerged over a casual conversation and a beer with a friend: He got into real estate. Within three years, Tim Harris was at the helm of his own real estate company.

Today, Tradewinds Realty Inc., is home to more than 40 agents in six offices around the province, a seventh scheduled to open in metro Halifax in the late spring of 2009, and sales affiliates in England and Costa Rica. The company generated over $75-million in sales in 2007 and two years earlier, Tradewinds was awarded the prestigious Bentley International Property Award for Best Canadian Real Estate Agency.

From the start, Harris was keen on using technology to adapt his business to the challenges of the real estate market provincially, nationally and internationally.

The Tradewinds website, SeaNovaScotia.com, separates his company from traditional real estate companies by harnessing the marketing and communications power of the Internet, and working with the notion of 'local knowledge, global reach.'

Those looking to buy their own little piece of paradise can view over 700 virtual listings, get answers to any questions they might have about life in Nova Scotia, watch live webcam feeds from a number of picturesque vantage points, and read the down-to-earth, personal profiles of each Tradewinds agent, all online.

Tradewinds also successfully strikes that essential balance between freedom and support for its staff. It effortlessly blends modern technology with traditional friendliness for its clients.

The agents, have their own unique and sophisticated intranet site, i.Tradewinds.com. It allows them to live and work anywhere in the province, without local office support, while still remaining connected to the company and to their clients. Potential clients can contact agents directly, and each agent is free to let their personal identity shine through.

"My salespeople have the reins. They're in control of their own image, and how they brand themselves," Harris happily admits. "And the website does everything for our agents, so they can conduct their business from anywhere."

Tradewinds is constantly expanding its reach and drawing more attention to all that Nova Scotia has to offer. "We've expanded because our client base has asked us to." That client base is growing steadily within Nova Scotia, but also abroad. Tradewinds' London office is seeing an increase in business, and Harris notes that the integration into Nova Scotia is seamless for those coming from the United Kingdom.

The familiar comfort of Nova Scotia's culture and climate, easily-accessible air travel, and affordable property in a place with one twenty-fifth the population density of England, is quickly making Nova Scotia an appealing option for folks across the pond. As Harris points out, when these international buyers go looking for a new place to call home, "It's not hard to choose Nova Scotia."

Harris himself is an example of why living and doing business in Nova Scotia is not a hard choice to make. He lives just two doors away from his office. He is an avid sailor, and despite the 24/7 nature of the real estate business, he makes a point of escaping to the water every chance he gets.

In 2003, he entered the Executive MBA program at Saint Mary's University, and graduated two years later. "I was able to earn a world class MBA just an hour from my home, and it helped my business immensely. We're so lucky to have access to that kind of education here," he says.

The decision to stay in Nova Scotia, and to pursue a line of work that ultimately helps others make their home here has paid off for everyone involved with Tradewinds.

Harris credits Nova Scotia with providing the opportunities he needed to build his company and his life here, and he does not hesitate to express his appreciation, saying, "My people, my education, my business, my success. It’s all Nova Scotia."

And through Tradewinds Realty, Tim Harris is sharing Nova Scotia with the world.