We recently connected with Kimberly Epps and have shared our conversation below.

Kimberly , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?

I am so glad that this was a question for this interview. Being a business owner is a 24/7 job that sometimes I wish I could just clock out of. Some of the main issues that arise in my field don’t typically happen during normal business hours. I manage all of the housing needs for productions as well as private investment properties for over 30 investors in various states and countries. Needless to say, work never stops.

Working non-stop is second nature to me, but some days I feel like if I had a regular 9-5, I could leave work everyday and it wouldn’t follow me home. I remember vividly being in my hospital bed breastfeeding my newborn son and sending work emails and updating spreadsheets. I felt at that moment, that I had no choice but to keep working because now I have two kids to take care of.

Fast forward to 2 years later, it seems as if things always go a bit crazy when I am in the middle of spending time with my kids, and I feel like I set the wrong tone with my work life balance early on.

Since then, I have made a conscience effort to not let my job ( and my phone) take me away from being present with my children when we are together. However, some days that is not the case and I have to make myself available.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

You know, as my portfolio has grown – I must admit that I have struggled with my “Official Title” so to speak. I guess the key phrase is that I am a Real Estate Professional. My company is The Epps & Aubrey Group, and we manage private investment properties ranging from single /multi and commercial properties. I also manage all housing for T.V & Film Productions. I think what sets what I do apart from others is that I have yet to identify with another company that handles such a broad range of Real Estate in Atlanta.

What I am most proud of, is that I get to work with an amazing people on a daily basis. My office is on the lot of Areu Bros. Studios and I am a big movie buff. so working with Directors and some of my favorite actors while they’re in ATL filming is a dope experience that has opened up the doors for me to privately manage some celebrities homes as well.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

This past summer was an eye opener for me with my company. I learned a lot of lessons personally and professionally. As a business owner, I believe that it is vital to be able to identify when it is necessary to pivot. My professional pivot was to move away from handling large acquisition’s for corporate clients. I made the conscience effort for this to no longer be a part of my business model because corporate clients are just out of touch with their investments and do not get the importance of actually being hands on with their properties. Not to mention, I was working non-stop and my anxiety from the work load kept me from sleeping.

The only thing that gave me hesitation on not wanting to end this service as a part of my company was the large amount of money I made off of acquisition consulting however; my stress level and peace of mind definitely shifted once I let that part of the industry go. No amount of money is worth my peace of mind.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

The Real Estate industry in Atlanta is very small, so making a name for yourself whether good or bad is fairly easy. Most, if not all of my new clients are all referrals. That in itself speaks volumes about my company reputation. What helped with me building a solid brand in the industry has been Gods Favor, and my sphere of infulential contacts that I have built throughout the years.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.Theeppsaubreygroup.com
• Linkedin: KimberlyEpps

Image Credits
Miriam Phields for photo in red dress.