Meet Grant Samuel, the Kay & Burton partner who used to work for Eddie McGuire

Grant Samuel, a partner at Kay & Burton, came to real estate at the relatively late age of 37 but this passionate family man and fitness fan says all his career steps – including working for Eddie McGuire – have led him here, and that it’s the working relationships that he loves the most.

Have you always lived in Melbourne?

We lived in London, my wife and I. Toni and I got married in 2004 and went to live in London for two and a half years. It was in between the marriage and kids’ phase. We lived in the Notting Hill area. My background is more in marketing and I worked on government campaigns. We look back on it now as the best time in our lives.

You are now 41, what were you like at 21?

I was much like I am now. I’ve always been a diligent person. I was straight out of uni and into work. I had an interview with Eddie McGuire’s McGuire Media in the morning and started that afternoon.

Did Eddie give you a job on the spot or had he met you before?

I had had a couple of interviews before – I think he saw someone who wanted to give it a go. I worked at the AFL for two years during uni and I didn’t take an income. For me to be able to work at the AFL, it was a privilege. I’ve always loved my sport and I knew it would help me out later.

 What did you learn from Eddie?

He was an extremely fair and generous person. He was also hard and knew what he wanted. Some of that resonated with me.

What has been the most challenging part of switching careers in your late 30s?

To build the trust of vendors. You’re coming into it late – the longer you’ve been in it, the more deals you’ve done. But you build the trust slowly and those relationships develop.

What has surprised you the most about real estate?

What amazes me is how much vendors confide in us. They confide so much about their marital status, financial situation, family issues – things they haven’t even told their families, friends or siblings. That has surprised me.

Property and real estate can be time eaters – what other passions do you have time for?

My main focus is the kids – I’m a family man. But I’m also passionate about fitness. I do Cross Fit and I also read a lot. Particularly in the past 12 months, I’d get to bed and find my brain would be going a million miles an hour, so now I read. I’ve always read the newspapers but now I’m reading mostly autobiographies. The best one I’ve read is by Phil Knight, the guy who founded Nike. I like reading about interesting people. I flick through the Kindle and find the next big thing.

What has been the most challenging period in your life?

Probably the first four months of our second child’s life. She just didn’t sleep. We have Olivia, 10, and Jasmine, 7. For the past decade, they were my absolute world. Then Toni and I had Charlie, seven months ago, a boy. When we told the girls that we were going to have a baby boy – I videoed them. We sat them down and said “We’re going to have a baby and the baby is a boy.” They both cried.

With happiness?

No, not with happiness. They were not happy at all that it was a boy. Now, they’re absolutely besotted with him.