Mother's Day will be extra special for Phoebe Croucher and Jan Livingston this year.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It will be a celebration of four months in business for the mother daughter duo and Ms Croucher's first Mother's Day with her 10-month-old daughter Tilly.
Ms Livingston and Ms Croucher started their business Smuk Property Styling together in January after talking with a friend who was selling her house about demand for property styling in Ballarat.
"We wanted to do something together and it was a great opportunity with Tilly," Ms Livingston said.
For Ms Livingston who has worked in nursing and medical administration and Ms Croucher who is trained in exercise science and hairdressing, property styling is a new venture.
It is bringing together their love of interior design and Ms Croucher's long-held desire to run her own business. The pair have now purchased enough furniture to style five houses at a time.
"The response from real estate agents has been really good and they are now referring people who are selling their house but might not have any furniture in it," Ms Croucher said.
"We come in and furnish the whole place. The furniture stays there for five weeks while they take photos and sell the house."
Ms Croucher, who returned to Ballarat after living in Hong Kong for 18 months in October, said starting the business had created a stronger relationship with her mum.
"I feel like it has brought us closer together," she said.
"I never thought I would go into business with my mum. We are working well together. We each have our strengths... and I think being family you can be totally honest."
Running Smuk Property Styling is a family affair.
Ms Livingston and Ms Croucher's husbands both help out as removalists and some of the business's home-ware and furniture is sourced from Ms Livingston's sister who owns Wen and Ware. Ms Croucher's brother and sister-in-law who live in Norway helped come up with the name for the business when they were visiting Ballarat. The word smuk is Danish for beautiful.
Ms Livingston, Ms Croucher and extended family will celebrate Mother's Day with a picnic at Kirk's Reservoir.