Heather Smith Commercial, a niche, London-based property agency specialising in business community asset management, may be celebrating its 15-year anniversary, but its founder insists there is "still so much to do".

Heather Smith set up HSC after 12 years working as an office agent in the South East and Thames Valley market, three of which were spent as a Knight Frank partner.

Her firm, launched in 2009, started with disposals and acquisitions across London and the South East, with Smith working initially with clients who were keen to continue to rely on her expertise.

Over the years it has moved into business community asset management, which involves the company helping landlords to foster "dynamic and vibrant" office settings, advising on social impact strategy and implementation to boost tenant retention and reduce voids.

On its 15th birthday, HSC has a client list which includes Legal & General Investment Management and Regal London among others, while it is also working on market-leading schemes such as Tempo in Maidenhead and Watford's The Clarendon Works.

Smith tells CoStar News that she only expected to be working for herself for a couple of years initially, before carving out a niche and realising the benefits of running her own business.

"I came out of Knight Frank in 2009, which were challenging times for some," she says. "But I had a client who still wanted to work with me, and they told me to let them know where I landed and what company I ended up at.

"At the time, there weren't that many salaried positions available, so I spoke to a number of people who said I could join them under their umbrella, and use their brand. But there was a eat-what-you-kill mentality.

"So I thought about it for a bit, and my husband, my father and my godfather all had their own businesses, so I think, naturally, I went towards doing things under my own flag."

She adds: "At the time, I thought I would do it for a couple of years and then go back to being in an agency position, but it didn't work out like that as I found a niche space to operate in and discovered the flexibility that running my own business has afforded me being a working parent."

Four years ago, Smith expanded the business by hiring Claudia Smith as an associate. Her LinkedIn profile shows she was previously employed in analyst roles at businesses including fashion retailer Superdry. The recruitment of Kezia Miller, who oversees communications and events, and Kathy Vitali, who manages social media and content creation, followed.

Reflecting on the expansion of the business and its headcount, Smith explains how the company worked to "find a gap in the market" to continue to win clients and expand into other areas of commercial real estate; things Smith is proud to have achieved.

The HSC director also says having an open approach to recruitment has helped the business to thrive, keeping opportunities open to all. Smith says: "I'm a chartered surveyor. The other three members of the team aren't necessarily chartered, but they are strong, amazing people.

"I'm really proud of the fact that we've been able to show that commercial property as a sector can be joined by people who are not necessarily [from a property background]... they can bring really fresh ideas, and it shows that you don't necessarily need to have a property background to really impactful in this space."

Part of the strategy for the future, Smith says, is to build on the firm's work around social value and engagement and measurement, as well as expanding its events offering at business parks, with two annual events already in place at a pair of parks.

She also says she wants to ensure the company is around the table with clients at an early stage to help them improve their workspaces."There is still so much to do, but that's life isn't it.

"We want to be a market leader in the BCAM space, so that everyone feels like if they have a building coming to the market, HSC should automatically be on their team. Everyone automatically goes for the architects and the agents.

"We feel we do our best work when we are also included in that journey with them at that very early stage... and that is my aim."