Laura and Stacey on taking charge at Maloco Mowat Parker

Thanks to some family planning Laura Mowat and Stacey Parker are now in charge of the solicitors and estate agents on Bonnar Street that bears their names, Maloco Mowat Parker.

And it's a move that's been on the cards for some time.

Laura explained: "I think people thought we just appeared out of nowhere but it's not happened overnight.

"It's been a long process, for me almost nine years.

"Michael (Maloco) started plans for his retirement in 2015 and asked me to come back as he knew me, I had worked here before and he thought I would be the perfect fit.

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"I joined as a solicitor that year and became a partner in 2017.

Laura and Stacey on the day of the firm's rebrand. (Image: Maloco Mowat Parker)

"At that time I said I would like Stacey to join too so we could, when Michael retired, run the business together.

"That's how it came about as I knew we would work well together and we've still got family values at the heart of the business."

Stacey, who joined in 2021, said: "This has really been the first month without Michael here on a day-to-day basis and it's a lot quieter, as we used to hear him stomping about upstairs all the time!

"We've had a really strong start to the year, certainly the strongest in terms of properties coming to the market."

However a misunderstanding hampered their early days in charge.

Although the Press story on founding partner Michael Maloco's retirement in December spoke of the 'end of an era', as it was the first time in 115 years that a Maloco would not be in business in the centre of Dunfermline, it did state that the business would be in good hands with Laura and Stacey taking over.

However there were unintended consequences as Stacey said: "A lot of people didn't read the whole article, saw the headline, panicked and thought we had closed!

"We had a few phonecalls and people coming in worried about their title deeds and wills.

"We had to tell them we're very much open for business, continuing to grow and be successful."

Responsibility is shared with Laura the head of conveyancing and working alongside property director Keiran Newman on the estate agency side.

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Stacey looks after the private clients and deals with wills, executry and power of attorney matters.

Keeping it in the family must have its advantages in the business world but did they always get on so well?

Stacey laughed: "Siblings at a young age do argue from time to time and we definitely had our moments!"

Laura added: "We'd argue over borrowing clothes and shoes, that sort of thing, normal teenager stuff, but as you get older it changes."

Stacey said: "Since we've been in business together we've been fine. We've got the same outlook and work ethic.

"We actually worked together before, at another couple of places, and it's always worked well.

"We are both different, and have different ways of working, but we want the same things."

Stacey, 39, and Laura, 36, grew up in Dalgety Bay and attended Donibristle Primary - Stacey's daughters, Sophia, 9, and seven-year-old Summer now go there - and Inverkeithing High.

After completing university and becoming solicitors, both tried other aspects of the law, including court work, criminal cases and family law, before deciding on conveyancing.

Their younger siblings, Amanda, 31, and 29-year-old Steven, work together at 'Garden Rooms by Creative', which is run by their dad, George Mowat.

The sisters agreed that the drive to own their own company came from his example.

Laura explained: "Dad's always had his own business and I think it was always the plan for Stacey and I to work together.

"We had always spoken about having our own business one day and we were really lucky that Michael gave us this opportunity, and at a young age as well."

He was a founding partner when Peddie Smith Maloco opened on Bonnar Street in 1990, it became Maloco + Associates in 2006 before changing to Maloco Mowat Parker last summer.

Laura said: "Because the business is so well established, and we learned from Michael over the past few years, we were ready.

"It's not been that big a change for us because we've been involved for so long and the clients have got to know us.

"We effectively took over in July 2022 and Michael ceased to be a director in November last year.

"He's still been involved, and he's there if we need advice, but he's really enjoying retirement!"

And Laura had the added advantage of knowing the business inside out.

She said: "I worked here as a student, starting on reception and going on to admin, lettings, estate agency, taking photos and measurements and going out on viewings.

"I've done a bit of everything. After going off to train as a solicitor, I was delighted to come back.

"The aim now is to get back to being the number one agent in terms of listings, albeit we know there's tough competition out there.

"I can also say that we will always work hard for our clients, we want to get people more for their homes and we want to offer a great service that they can be happy with."