Laura Weir found emails going out from her account on the day she had a C-section.
She tells this story not with pride, but with the clarity of someone who has been to the other side of it. She wouldn't do it now. She knows that. But at the time, Direct Lettings was hers — she'd built it, she knew every process, every client, every property — and the idea of stepping back from any of it, even for a day, felt impossible.
In this episode of Scale HER Up, she talks about what it actually took to change.
INSERT SPOTIFY LINK
Built on relationships, not advertising
Direct Lettings is a letting agency based in Edinburgh and Dundee, now servicing much of the East Coast of Scotland and growing into Glasgow and beyond. Eleven people. Two offices. Growth built entirely on referrals and relationships.
Laura has never really advertised. She tried Google Ads briefly while working on a website rebrand, watched the money leave the account, felt nothing coming back in, and pulled out fast. Not because advertising is wrong — she's planning to revisit it properly — but because their model has always been something different: landlords aren't a number, clients know the people looking after their properties, and the word of mouth that comes from doing that well is better than any campaign.
"We've been really careful that that's what we've tried to stick to."
There's also a newer strand to the business that's growing fast. Build-to-rent — funds and pension funds buying properties across Scotland that they don't have the in-house infrastructure to manage — is a sector that barely existed in Scotland a few years ago and is now one of Laura's most interesting opportunities. Three providers. Lucrative. High standards. And a clear path for growing the team.
The control freak in full flow
Laura uses the phrase "control freak" more than once in this conversation, and she means it. For years at Direct Lettings, if she could do something, she would. She learned the software system herself during COVID. She knew every report, every process, every client. She built the relationships because it felt wrong to hand them to anyone else.
She drove to Somerset. Regularly. Long days. Then drove back. Not seeing her four children. Not, in her own words, doing anything particularly well.
"I was trying to work at night because that was just the way it happened."
The moment she describes as the turning point came about two years ago — the recognition that something had to change. Not because someone made her feel it. Not because the business demanded it. Because she looked at her life and thought: I can't do this anymore.
What changed
She comes into the office early now. She leaves at 3pm to pick the children up from school and nursery. She doesn't work Fridays — and has an out of office to prove it (though she still answers the phone if someone genuinely needs her). She exercises. She takes holidays and actually tries to be on them.
None of this is dramatic. That's what's interesting about it. It didn't require a restructure or a crisis. It required a decision.
"I've just made a conscious decision that I need to change."
One of the quieter changes has been the most significant: she stopped being the best person for every job. Her team told her — gently but directly — that she's not very good at taking photos. She took that on board. She'll do a valuation and come back to find the property marketing has been done better by someone else. She's fine with it. More than fine.
"It's got to the point now I'd rather somebody say to me I'm better at it."
The team and the culture
Eleven people across Edinburgh and Dundee. The Edinburgh office, Laura says, has always had a good culture — partly because she's been building it from the start. Open diaries. Open door. Everyone equal, including her. The Dundee office has evolved over time, with the team finding its own shape through natural progression and internal moves.
One of the things Laura is proudest of is the career path she's created for people who didn't come in expecting one. Someone who came from a paint shop, started in admin, discovered he was good at maintenance work, and is now on a path to become a property manager — with Letwell qualifications paid for by the business. Someone who found the harder side of property management wasn't for her, moved into accounts, and now handles all the payments.
It's not just money. It's progression. And the combination of the two is why, when people leave, it's because a big build-to-rent company has offered them something she simply can't match yet — not because they wanted to go.
Say it. Just say it.
Asked what advice she'd give another woman building a business, Laura's answer is honest and direct.
Be kinder to yourself than she was.
For years she felt that needing help was a weakness. That taking maternity leave was somehow not what she should be doing. That admitting she was overloaded was an admission of failure. None of it was external pressure — she's clear about that. The owners backed her fully. The team was good. The pressure was all hers.
And then: just say what you need to say. Bounce the idea off someone. Admit you're doing too much. Because the people around you can already see it — they're waiting for permission to help.
"Just say what you need to say. Because even if you get told no, at least there's a reason."
She's been saying for four years that she wants to open in the Borders market. She knows people there. She has a network. She hasn't done it because she didn't want to fail in front of people who know her. This year, she's going. Not necessarily a full office to start — maybe some local sponsorships, some presence, herself. But she's going.
That's probably the most useful thing she said in this whole conversation. Not that the fear goes away. But that the answer is still: just do it.
About Laura Weir
Laura Weir is the Managing Director and co-owner of Direct Lettings, a letting agency operating across Edinburgh, Dundee and the East Coast of Scotland. She joined the business 14 years ago and became a director and shareholder two years ago. Direct Lettings works with individual landlords, repeat clients and is growing its work with build-to-rent companies across Scotland.
