I went from claiming benefits with a double buggy to running a multi-million pound property business – here’s how
A MUM-OF-THREE has revealed how she went from walking into a job centre and claiming benefits, to running a multi-million pound property business.
When Ellie McKay, from Doncaster, found herself standing outside the job centre with her double pram, she felt at her "lowest eb."
She'd just been made redundant from her job as a careers adviser in a prison after an extended maternity leave with two back-to-back pregnancies - only one of one of which was planned - and her confidence was at an all-time low.
Fast forward five years and Ellie's life is now totally unrecognisable, with the successful entrepreneur running a multi-million pound property business, not to mention a chart-topping podcast.
Speaking exclusively to Fabulous Digital, the 40-year-old, who shares three children - Sienna, 10, Isabella, six and Sammy, five - with husband Mark, reveals just how she turned her life around...
"I worked in different category prisons which was when I got made redundant, in 2018, whilst on my second maternity leave with Sam.
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"I had two consecutive maternity leaves, which was unplanned, at this job."
At the time, Ellie was going through postal depression with a three-and-a-half month old and had just announced another pregnancy.
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"In all the chaos we were struggling not to go bankrupt," she says.
"It was a really stressful and horrible time."
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Soon, Ellie found herself outside the job centre and, suffering with severe anxiety and depression, she wondered how her life had got to this point.
"My confidence was at an all-time low and I felt very worthless," says the mum-of-three.
"In my heyday I’d been a senior manager within a double glazing company responsible for overseeing 100 staff.
"I went from being at the top of my game earning great money and constantly winning sales incentives and holidays - from Caribbean holidays to city breaks like Amsterdam - to walking into the job centre with a double buggy.
"As I was filling out all the laborious paperwork to receive my Jobseeker’s Allowance, it felt like a real fall from grace."
She continues: "I remember looking down at my two children in the pram and feeling a burning desire to become the person I needed to be to make them feel proud."
Ellie remained on Jobseeker’s Allowance for a short period of time.
She was struggling to find part-time work that'd allow her the flexibility to still be a present mum to her young children but also provide her with a salary to support their lifestyle.
I was at the top of my game earning great money and constantly winning sales incentives and holidays...to walking in the job centre with a double buggy. It felt like a real fall from grace
Ellie McKay
"I didn’t want to return to a sales environment and work unsociable hours," she recalls.
"I felt like I was at a crossroads in my life and I didn’t know where to turn.
Elie says she'd always liked the idea of working for herself but, despite being a qualified careers adviser, never particularly considered herself to be very entrepreneurial.
"It was only when property training came on my radar that it even became a consideration," she says.
"Property was something that had always interested me but we'd had our fingers burnt with a previous investment so I was a lot more cautious."
Despite suffering from panic attacks and poor mental health, Ellie took a chance and used all of her redundancy money to fund her property training.
Alongside her husband Mark, they paid for top level mentorship to accelerate their success.
They then embarked on a five-day in-person intensive course with 12 months support afterwards online - and even sold their house in the hope of making their dreams come true.
"We made a commitment to go 'all in,'" she says.
"A few weeks after the training we put our family home on the market and moved into a rental property.
"Everyone thought we were insane!"
She continues: "The equity we released went into the business to help us grow and was also reinvested into furthering our education.
"I’m a great believer that 'your network is your net worth,' so we upgraded our circle to learn from those who were further down the path we wanted to travel, which significantly accelerated our personal and professional growth."
But not everyone was on board with Ellie and Mark's brave move.
"I had a lot of negative comments from well-intentioned family members who felt that I should be prioritising my young family," she says.
A few weeks after the training we put our family home on the market and moved into a rental property. Everyone thought we were insane!
Ellie McKay
"Launching a new business meant making sacrifices but I was on a mission to show my children a life without limitations."
Within four days of returning home, the couple put in two offers for properties.
"We bought the first two properties by finding funding partners and used none of our own cash - that’s how we got started," she explains.
"Where we are now? We've sold quite a few of our buy-to-lets and we are instead buying higher end holiday homes.
"We're doing full refurbs on them.
"We have three just about to complete and three projects kicking off all at once - that’s really exciting!"
But Ellie admits her journey to success has not been an easy ride and says the last few years have been a "roller coaster of emotions," with many "sleepless nights" along the way.
"Together we've carved a life that we can live on our terms with family placed firmly at the centre," she explains.
"We’ve built up an ever growing multi-million pound property portfolio and now invest in other businesses as well.
"Success for me is about the person you become along way, I had to take full responsibility for where I was in life and get out of that victim mentality.
"I wanted to become someone my kids could be proud of and that was my ultimate motivation.
Launching a new business meant making sacrifices but I was on a mission to show my children a life without limitations
Ellie McKay
During lockdown, Ellie also launched her very own podcast, 'On a Mission.'
"I used an old laptop and bought a £20 mic from Amazon and I started by uploading the episodes myself," she says,
"It was a case of get started and get perfect later. I didn’t even know how to edit and it was all self-taught in those early days.
"It was a total learning curve!"
Within two years, Ellie has interviewed everyone from top doctors and scientists to celebrities including model Caprice and sports promoter Eddie Hearn - and is now a chart-topping podcaster.
"It's really diverse and I wanted to do some something for me during lockdown and didn’t care how long it took to grow the podcast," she explains.
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"We cover so much and it's for anyone on a mission - everything from AI technology to celebrity bodyguards."
She concludes: "Having achieved a certain level of financial security I can now dedicate my time to building my podcast which is already one of the top in the UK and partnered with global brand Athletic Green."
