NAT BRICE AND TIM MCDONALD

BY MICHELLE STACPOOLE
MEN AT WORK
NAT BRICE AND TIM MCDONALD
Co-founders, SMARTLAB NT

In today’s tech savvy world, we rely on our mobile phones for so much more than simply calling and texting. It is a possession that many people feel they cannot be without, and when it breaks or isn’t functioning correctly, it causes major disruption to our lives.

It was this understanding that led Tim McDonald to establish NT Phone Repairs in 2011 with his co-founder Nat Brice.
Rebranded as SmartLab NT, the business is the first and last stop for all mobile phone hardware and software faults. Now with two locations in Darwin and plans to expand further afield in the Territory, Tim is relishing the demands that come with small business.
“I’ve always had an interest in entrepreneurship. Being a growth industry, and being a start up company, mobile device repair has provided the challenges and rewards associated with being a small business owner,” he says.
Originally from Adelaide, Tim has degrees in both music and marketing and business. It is this combination of creativity and business acumen that enables the musician to be constantly thinking forward.
According to Tim, the biggest challenge facing business owners is to anticipate shifts in customer demand with enough time to research, develop and implement new products, services, systems or procedures that will be ready to serve to the market at the exact time the shift in consumer behaviour is fully realized amongst the population.
“If a thousand people are asking you for something that you can’t offer yet, it’s already too late, as by the time you implement the changes required to meet this shift in demand, there is a high chance they have moved onto other things,” he says.
Inspired professionally by neuroscientist and author Sam Harris, and personally by his partner Hollie, Tim attributes his success to a combination of drive, adaptability, and surrounding himself with great people.
When it comes to success however, the dictionary definition of the word does not motivate Tim. Rather it’s his personal interpretation of what success looks like.
“For me, it’s the happiness that comes from the freedom to choose to do whatever I want to do at any given moment,” he says.

08 8941 3058 • www.smartlabnt.com.au