February 25th, 2026Career change for Connie

Hepburn’s Connie Conlon is closing down her iconic Portal 108 store – but she is not going anywhere.
In fact, she will probably be even more of a presence, with a new career starting in real estate. Connie has joined the team at Belle Property in Daylesford – leaving Portal 108 after 22 happy years. She says it was time for a change.
“I still absolutely love retail but I just felt like I wanted to do something different. Before I moved here I was in conveyancing, and I have always been interested in real estate and doing my own renovations – my dad was a builder.
“So it’s always been something that I’ve enjoyed, in a private sense. And I felt after 22 years it was time for a change.
“Also, the landscape of retail has changed a lot as well with so much now online and social media advertising, costs and things like that.
“Closing Portal 108 was a very difficult decision to make because it’s been my heart and soul for the whole time I’ve lived here. So the decision didn’t come lightly and was a long time in the making but once I made the decision, it felt good.”
The final day of trading was last Friday, February 20.
“My last day in the shop was Sunday (February 15) and it was really quiet in the afternoon and I just reflected on everything, the beautiful members of the community, so many customers who had become friends.”
But Connie said her first two weeks at Belle had been fantastic.
“I just couldn’t have landed in a better place, to be honest. I have great people to work with and I have been friends with (Belle Daylesford owners) Will and Pete since they moved here. And I have had Annette (Leary) for training and she’s been a friend for years as well, so it feels like the perfect transition.
“I have really enjoyed doing something completely different, thinking with a different part of my brain, and I can still be creative, just in another arena.”
Connie said she was not one to move houses very often so understood buying and selling a house was a big deal for many people. “I know what it’s like to be really house proud and love where you live, but moving for whatever reason. Your kids might have left home, or you are moving interstate for work. It’s a stressful time as well and I hope I can make the move easier.” Words: Donna Kelly