Today we’d like to introduce you to Tami Ostmark.
Hi Tami, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I am currently the Vice President of Marketing & Design at Hamlet Homes. I also call myself the “problem solver”! This is a title I have taken with me from job to job. I have also been known as the company therapist, party planner, problem solver, creator of all things equal, prize junkie, gift giver, collaborator, leader, and marketing specialist over the years. And while some may think I am the life of the party at the office or at work or business functions, my most favorite place to be is at home with my family.
I met my husband, Cory, in Junior High School way back in 1990. He was my best friend then and is my best friend now, but just with the added title of “Spouse”. We grew up together and raised a couple of pretty cool kids together, too. Our daughter, Taylor and son, Cameron have been the highlight of our lives and we have spent the better part of our marriage at either dance or baseball. And while we still plan to spend a lot of time with our kids (adult kids now), we are also excited about being empty nesters!
While home might be my favorite place to land, traveling is where my heart is. Bear Lake Family Trips since I was born are right up there on my list, but sometimes 2.5 hours away is just not far enough. My parents instilled a love of travel in me when I was young and that carried through into adulthood. I have traveled and worked all over the world, and after dozens of stamps in my passport later, I plan to spend the 2nd half of my life exploring even more. Now, that would be much easier if we had a lot of money, so trips to Idaho for lottery tickets or Vegas to play the odds, are also on the calendar every now and then.
I believe every moment is creating a life experience and I love to create experiences for people. I feel like I am at my best when creating special experiences for those I work with, and especially my family.
When you live life with a tattoo that says, “this too shall pass”, you know that you will get over the hard moments, but that you really need to take the good ones, cherish them and soak them up, because they will go by so fast. Because that quote was not just meant to let you know you will get through it, it was also written to remind you to take the time to live through it. Hard times, good times, whatever times.
I am also a teacher. If you study communications, hit me up – I might know the answers to your tests. I have been teaching on and off for many years and I am very much looking forward to watching those young adults and what they will do with life – the future is bright, people.
In addition to teaching, volunteering and public speaking, I serve on many boards and committees. I believe in the power of my network. I am currently serving on the Salt Lake Homebuilders Association Board of Directors, The HomeAid Utah Board of Directors and am on the Executive Board for Youthlinc.
I started my career in Real Estate, in Marketing for Wardley Better Homes & Garden’s about 27 years ago. I have been privileged to hold some big positions at big companies, trying to break the glass ceiling and make a place for women in a typical man’s world. Shortly after working for Wardley, I went on to be the General Manager/Marketing Director for Jordan Landing Shopping Center where I learned so much about the business side of a company, while still focusing on Marketing, which is my passion. From there, I got the great opportunity to work for KSL Broadcast Group and became their Vice President of Marketing. I also loved to help other companies grow, so I began to consult with some start-ups, especially in the Tech sector and I believe that helped me to land another great opportunity at Overstock, where I quickly moved up the ladder to be the Head of Global Business and Marketing where I believe I grew an even bigger love of traveling around the world and experiencing different cultures, and my growth in the business world and my confidence was catapulted to the next level.
The start of 2017 was what I consider to be the most important year that would change my life, and at the time, I had no idea what was to come. I took a chance on a job that paid me almost half of what I was making, but would allow me to be available to be with my kids and my family at a time I needed it. I did not miss one baseball game because I was out of town or unavailable, I was able to be present when helping my daughter plan her wedding, and be there for my mom who became ill. These things would never have happened if I had not taken a chance on a job.
That job turned into something big. In addition to my most recent role as Vice President of Marketing, I also became an owner/partner of Hamlet Homes in 2022 and will be forever grateful for my partners, who are some of my best friends, and all of the people that I work with at Hamlet Homes.
I am proud of all the accomplishments in my work life and know that each of them has made me a better person, a better leader, and led me straight to where I am today. Funny how things take on a full circle in life and that I ended up back in the real estate world – this time for the best Homebuilder in Utah.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It was never smooth, nor do I think anyone’s life is. I don’t think at any time that my challenges were harder or different than anyone else’s, they were just unique to me, and without them, I would not be the person I am today.
I am constantly telling people to own their mistakes, learn from them, and move on. There is only so much time in your life and if you want to make the most of it, you learn and move on quickly.
I have been let go from jobs, left jobs, hated and loved jobs. I have lost people in my life, gone through the struggles of everything life has to dish out, had financial problems, relationship problems, lost friends, and gained friends.
So much of life is made up of all of the experiences you have – good and bad.
Where I struggled the most in my career and in life, was the fact that I hated not being treated equally to my male counterparts, but I realized that it was more of an excuse and was a distraction to my performance. So, I made up my mind that I would not back down, I would prove my worth, have a voice and help build up other women who struggled with the same issues. It may not have changed how business was done or who I was compared to, but it definitely made me feel better and be a better employee, coach, mentor and leader.
“A woman with a voice is, by definition, a strong woman. But the search to find that voice can be remarkably difficult.” That is one of my favorite quotes from Melinda Gates.
It took me a long time and a lot of work to find my voice in a crowd of so many people who might have been better than me, put in more effort than me, put in more time than me or even chose a different path than me to get where I am. Once I finally found that voice and had the confidence to say how I felt, have an opinion, and just speak up, that was when I became the best version of myself.
It hasn’t been easy. I’ve made so many mistakes along the way and if I am doing it right, I still will. But it has all led me straight to where I am supposed to be. I am incredibly lucky to be amongst the people I work with, especially my partners – all 6 of them, who are men – who listen to my voice, respect me, support me and have given me this great opportunity to be their partner in this business.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Hamlet Homes is a Homebuilder in Utah and most recently, Idaho. We build in Salt Lake County, Utah County, Summit County and Wasatch County in Utah and have recently expanded into Eastern Idaho. We are a smaller production homebuilder that takes pride in the fact that we build just enough homes so that we can still have a great relationship with each and every homebuyer. We are focused on our customer experience in every single thing we do from the creation of floorplans, to who we use for our subcontractors, to the homebuying journey all the way up to their one-year warranty. We know this is the biggest purchase you will ever make, so we want it to be filled with unique and fun moments throughout what can normally be a very stressful time for people.
We think the fact that we get to know each of our homebuyers on a different level, is that sets us apart. A lot of our homebuyers are now really good friends with many of us and we love that!
Hamlet Homes has been around for over 27 years, but with new ownership in the past 5 years, we believe we have made this a company that people know and trust to build their homes and also a GREAT place to work for our amazing team!
What was your favorite childhood memory?
Om my gosh, I don’t have many memories of my childhood, to be honest, but I do remember one of my favorite things to do was to swim in our pool. My parents built our pool the year I was born, so I grew up in the water. I remember my dad, who was Italian, used to lay by the pool every Sunday and put baby oil on so he could get tan. We always had contests to see who could get the darkest by the end of the summer. I never won!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.hamlethomes.com
- Instagram: @tostmark
- Facebook: facebook.com/tostmark
