On the 29^th November 2020 I finished my first year as a Commercial Property Agent.  I came into this thinking I was relatively experienced in commercial property, having been involved with many office lets, purchases, sales, sale & leasebacks over the 18 years of running Sewell & Gardner but I have learnt a huge amount from my (far more experienced) colleagues, Joel Lobatto, Rosie Fowler, Mandy Galley and ‘Mr Watford’ himself, Perry Holt.  The Fantastic Four!

Perry hates the moniker that his long-time client Nigel Berney gave him, but he really is when it comes to commercial property in Watford and the surrounds.  Having started his career in Watford in 1970 he has a unique insight into the town and the changes that have taken place.  He understands commercial property in that innate way that you can only do if you have been immersed in it for all of your adult life and I have loved learning from him.

For the last few years our Head of Commercial Property, Joel Lobatto, has run the day to day side of the business and brings his own subtle persuasion techniques to the fore.  He works incredibly hard and next year will finally have some day to day support as our newest team member Becky Hopper joins the team.  She has the opportunity to learn from a great guy.  Rosie Fowler, our Office Manager, steadies the ship and keeps us all organised and moving in the right direction.  She has achieved so much this year with our new IT systems installed amongst so many other tasks.  Mandy is our own version of Carole Vorderman, keeping the numbers in check and answers my annoying and repetitive questions about the bank account!

Finally my colleague Ben Howard came over from S&G with me and has made huge inroads into our goal of being the most consulted land agents in the local area.  Most people can’t believe his age, having joined me from school at the age of 18, he has made huge strides forward this year, a top chap who gets on with everyone and enjoys a laugh at his own expense.  My Dad always told me you can tell a lot about people who have the ability to laugh at themselves and he was right about my current colleagues.

So there you have it, I have loved my first year as a Commercial Property agent and hopefully the Fantastic Four of 2019 will become the Magnificent Seven in 2021.  Coincidentally it turns out that Perry Holt & Co opened its doors in 2002, the same as Sewell & Gardner, so fingers crossed we will be celebrating our 20^th anniversary together in 2022!

Alex Sewell, Managing Director