Major regional chain Andrew Grant in the midlands is closing a number of its outlets, saying high street offices are “no longer much needed”.
Local newspapers are reporting closures of branches in Droitwich, Redditch and Hereford.
The firm has told one paper that centralising operations will help it cover a bigger patch. It has told another: “At Andrew Grant the most important thing about us is our clients … when they need to see us we will visit them, not the other way around.”
Andrew Grant, which employs some 100 people, has also said that it plans to shut most of its high street offices, and embrace a ‘hub’ style of agency.
On its website, Andrew Grant does not refer to any specific closures and still lists over a dozen offices, but has an opinion piece headed “The changing face of estate agency”.
It says: “The market is busy with buyers, and even with Brexit looming, business is brisk.
“But the old ‘shop window’ of an estate agency is no longer much needed.
“Committed buyers have telephone and email alerts to flag up new properties to market the moment they appear online and simply click a link to learn more and book a viewing.
“No one is waiting for the local newspaper to arrive on a Thursday evening to see what’s available, or walk the streets peering into the half light of the estate agency window for inspiration.”
In Redditch, someone left a note in the doorway of the former branch which said: “RIP. Andrew Grant Estate Agents. Thank you to all the staff who over the years provided amazing service. Another victim of the high street!!!???”
In Droitwich, Leaders decided to turn it into an advantage with the local branches of both Your Move and Andrew Grant closed.
It said on a board outside its office: “Leaders still going strong, come in and discuss all your property needs.”
The board has since been removed.
Michael Cook, Leaders national lettings managing director, said: “The chalkboard outside Leaders Droitwich was written by one individual; it is certainly not a reflection of the company’s view on the branch closures – and, as soon as we were made aware of the board, it was removed.
“Whilst it was not done with any malice, we recognise it was both inappropriate and insensitive and apologise if it has upset anyone, especially those who have lost their jobs at Your Move and Andrew Grant.”
Comments (23)
Poor form from Leaders – hang your heads in shame
Hubs and personal self employed agents is a new model which does have merit.
A very tacky response by Leaders.
The hub approach is interesting. Intriguing that they’ve gone all in and closed multiple offices rather than dipping their toe in the pool first.
Here is a teaser …… Maximum number of “Sales” estate agents for ….
Town: Population of 55,000 with no heavy industry/employment or commuting labour?
Town B: Population 110,000 with substantial commuting labour force?
Town C: Population 23,000 with substantial commuting labour force?
To a great extent Woodentop……
Any local property market most likely sustains the fittest or most effective estate agents (sadly not always the best).
I have 2 Corporate Agents nearby who may as well close as they hang by a financial thread – the Branch Manager/Valuer of one should get his lazy @rse out of his office and repaint the office frontage which is appalling, instead he feeds the parking meter most days.
The remaining agents are a mix of small, medium, independent, franchise. To be honest, yes, the sales cake is sliced into too many pieces however there is natural wastage with poor Estate Agents gradually failing which is fair enough, the medium tend to fight it out between themselves and others including me (small independent) work hard at providing real/focused Estate Agency Service at sustainable fees, all the while monitoring our overheads/marketing and the ebb/flow of the market.
I’ve been in this business for over 30 years and to a certain extent it has often been overpopulated with Agents and New Arrivals thinking it’s easy pickings?! In reality, if you are in this business for the long term and care about your clients and your own business, you need to be canny to ensure you remain business fit for whatever the market throws. I knew (as many others did!) last year that this year would be tough and worked out how best to try and achieve/deliver a successful year in a challenging market….. in reality? working hard/smart, delivering exceptional service/results for our clients, charging a fair not cheap fee. It’s long hours/hard work and holidays are rare for me (for 25 years I have had no more than 1 week off – ie 2 whole weeks off at once???! lol) …..however, I thoroughly enjoy what I do!
Now, as today is a rare Monday Holiday in Scotland, I better get back to the other job, the garden/car washing/fettling with motorbikes – tomorrow is another Estate Agency day with the challenge of a New Developmemt coming on in Autumn because the Developer is behind schedule and now needs us to work our magic and make the money come in!
We’re up slightly on last year, retaining good fees, despite all the challenges …..but it’s bl@@dy hard work for everyone involved (and we don’t have a lot of everyone!)
GPL I think you typify the majority of good independent agents, the job is a vocation and you get 5 stars from me, while so many of the public haven’t a clue how hard it really is and to keep going, particularly when the going gets tough.
I’m surprised that no-one had a go at my teaser and I did throw in a curve ball to see if anyone noticed. Population isn’t the number, it is the number of households in the towns. A little research on sites like Local government for households and RightMove (blimey they have a use after all) for annual listings and a pattern starts to develop of how big the pie is. All you then need to do is divide between the number of agents covering that area with permutations applied for high end and specialists market and the level you wish to be in the market and competing against = The size of your slice of pie. But is the slice going to cover your overheads? I used to see so many agents who had worked out the size of their slice of pie but never worked out if it was ever going to be achievable.
This is where every on-line agent went wrong and bust. PB is a classic case of failure. It plays the numbers game based on the public will flock to them on fees, has no contingency and when the public don’t or the market takes a down turn ….. bump. This was a lesson learned back in the 1990’s when the FS industry moved into the sector. None are left. They assumed, as do many new agents joining the market, that there is enough pie for everyone to share. There is a formulae and when diligently worked out, it gives you a target to to be viable.
You have to know your own towns market, who are strong (biggest slice) and those that are weak (small slice and vulnerable). Whats the size of your slice? and if you are seeing your share reduce, act quickly and do some serious planning. This is when the bigger players start to close offices … eventually.
As to the above teaser, a snapshot: Town A (sorry letter missing) has 16 agents, Town B has 13 agents and Town C has 9 agents. One would think that Town B has to be a good bet for another agent. Then you may be surprised to learn that all three towns are the ones that have Andrew Grant closures …. something isn’t right?
They’re a peculiar outfit, Andrew Grant, in a good way, they service upscale and lower mid markets rather than being pigeonholed one way or another, I’m surprised by this.
Redditch is a dump. He does country houses and mid market. Not much of that in Redditch.
Dump Rightmove before you Dump The High Street, imho. The money these agents would save per month would most likely cover/offset their lease costs.
It’s a tighter market for sure however adapting doesn’t mean closing.
I’m with Woodentop & others ……keep your High Street presence, it may not deliver footfall anywhere like the days of old, however it does deliver “presence”.
Landlords & Local Councils need to do be involved in sustaining our High Streets as well as the businesses that occupy them. Take car parking …… restrictions driving people away from high streets, empty shops – no income for landlord or council ……and Rightmove one of the biggest cost culprits silently sucking its monthly income from our High Streets.
Sure the economy/business is changing however there is still a desire for High Streets – the alternative of Ghost Town Centres is unacceptable, or should be for local councils, landlords, the public, government, consumers, business, homeowners…..
It’s no coincidence that one of my offices sits in a thriving small’ish town centre which has a real mix of small/independent shops – the type of shops/cafes/restaurants etc that attract locals and visitors ……and now the council want to start adding unwanted extra parking restrictions, an early nail being driven in by the council! …..managed parking is fine, office workers/me parking further away is fine as we occupy spaces for longer so don’t deny convenience for those visitors & locals.
With restrictions their must be alternative options/solutions, otherwise its the same old journey to High Street demise.
Estate Agents own inaction on Rightmove drives a unnecessary monthly nail into each & every one of us. The larger/corporate agents make think they will be the last ones standing however many of them are quietly creaking at their seams.
There is still a place for Local High Street Estate Agency, that’s for sure. We just need to work harder/smarter to sustain it ……and lobby for change from those that are strangling our High Streets
Well said.
Most agents are too scared to dump RM. Might give the competition an advantage etc…. zzzzzz
Good decision, moving with the times and showing initiative in the tough market. Best of luck to them, I am sure many other high street Estate Agents will follow.
“………. Thank you to all the staff who over the years provided amazing service.”
That’s it in a nutshell. Does the customer want service anymore? Happy to use smart technology access, which isn’t that smart? Hubs do not make you more efficient, maybe short term or cost efficient for those looking to reduce overheads but are you dying the death of a thousands cuts! You are still accessible for the same time but withdrawn your local exposure. Certainly the high street has taken a beating over the last decade in all forms of retail … the internet is that double edged sword you can’t do without, but never mastered and just as easily stab you in the back or used by others to bury you with ridiculous unsustainable cheap offers (disruptors close with a few years, leaving misery). We live in a society that is slowly destroying itself wanting everything on the cheap.
First and foremost you need instructions and the best source is your local presence. That is your income! The market isn’t diminishing, it is growing with the population expansion.
If we mention those on-line only models, including the biggest one, they have failed to take control of the market and are having spend every penny to stay afloat and still only represent 5% of market share. Nearly all have gone insolvent. The route cause of agents failings on the high street is poor business planning, supervision and the right people. Getting instructions and converting them to sales or panicking!!! 30 years ago I did a nationwide exercise on agency standards and some agencies, small to national were often shocking and showed in their profits. Why was one brand doing better in one town to another? People. I do not see any change today. It doesn’t matter how good your name is, if you do not have the right people where it matters.
Leave the high street at your peril. The customer wants easy access but they also want you around, even when they may not see it. Far too many agents have thought the internet would do their job for them and taken a back seat. What is the biggest complaint about agents … poor service!!!! Get that right and you will not be at the bottom of the pile. Most agents are dedicated individuals and work very hard and we can all have a rest day, just don’t make a habit of it and stay focused. There is more than enough pieces of the pie for everyone who is professional.
Just look at the successful ones, they look professional and are in everything they do.
I agree with much of what you say Woodentop, with the exception of the “successful ones” looking professional…
Appropriate to this article and by way of an example …Leaders/Romans being a prime example of a professional “looking” outfit, who’s tactics and methods are well document as being far from professional/ethical…Foxtons are another example…
Successful yes, professional…hardly
I hear what you say, my point applies to ” ….are in everything they do”.
Lets be honest, a high street office costs next to nothing to lease in the grand scheme of things.
The big savings will come from the reduced portals fees and no doubt reduction in staff. How this benefits their vendors is beyond me.
I’m sure the portals are aware of this, and will again alter their territory sizes/pricing.
Interesting to go down the ‘hub’ route, seems to work for corporates and the centralised ‘tele-sales’ model does work for some, but at perhaps the loss of local knowledge, the pop in for a chat, the bring in the documentation and I will explain. Would prefer to see the ‘coffee shop’ model where people actually start to socialise in office and see the professional local estate agent as part of the Community.
Leaders (who claim to be a company who cares about people) rubbing it in that other people have lost their jobs.
I’ve always told staff and colleagues, just worry about what we are doing, dont waste time focusing on how good or bad our competition are.
Very tacky from leaders. Pretty much putting a target on their own backs. If I was an agent local to them my negs would be out door knocking their stock today.
Classy from Leaders Romans Group (NOT). Well known that many Leaders offices are only propped up from a lettings perspective. Look at their website and see just how few properties Leaders have on in Droitwich. That alone wouldn’t be sustainable for them to survive. People in glass houses shouldn’t be throwing stones – also worth remembering that this same group has closed offices over the last 12 months.
Leaders/Romans need to be taken down a peg or two IMHO.
Always sad to see staff out of a job and society as whole suffers from branch closures/ job losses…
Leaders’ apparent gloating over any branch closure is pretty distasteful (particularly given that their own group have themselves closed branches in recent months)…very tacky indeed.
You don’t need a shop to sell houses.
You might need one to retain your vendors.
If your selling enough houses then an office is quite cheap .
More of a sign of a broken economy…but don’t say the brexit word.
It upsets climate denying leavers.
Broken economy?!
More like the high street is changing. Estate agency is changing.
When did you last go to Redditch ? The town is a joke, socialist created “new town” no wonder the branch is closing. No decent stock. Redditch can easily be run from Bromsgrove or Stourbridge.
Bless You – are you aware Andrew Grant went to a private school? As do his children? Maybe set up camp outside his mansion and call for his firm to be nationalised or given to his receptionists?
How do you feel about a firm making a profit?
Presume you advocate the four day week?
Move to Europe – estate agents get paid more there.