30 years ago, Max Sowerby opened the doors of Sowerbys at The Old Forge, Burnham Market, with a mission to better serve homeowners.
It might have seemed like a simple goal, but three decades later, the plan to enhance the experience of selling and buying property in Norfolk has resulted in a nationally recognised business with nine branches and nearly 100 employees.
The milestones have been plentiful, and the years have been filled with challenges as well as opportunities.
As the Champagne is popped to mark the occasion, Max and joint managing director Lloyd Sandy find themselves in a reflective mood.
“1994 was a big, pivotal moment for me,” says Max, “leaving the corporate world and taking a risk to do a better job of selling property in a more personal way. It was a humble start as I opened Burnham Market with one property in the window, with photographs taken from lots of different angles! The local community took me under its wing, word spread, and soon other people gave me properties to sell. At the time, there was one other estate agent in the village, and they were only open three days a week. Burnham Market was a lot sleepier back then, with a real mix of local and second homes, but The Hoste Arms had just been taken on by Paul Whittome who helped to put Burnham Market on the map, and it was a fortuitous moment."
“From the start, we’ve always done things properly and we were first to use multiple colour pictures in our brochures, instead of the black and white sheets other agents used. My belief was, and always will be, that it is important to make a statement and deliver a better product for clients – we are marketers, so it is our job to sell a good property at the best price, and we quickly got a reputation for helping homeowners to achieve the most for their homes."
“A second milestone was the opening of other branches, and we made a slow, steady advance, as and when it made sense. The Wells-next-the Sea branch came about when The Granary, which is a stunning, iconic building, was being converted and I pitched to the developer that if I could sell the apartments, I could take the ground floor, which was to be kept for commercial use."
“Holt was a natural progression which gave us a premises in the centre of town and, like Burnham Market, was much quieter then. It was one of the hardest openings to turnaround, as I was spreading myself between different offices, so I started to employ high calibre people and stepped back to allow them to deliver their expertise, and that was a big move forwards.”
“We took on an estate agent in Hunstanton after we were approached by the owner Colin Rice and established Sowerbys Incorporating David Rice. He sadly passed away shortly after, but his wife Debbie worked with us for many years and people still talk about Colin, he was so well-known in the town. We inherited some brilliant staff, several of whom are still there today, and shortly after Lloyd joined Sowerbys in 2006.”
“It was an interesting time,” says Lloyd. “Like Max, I was stepping out of the corporate world where everyone was a number and that didn’t fit my ethics. Shortly after, we found a beautiful building in King’s Lynn and opened our first partnership office. It was a step away from a coastal office and allowed us to broaden our coverage in villages such as Ashwicken, Grimston and the Woottons. It was a great time and people wanted to be part of the Sowerbys brand, and I strongly believe we raised the bar – our ethos is always to go above and beyond and that’s still at the heart of everything that we do today.”
“We took on Dereham and, as we opened the doors in 2008, the property market crashed, but it was good timing in many way as vendors were looking for advice and reassurance and turned to Sowerbys for the support which we always give to clients. We were being asked by people if we could rent their property, so in 2008 we launched Sowerbys Lettings, which now manages more than 1,400 houses and estates across Norfolk. We wanted to bring the same service standard as our sales business to lettings, and I believe we have raised the bar in this area of the market too.”
To celebrate 30 years, here's what we've been up to:
Managing directors Max Sowerby and Lloyd Sandy, along with land and new homes director Peter Hurrell, led a two-day, 125-mile cycling challenge.
On the 1st of May, they cycled across Norwich, visiting the charities and stopping at Sowerbys' Norwich office.
On the 2nd of May, they started from King's Lynn, following the coast and visiting multiple branches before returning to Bank Chambers.
Welcomed by colleagues, family, and friends, they surpassed their £5,000 fundraising target, raising £5,464.
Here are other exciting challenges our staff are taking part in:
- Ed's Peak Performance: Six running events, including a 10km race, a 50km Ultra Marathon, and three half marathons.
- Harry’s Marathon Miles for Smiles: Running the Edinburgh Marathon.
- Ginny’s Tremendous Trek: A 24-mile walk from Holkham Hall along the Norfolk coast, raising £250 for East Anglian Air Ambulance.
- James’ Top Ten Races: Running ten events, culminating in three half marathons, aiming to raise £1,000 for Norfolk & Waveney Mind.