March 2019 marks the twenty first birthday of Louise Crichton Property Search; my business has come of age. I remember the excitement of setting up on my own back in 1998 when there were only a handful of buying agencies out there. For my first client I acquired a charming flat in Holland Park for the princely sum of £200,000. It was a joy of a deal and I reveled in the reality of my new self-employed life as a buying agent.
I have acted for a fascinating and diverse mixture of clients over the years since then, acquiring all sorts of properties for them, for all sorts of budgets, and relishing the negotiating challenges often posed. I have never lost sight of how I started though and what my business is all about. Property may be the product but being a search agent is fundamentally about people; helping them realise their property dreams whilst guiding them away from potential nightmares.
It can be a challenging task and one that requires tenacity and patience at times but I still revel in it. Being a self employed buying agent is a lifestyle really, not just a job.
As for some of the day to day practicalities of running an independent property search business for twenty one years I have worked my way through four laptops, five mobile phones, eight cars (yes, I have a penchant for cars) and now four websites. Technology has changed beyond recognition since 1998; I have fond memories of my first brick like Nokia phone, when phones were just for phone calls, and my first website which was made over a weekend by a computer savvy friend who said I needed one.
There is no doubt that in this digital age a top quality website really is a key asset for any business so to move with the changing times it is my pleasure to now present the completely new look www.lcps.co.uk . To mark the start of this new chapter for my business I have gone green, literally – I am delighted with my new brand and in awe of the very clever technology that lies behind the lovely looking pages. Suffice to say it has taken a whole lot longer than a weekend to put together! With huge thanks to the great team at Resolution Design for their creative flair, guidance and help and to Cristina Barton Photography for embracing the challenge I set her.
I would also like to thank all my past and present clients for their kind instructions and support over the past twenty one years. I am looking forward to helping more people in need of property search assistance in both London and the country for many more years to come.
