Interview With Heywoods Estate Agency

We caught up with Alistair Trippett, the new owner of Heywoods Estate Agency, to ask why he chose this business as an acquisition, and to learn how Atomic Consultancy streamlined the process. 

Why did you decide to grow your business and acquire?

Because of the state of the current market, organic growth in the estate agency and lettings sector is difficult to achieve – the conditions just aren’t right at the moment.

Growing through acquisition is a much more direct route, and has been on my radar for a while now. Acquisition allows you to scale, and the sooner you can get to economies of scale, the better, in my view. 

Why was Heywoods the right business for you?

Hand on heart, this was the business I passionately wanted to buy. Heywoods has such a rich history and is deeply ingrained in the community. It’s well-established, with fantastic customer perception, with a reputation for quality service, reliability, and trustworthiness.

In all honesty, Heywoods aligns with everything I want to be known for, and the acquisition opportunity came along at exactly the right moment for us, aligning with our growth strategy. The timing and alignment was perfect!

Why did you choose to get external support from Atomic?

This deal had to be done quickly and there were strict timeframes. Offers had to be submitted in a week, and the business had to be bought just as quickly.

The compressed timescale brought a lot of risks, and I saw obvious value in paying for the best advice and support available.  

How did Lucy and the team help?

Lucy provided structure, ensuring we had our ducks in a row to complete the deal successfully and on time. Once we’d taken over, she was our sounding board and was enormously helpful in a whole host of ways.

Lucy has a massive network of quality contacts and knew which were the best to utilise. 

What were some of the challenges you faced?

Where to start? it was a week of high-pressure chaos.

Timeframes were tight, a host of challenges arose, leases had to be wrapped up, comms had to be managed, and we needed to make sure we got the TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment)) process right, which is the regulation that applies when an organisation, or part of it, is transferred from one employer to another.

In the middle of all this frenetic activity, with all the moving parts to consider, I was under a lot of pressure. Without Lucy’s help, I don’t know how we would have managed. 

What lessons have you learnt?

I learned that the best opportunities sometimes lie in a deal that takes courage when you don’t have a full picture of everything it will involve.

You need to take a view and be comfortable with some risks. I learned to trust my instincts. 

What advice would you give to others going through this process?

Above all, make sure you have the best people around you – people like Lucy from Atomic who’ve been through this journey many times before. It’s also important to build a good relationship with the seller. Es

What’s next for Heywoods?

The next step is to build on Heywoods’ fantastic reputation. The brand is incredible, which is something that can’t be replicated. We’re going to develop some of the processes and build a good, well-structured, sustainable business.

Combining this great brand with good business fundamentals is a recipe for success. After 141 years in business, the best is yet to come for Heywoods!