Fine & Country boss claims agency is stealing market share off rivals
Simon Leadbetter says his more entrepreneurial franchise holders are beating historic rivals at their own game in the prime and super-prime markets.
The bosses of estate agency names such as Savills and Knight Frank may be getting uneasy after their rival Fine & Country claimed to have grown its market share by 20% over the past 12 months within the £750,000+ market.
Started up 21 years ago by Malcolm Lindley and then bought by The Guild parent company nurtur, Fine & Country now operates 300 branches across the UK.
Its global CEO Simon Leadbetter (pictured) says the agency has also made progress in the £500,000+ homes market during the same period, moving from nine to fifth position by listings.
“A 20% growth in market share in any market segment is significant, especially when listings are not easy to come by, and other agencies have seen a decline in instructions,” says Leadbetter.
He claims the two leading estate agency brands within the prime sector of the market have seen their share of listings fall by 10% and 24%, respectively, during the same period.
Market share
“Of the top ten estate agencies listing properties priced at £1 million and above, Fine & Country is the only brand that has seen market share growth last year,” he adds.
Also, Fine & Country says it saw 50% listings growth in the £2 million+ housing as it took market share all its rivals in this market.
Leadbetter reckons the agency’s recent market share gains are down to just two factors – customer referrals and that independent agents are more hungry than directly-employed staff at big firms.
“Entrepreneurially-minded agency professionals make up our network, working together under one banner, supporting each other while being supported by an established premium estate agency brand,” he says.
