Natasha Whitlock-Watts and her mum Montana Whitlock are brimming with pride as they immerse themselves in the celebrations marking the 25th year of being in business.
That’s not to say their focus on the business in hand is diminished in any way but they can, of course, be forgiven for being more than a little excited at reaching the remarkable milestone.
And the team at Whitlocks Estate Agents have every right to take heart from the successes of the past quarter of a century as one of the area’s leading estate agents.
Founder Montana has taken a step back in the past few years to allow Natasha to spearhead the company and she has made huge strides in building the business. So much so, in fact, that the estate agents are in the running for a clutch of industry awards.
It was in 1993 that Montana founded the company having previously managed offices for a large corporate agency for four years.
Montana was inspired to set up the business as she wanted to provide a higher level of personal service than she was able to at the corporate agency. It meant that A creche was created in the office for Natasha, because when she wasn’t at kindergarten she was very often at the office. And the informal creche soon proved very useful for families with little children when they came in to speak about their property needs.
Natasha joined the company as a trainee negotiator in 2009 – and she hasn’t looked back. Natasha has always been one to apply herself with enormous enthusiasm and she has transformed the company over the past eight years.
But she is quick to heap praise on her mum and mentor. She explained: “My strength comes from my mum, after seeing how devoted and hard she has worked and fought over the years to keep us going whilst being a single mum – she is a total inspiration! Her positivity is so admirable and as an adult I have always aspired to make her proud.
“My determination and drive are to ensure we are as successful as we possibly can be, so my mum doesn’t have to worry about work, staff or money anymore, and to finally feel the love and support she deserves.”
Montana, meanwhile, is full of admiration for the manner in which Natasha has propelled the business to a new heights.
She said: “I couldn’t be prouder of the way Natasha has turned out and grown into a lovely young lady with fantastic business acumen and a go-getting attitude. I know that with Natasha leading the company we have an incredibly bright future as a business.
“More importantly, we are closer than ever now that she understands the journey we started together all those years ago, and the commitment that had to be made.
“This has resulted in the joy of working together in a very successful agency and watching Natasha grow and develop herself and the business daily, makes me feel I am truly blessed.”
