Countrywide : acquires John Francis Estate Agents in Wales

Countrywide plc, the UK's largest property services group, has increased its regional footprint in Swansea and across South Wales with the recent acquisition of leading estate and lettings agency, John Francis Estate Agents.

John Francis operates a 21 branch network covering Swansea and South Wales which serves all aspects of the property market, including services in residential sales and lettings, commercial sales, auctions, new homes and financial services. The business has a market leading reputation for its modern approach, IT innovations, high quality and professional customer service and knowledgeable and trained employees.

John Francis will continue to operate as normal under its well established brand name, managed by Directors Bethan Edmund-Harper and Richard Emmanuel. All employees will continue to work in their current roles while benefiting from Countrywide's shared marketing and IT services, national scale and unrivalled property market insight.

Bethan Edmund-Harper, Director at John Francis Estate Agents, said:

'We are delighted and excited to have joined the UK's largest property services group. John Francis is a strong brand and a well know business in Swansea and across South Wales, and as part of Countrywide we believe that the business will continue to flourish and grow. The business will continue to trade as normal across our branch network and our employees will continue to deliver a high quality customer service as always.'

Established since 1999, John Francis has grown from strength to strength, driven by its former owners, Nigel Jones and Trevor Carr. Both Nigel and Trevor will continue to support the business in the short term as consultants, Nigel focusing mainly on property auctions and Trevor in new homes.

Nigel Jones, Former owner of John Francis Estate Agents, said:

'Trevor and I are pleased to have sold John Francis to Countrywide, as we believe the business will continue to develop and benefit from their retail structure and strategy.

'Countywide particularly stood out to us as a business that focuses not only on its customers needs but also on the training and development of its employees. They can provide our employees with the opportunity to build on their current strong skills and achieve industry recognised qualifications.'

Bruce Evans, Commercial Director for Countrywide, said:

'John Francis is the perfect fit for Countrywide, as the business has achieved a market leading position with a dedicated team of 130 employees that are renowned for delivering a high quality, reliable, honest and professional service.This business plays a key role in our retail division strategy, to expand our regional footprint and stand out as a responsible key player in the property industry.

'As the UK's largest property services group, we are dedicated to bringing people and property together and make sure all of our customers are united with their dream home. We do this by developing a deep understanding of our customers and their needs, which is supported by our integrated group structure.

'At Countrywide we are very interested in talking to professional agents with single or multi-branch businesses almost anywhere in the UK. If you have any enquiries relating to acquisitions or wish to find out more please get in touch at acquisitions@countrywide.co.uk '

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