W.A.Ellis

Oustanding Contribution to Lettings - Lucy Morton

With a career spanning nearly 30 years, Lucy Morton is a deserving winner of this award and we are thrilled to honour her publicly, not only for her own personal achievements but also for the dedication, loyalty and diligence she has shown to our industry.

Having started as a lettings agent in 1983, Lucy established the lettings department for WA Ellis in 1990 and since then has built the department team into an award winning, market leader.

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GOLD - Best Single Office London Lettings Agency 2011

W.A. Ellis offers an extremely high standard of service to a very discerning client base. Every valuation appointment is attended by at least one partner, if not two which can only mean clients are receiving the very best advice from extremely experienced professionals. High levels of communication and personal service throughout the whole lettings process ensures great client retention rates. They simply don't lose clients. W.A. Ellis is the largest lettings team under one roof in London and the personal service combined with the vast experience of partners and staff attracts lots of referrals. Employee retention is high, due in no small part to the excellent training programme. Their success is down to honesty, integrity and knowledge. Delivery of a personal service and superior advice to clients shines through and results in it being instructed on some of the most expensive rental stock in the UK.

GOLD - Best Luxury Lettings 2011

Congratulations must go to W.A. Ellis for winning the gold in this category for the second year running. Its luxury lettings offering remains simply outstanding and the judges were impressed with the efforts made by the entire team to go even further in their customer service standards. The luxury lettings department is a niche division in the agency and the small team are all directly involved in every aspect of the daily running of this service. The expertise of the staff is impressive at this level and strong emphasis is placed on professional qualifications, communication and partner level involvement – with these caveats in mind, two partners inspect each property every time. Operating in the high end market which is London based luxury lettings, there is a vital understanding of overseas links and specialist services are offered to both overseas landlords and those tenants looking to immigrate as well as those who are home grown. Very, very impressive indeed.

SILVER - Best Property Management 2011

W.A. Ellis sets the bar high with its property management offering and the team were very clear about what they do, why they do it and how results are achieved. This honesty and integrity is a trait which runs like a thread through the W.A. Ellis proposition. There is extremely low staff turnover which allows rapport to be nurtured and provides continuity for all. Property managers are involved in pitches made to landlords and developers which ensures that the service and standards provided is apparent from day one and relationships are therefore established very early on. The systems and processes are excellent - clear, concise and very well established however the team is always looking for ways to improve – impressive when one considers how high the standards already are. ‘Quietly outstanding' is obviously a mantra this organisation stands by.

SILVER - Best Customer Service 2011

This agency continues to impress for a second year. As the largest letting agency in London with the entire team under one roof, the staff retention levels are aspirational to say the least – the partners have 88 years combined industry experience, 69 of which have been spent at W.A. Ellis and it is clear this loyalty and dedication filters down through the entire team and through them to the customers. Customer service at W.A. Ellis is very personal; they offer advice on interior design to help maximise appeal and rental yields and offer excellent meet and greet and mediation sessions between the newer landlords and tenants to strengthen relationships. The huge focus on training is crucial to the business ethos and there has not been a single complaint over the past 12 months. Working on the understanding that the future of the business centres around current customers and their continued loyalty, the team work hard to maintain the outstanding reputation of this small agency.

2010 AWARDS

GOLD - Best Single Office Lettings Agency 2010

This agency really stands out as a business which is setting an example to the industry as a "how to" in lettings. Competing in one of the most exclusive and discerning lettings markets in the world, it shows a level of expertise which is breathtaking and punches above its weight at every level. The team are extremely experienced and from the directors down, everyone is hands-on throughout the entire lettings process. Two way communication and dialogue between the team and clients is actively encouraged and tenants and landlords can rest assured they receive advice and information of the highest standards; this approach is proven via the outstanding renewal and referral rates. W.A. Ellis is an agency which offers big office services with a bespoke personal touch and the judges felt that customers are in the best possible hands with them.

SILVER - Best Estate Agency Customer Service

During a period when many estate agents were making cutbacksWA Ellis made a huge investment in improving their service standards. The staff received external training on how to succeed in a more difficult housing market and many business processes were redesigned, for example, prior to every valuation the valuer will carry out a land registry search, research the property's planning history and obtain comprehensive comparable evidence in order to ensure the most accurate valuation. Service standards are monitored using QMS procedures and service questionnaires and the team constantly step outside the normal realms of customer care to get the job done including a senior partner personally removing an unwanted piano from a property to enable a speedy completion. The greatest testament to WA Ellis' service standards though is the very high number of repeat and recommendation clients and the fact that they have won significant market share and maintained their profitability during the downturn.

An exciting and dynamic business which punches above its weight to compete with some big brands in its area. Clever use of marketing gives the impression of a much larger agency and communicates an expert team that is able offer an experienced, bespoke and personal service.WA Ellis has demonstrated a consistent commitment to service and innovation, giving them the cutting edge in what is an incredibly competitive market place. It is apparent that the entire company has a very can-do approach and are continually improving; offering extraordinarily high levels of customer service. From mystery shop results to market share and high standards of marketing and promotion this business is well deserving of this gold award.

This long established Knightsbridge firm more than holds its weight against bigger name estate agency chains in their area. The vast experience of their long serving team coupled with their honest and open approach with clients is the key to their success. The entire team demonstrate fantastic commitment and understanding across the breadth of the business - the judges were particularly impressed with their high quality, structured approach to dealing with new potential vendors and the hands-on approach of the partners.

2010

2009