A FAMILY have taken a big leap of faith to invest in a new business venture – in the middle of a pandemic.

Four members of the same family have launched Tiptree Homes Estate Agents.

They claim it is the only estate agents dedicated solely to the village.

After more than a year of preparation, the business owners say they saw the perfect opportunity to offer something different in Tiptree.

The team haven’t let further Covid restrictions affect the launch of their new business.

Owner Adrian Cook said: “Our aim from the very beginning was to provide a fantastic level of service and we can see through watching other estate agents, chasing as much business as possible dilutes the level service that can be offered.

“We want to have time for all our clients, stay small, local and most of all give a level of focus that we ourselves would want.”

Adrian said the drive to support local business gave them the push to set up the agency and that although some might see it as an “odd move” or “poor business decision”, they strongly dispute that.

Adrian said: “It was a bit of a concern for us, opening during a pandemic, but we don’t know otherwise.

“It may have affected the pace we started at, but overall we are happy so far with how everything is going.”

Just two months after launching the team are happy with the progress they are making.

They decided not to open an office but instead work from the comfort of their own homes to save costs, and are also focussing on sales.

Adrian said: “Having seen how stressful and time-consuming dealing with tenants and landlords can be, a decision was made to leave this out of our business plan. “While working in estate agents offering both sales and lettings, I’ve seen how it can leak over and take time away from other customers.”

He added: “The community here are so friendly, everyone is so lovely. Everyone is welcoming and you can’t walk down the street without a friendly smile.”