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ALBERT
WAS
NO
APRIL FOOL
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When Albert Hipkiss opened a small Hagley Road estate
agents on April Fool’s Day 1929
little did he know it would still be going strong 78
plus years on.
And it’s no joke that it has now grown into a hugely
successful family business with offices in Stourbridge
and Hagley.
These days Albert’s son John and grandson, Andrew, are
keeping up tradition at Walton and Hipkiss, although
things have certainly changed since Albert’s day. John
remembers first starting out at this father’s business
in the 1960’s when he was collecting weekly rent of
around 50p a week.
He said: “It has changed quite drastically over the
years, the house prices and rent in particular are
very different now.
“There are also a lot more estate agents around, when
my father started there were only a handful but at the
last count I think there were 15 estate agents now in
Stourbridge.
“As a family business you can only survive with the
back-up of good staff.
“Our employees past and present, have been very loyal,
we wouldn’t have become such a thriving firm without
them.” When Walton and Hipkiss first arrived in
the town in 1929 at Hagley Road, where it still lies
today, the company was quick to make a name for itself
landing some lucrative sales.
Among the company’s more interesting customers was the
late Squire Brooks, an anvil maker from Lye. It
took Walton and Hipkiss three days to auction
everything from his impressive home opposite the Foley
College. Of course it was not long
before the company was looking to expand, but the
first move into Lye met a sudden end when a German
bomber destroyed the High Street office during the war
years. It was decided not to
rebuild and the company later opened a new office in
Worcester Road Hagley instead.
A string of well-known estate agents have also sprung
from Walton and Hipkiss, Ian Perks,
Stewart Allcock, and Jeffrey Gregson, chartered
surveyor, spent their formative years there before
moving out on their own.
In fact Ian has a particularly haunting memory of his
time at Walton and Hipkiss in Hagley Road. Rumour has
it the office is still home to the ghost of Albert’s
mother who used to live upstairs at the office.
As the story goes, Ian was returning to the office one
night when he saw Gertrude walk through the wall and
down a passage. Now three generations on Walton and
Hipkiss has moved on leaps and bounds, changing with
the computer age thanks to Andrew Hipkiss. Although
the company continues to retain it’s traditional
family background still providing personal service.
It is Walton and Hipkiss's philosophy to work closely
with those who have commercial property issues, be
they existing or potential new clients, we strive to
successfully resolve their Commercial Property
problems and issues. Whether someone
is seeking to reduce occupational costs or simply
trying to find new office, Industrial, Development
land or Retail space, Walton and Hipkiss have the
experience, drive and attitude to make that experience
as simple and as hassle free as possible.
Walton and Hipkiss is a well-established firm of
Property Surveyors based in Stourbridge and Hagley in
the West Midlands now in our 81st year. Our offices
based in Stourbridge and Hagley mean that you can
easily reach us and us reach you. The extensive West
Midlands motorway network, via the M42, M6, M40 and
the M5 is close to hand with the M5 only 5 miles to
the east. We can also be easily reached via the A449
Hagley Road from Birmingham, some 13 miles - we have
meeting facilities and showrooms at each location. If
you prefer the train there are stations in both
Stourbridge and Hagley.
Our central location close to the heart of the
Midlands makes us an ideal choice to handle your
property requirements throughout the region.
The Walton and Hipkiss team are a multi-skilled
multi-talented group and we are able to help with many
aspects of the property arena. We can handle all the
complex specialist issues in relation to land and
property development - both commercial and
residential. We have developed a reputation for
successfully sales ands acquisitions we now offer
these services across the spectrum of commercial
property and development.
Alan K Knight FRICS
Head Of Commercial
Walton and Hipkiss – Stourbridge
01384 397 797 |
