People: Eaton Smith Solicitors; The Source; Roberts Mart; and more

Eaton Smith Solicitors is growing its Conveyancing team with the appointments of Afreen Mhar and Rauhill Ahmed.

Mhar has 10 years of conveyancing experience and qualified as a solicitor in January 2019 specialising in conveyancing.

She has clients from all over the country and has built up her reputation, skills and experience working with other local and national firms.

She covers all areas of Residential Property including sales, purchases, Remortgages, Transfers of Equity and Right to Buys.  

Mhar said: “I am really excited to have joined Eaton Smith Solicitors, it is refreshing to be in a firm that has a real modern outlook and takes great care of their clients and staff.

“It is a priority of mine that my clients have an efficient and pleasant experience. I am very happy to join the team and see where the future leads.”

Ahmed studied Law at the University of Huddersfield and graduated in 2015. He has focused on residential conveyancing since graduating.

He said: “Being from Huddersfield, I am so pleased to be working for a local firm. The main aim for me is to help the conveyancing team grow.”

Julie Beales, head of conveyancing, said: “Afreen and Rauhill are great additions to our team. They have many years of the type of experience in conveyancing work that fits perfectly with the diverse and interesting work that we do here at Eaton Smith for local and national clients.

“We look forward to working with them both as we continue to grow and expand.”

:::

Sheffield training and skills academy, The Source, has expanded its marketing expertise with two new executives – thanks to a training programme it runs for unemployed people across South Yorkshire.

The talents of Chetna Raniga-Jogia, now business development executive and marketing lead, and Tetiana Karpenko, marketing and learners’ engagement executive, were spotted while they were at The Source on a Sector Routeways bootcamp in digital marketing and business admin.

The academy runs this bootcamp with Opportunity Sheffield, the city council’s employment and skills service.

Both women were directed to the course by their Job Centre advisors.

They were unemployed and had strong marketing skills, but had not previously worked in the UK sector.

Karpenko, 23, came to Sheffield in November 2022 to escape the war in her native Ukraine. She grew up in Kharkiv and was working as a brand manager, producing content, photography and social media for six niche fashion labels when war broke out.

She had to flee her city and came to Sheffield under the Homes For Ukraine Scheme.

Raniga-Jogia, who moved to Sheffield in 2010, was a pharmacy technician with Sheffield Teaching Hospitals but left her job when the pandemic piled pressure on hospital staff.

Nairobi-born, she grew up in Texas, where she gained a BA in psychology. She had become adept at marketing, social media and graphic design while running her own dance and performing arts academy in Dallas and was keen to return to marketing.

The Source’s deputy CEO, Natalie Doherty, said: “Opportunity Sheffield’s Sector Routeways programme, which we are proud to deliver, is getting strong  results. It gets unemployed people upskilled and into work placements where they can prove their worth to companies experiencing skills shortages.

“In the case of Chetna and Tetiana, while they were training with us we saw they had huge potential and urged them to apply for roles with us.  They are now valued members of our marketing team.”

Raniga-Jogia said: “The programme changed the direction of my life. It opened my eyes to my potential. I love my job at The Source.

“One of my tasks is to encourage people to sign up to Sector Routeways courses. I am my best example of its success.”

Karpenko is studying for a Digital Marketing Apprenticeship Level 3 with The Source until December 2024, which will give her a UK qualification.

She said: “After such a terrible year, I’m working in marketing  for an organisation which helps people to change their lives. That’s exactly what The Source has done for me.”

:::

Amy McGuire has joined Leeds-based flexible packaging manufacturer, Roberts Mart, to support business growth, bringing the company’s business development team up to five.

She has over nine years of industry experience to bring to the role having had responsibility for managing a large UK portfolio of clients prior to joining Roberts Mart.

She hopes to introduce the range of products and innovative solutions to a wider customer audience.

McGuire said: “The people and culture here at Roberts Mart are like nowhere else; there is real passion and a vast amount of experience.”

She will work alongside her colleagues in the business development team with a focus on new markets as well as introducing new solutions to their long-standing clients.

Recent investment in new machinery including a new pouch machine and a planned facility expansion mean the business can easily manage an increase in contracts. Turnover has already increased to just under £45m over the previous year.

The sixth-generation family firm supplies packaging solutions for brands across the UK and Europe, from its headquarters in Leeds. 

It has a staff of 220 and operates predominantly in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector, for companies such as Taylors of Harrogate and John Cotton Group.

:::

Property specialist Jade Hagan has joined Yorkshire company Preston Baker to help people in York with their property requirements.

The firm offers services to home buyers and sellers; financial services, property maintenance services, and new homes, land, architecture and planning services. 

Hagan said: “I love helping people to buy and sell houses and to support them from start to finish.

“Giving a truly personal level of service and always being on hand to help is what I pride myself in. It’s a different housing market now and it takes a committed approach to get the best outcomes.”

Hagan, who lives in York with her family, has over eight years’ experience in property.

Her role as a Preston Baker Associate will cover the north of the York area, including Rawcliffe, Clifton Moor, Clifton, and the surrounding villages, including Haxby, Strensall, Shipton by Beningbrough, and Linton-on-Ouse.

She started her career with Linley and Simpson in York and most recently worked for Ashtons Estate Agents.

Hagan added: “I have lots of experience in the York property market and can help home movers get the very best results because of my strong local knowledge and experience.

“This, combined with Preston Baker’s innovative marketing and technology approach, supports the sales process and means my clients get a first class service.”