Established estate and letting agent acquired in milestone deal

Lettings and sales agents group, Lomond, has acquired one of North Yorkshire’s oldest independent agencies, Joplings.

The deal will see Lomond’s Linley and Simpson brand take over the business.

Joplings is a well established business and Linley and Simpson’s primary competitor in the Ripon area.

Linley and Simpson will take on all the properties currently under management with Joplings. It will take Linley and Simpson to more than 15,000 properties under management, with the brand also adopting the existing Joplings sales pipeline.

The deal is a milestone for Lomond’s acquisition director, Robert Hamilton.

As one of the founding partners of the original Lomond business, Lomond Capital, in 2010, Hamilton oversaw 40 acquisitions across the UK.

Since Lomond Capital merged with Linley and Simpson in December 2020 to form the current Lomond business, he has managed the acquisition of a further 60 businesses across the UK, with the Joplings deal being his 100th.

Hamilton said: “We’ve embarked on an incredible journey since the early days of Lomond Capital and I’m immensely proud to have overseen the acquisition of 100 businesses to date, from Scotland to the South coast, all of which have been strategically important in realising our aggressive growth ambitions.

“For a seller, having your business acquired is an incredibly proud, life changing event, that allows them to realise the value they’ve built through sheer hard work and determination.

“It’s an intensely personal experience and one that needs to be recognised, acknowledged and managed with great care and respect.”

CEO of Lomond Yorkshire, Martin Elliott, added: “The acquisition of Joplings is one that has been 10 years in the making and holds high strategic importance for the Linley and Simpson brand.

“We’re acquiring an extremely well-established and respected local business and, in doing so, we are cementing our position as the leading agent in the local area.”