Brights of Bideford celebrates an outstanding 40 years in business

Brights of Bideford Estate Agents are celebrating an incredible 40 years in business this month, having helped thousands of local people find a home.

The Gazette caught up with founder Kevin Bright and his son, director, Simon Bright this week to find out more about this impressive family business.

Established by Kevin J. Bright FRICS in 1982 and having traded under the very recognisable bright yellow name of Kevin Bright for over 25 years, 2008 saw a rebrand for Brights.

A proudly independent and local general practice which encapsulates the personal service and morals which has seen Brights continue to be Bideford’s longest continually practising Estate Agency.

As a business Brights has handled and co-ordinated thousands of transactions over the years of widely varying property types for both vendors and buyers.

Kevin, a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, has almost 50 years of continual experience practising within the Bideford area.

Being locally born and bred and originally trained and qualified with another local firm before starting own practice in 1982

Kevin trains with the Vets at Bideford Rugby Club and is a regular face in the crowd at both home and away games for the Bideford 1st team.

Kevin is proud of the services Brights has provided over the last 40 years, he said: “My career started in 1974 with another Bideford firm qualifying with the Institute of Valuers and Auctioneers (ISVA), subsequently merging with The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).”

Kevin acquired Leslie Bosher & Co in August 1982. Initially a family team with Kevin's late wife Lisa supported by Bright’s first employee and secretary Lorna Boller, who joined straight out of college.

“Our first chattels auction in 1982 was a shop clearance comprising 250 lots raising a grand total of £999 whilst the first property auction was a Spekes Valley, a Hartland bungalow in need of an update but set in an 1/2 acre in a beautiful location selling for £23,750, the next being a semi-detached cottage in Abbotsham for £12,000,” said Kevin.

“It’s been an interesting rollercoaster over the years and we still love doing it! It’s great to be able to provide a great service to our customers and in turn the business has been very good to us. Lots of agents have come and gone in the last 40 years, so we must be doing something right.

“While technology and digital marketing has changed the industry dramatically the principles remain the same. Back when we started, we were using black and white polaroids and provided much more information in written form. Now we let the pictures and videos do the talking. We really try to reduce the waffle and let the properties speak for themselves.

“Over the years we’ve seen thousands of customers through our various services. We would like to say a sincere thank you to all of our customers over the years. Without you we would not be here. We would also like to thank the various staff members we’ve had over the years; we wish them all well.”

Kevin’s son Simon Bright, company director, said: “When I joined in 2007, the online property portals started coming in and we were apprehensive about using them at first. That transition into the internet and digital marketing has changed the industry dramatically.

“We’ve been concentrating on staying up to date with using multi-media, video, pictures and social media to put our properties in front of our customers. The exposure the internet gives to our properties is so important, it levels the playing field for us. It’s all about presentation, we really do put the effort in for our customers.

“We try to look after everyone as much as we can, we believe in providing the personal touch. It’s part of our family business ethos. We are just the right size to look after our customers. It is hard work but it is also incredibly rewarding.

Simon added: “I think we do everything well and we’re flexible when we need to be. It’s about providing honest support and guidance while letting customers make their own decisions. There’s nothing more valuable than experience in this industry. That’s what I find important.”