13/08/2007
Commercial estate agent Robert Leigh spotted a gap in the market: in an industry geared to helping landlords find tenants, no one was helping commercial tenants find their ideal property.
So he set up his own company, Devono, which is now London's only property company working exclusively for tenants.
It's daunting doing something no one else has done because you ask yourself why no one has already done it. But I was convinced tenants would pay for a good service
says Robert, 27.
He had few savings so he borrowed £40,000 from a bank under the Government's Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme and started work from a friend's office to keep costs low.
I knew who my customers were, so I was calling them from day one. Within six months I had paid back my loan
says Robert.
Now the company has its own office in Mayfair, eight staff and a £1.5 million turnover.
Know your customers and how you are going to reach them, and don't spend all your money on the set up. Retain some so you can spend it as you see how the business develops.