London agency uses cash injection to hit acquisition ...

Dexters, which last week secured a reported £130m in new investment for the coming years, has snapped up the historic Roy Brookes agency in the south east of the capital.

Roy Brooks has two offices and in years past had a reputation for celebrity vendor clients including Anne Widdecombe, Hardy Amies, Nigel Lawson, Jenny Agutter, Terry Jones and Anthony Gormley. Brooks himself died in 1971 having built a reputation for brutally honest property descriptions in advertisements in the Sunday Times and Observer newspapers.

Dexters chief executive Andy Shepherd says: “We have long been an admirer of this iconic business and it’s talented staff, who we very much look forward to working with.

“Dexters has a distinctive approach to the industry combining a strong local presence, hard work and feet-on-the-ground with state-of-the-art web, marketing and PR. This combination has made us the market leader in London for sales, lettings and property management.

“We are committed to helping to grow Roy Brooks Estate Agents and have an initial three year plan to work closely in strengthening and expanding the business. We have the resources to free up the local offices so they can focus fully on their clients and their property.”

He says the acquisition marks the start of a new wave of expansion into east and south east London; Dexters currently has 70 branches across the capital and wants 30 more as a result of the huge investment announced last week from Oakley Capital.

Over the next three years Dexters says it plans further expansion “into the capital’s lucrative new homes, build-to-rent sectors and the corporate and international lettings market and to grow its on-line presence with more on-line and social-media marketing.”