Tovey (pictured, right) and Maybery (pictured, left) were part of the foursome which established Mortgages Wales in 2021 with colleagues Paula Clement and Megan Addy.
Tovey said: “It’s been a big learning curve; if we said it was easy, we’d be lying.
“The four of us left at the same time and our strength is in our differences.”
Maybery said he was proud of what had been achieved and added that the firm was “constantly evolving”.
“If you’re not moving forward, you’re standing still,” he said.
He said it was important to get feedback from their advisers to allow colleagues to give their input and the business progress.
Mortgages Wales is an appointed representative of The Right Mortgage Network and between the four founders, there are over 50 years’ of experience. The firm advises on mainstream, buy-to-let, equity release and general insurance products.
Maybery said there was a big difference with how they worked now, coming from an environment where there were “a lot of middle management and senior members” who had never worked as mortgage advisers.
“The difference is here is we’re top performing mortgage brokers that have set up and run a mortgage brokerage specifically designed for mortgage brokers,” he added.
Tovey said being part of a network allowed the firm to “shift to modern ways of working” more easily , such as introducing newer technology which enabled the team to work flexibly.
Maybery agreed and said the firm was able to implement change effectively, rather than waiting months for something to happen.
“Technology moves on so quickly there’s so much you can do.
“The biggest difference is our advisers have a direct channel to me and Adam and that’s what leads to implementing that change and being more efficient,” he added.
From employee to employer
Discussing how they transitioned from being employed workers to self-employed company owners, Maybery said they were “spinning a lot of plates”.
“Obviously, first and foremost, the customer is at the heart of everything you do in an advisory capacity as well as running a business,” he added.
Maybery added that it was about “learning to manage your time effectively, give the customer [good] service – that’s obviously number one.
“And then planning your strategy, how to set yourself apart, how genuinely to live our brand values.”
He said the uncertainty of the financial markets highlighted this because if one aspect of the business was affected, then other parts could be positively impacted. He said recent market challenges had strengthened the firm’s business model and structure.
Maybery continued: “We really do live our values and learning to implement them is really important.”
Tovey said: “For anybody leaving a relatively well paid job, there’s an element of stress but post-pandemic, this was a leap of faith for everybody involved with Mortgages Wales. It was always going to happen, I think the difference is that we’ve done it together.”
He said previous employers offered a platform to “cut your teeth” but the idea of moving on was always a consideration.
“We can say from firsthand experience that if anybody’s considering it, they should do it,” Tovey added.
Tovey said in terms of being an adviser and a leader, he was under no illusions that it was his duty to “set the tone”.
“It’s up to us to offer protection and make sacrifices for the good of the team,” he added,
Tovey said since launching, they recruited Louise Davies as relationship manager. She had been with John Francis and Countrywide as an estate agency manager for around 30 years which Tovey said gave Mortgage Wales “the responsibility to make sure we take care of her”.
He said if business leaders served their teams, their teams would serve them back.
“It generally is a supportive team environment. We work smartly with smart people, and we learn from each other all of the time,” Tovey added.
Priming for growth
Tovey said the firm reached a place where its sales process was slick so it was now looking to scale up this year by recruiting five to 10 advisers.
He wants to bring people in who fit the firm’s values, adding that the infrastructure was in place to support this growth.
Maybery said he wanted “forward thinking” advisers to uphold the firm’s strong, local reputation. He said Mortgage Wales offered an “excellent proposition for the right advisers”.
Tovey said: “We’re hopeful that will bear fruit when it comes to taking new people on board. We’re confident that we’re offering something different here. Ultimately, this is an environment where everybody’s voice is heard.”
Maybery said Mortgage Wales would stay true to its culture as the business expands, because it was important to not “lose sight of the basics” and “remember your roots”. He also said this would be important if and when the time came for him and Tovey to step away from advising.
Maybery said the firm had a “very high returning customer rate” since launching, adding: “You do build your own brand and people buy into it. When they discover that you’re no longer part of the corporate machine, they seem to want to go more out of their way to support you and your business.”
Tovey said the Welsh housing market was healthy, and alongside referrals and sustained refinance demand the firm was in a “lucky position”.
Tovey said the firm was able to look at markets which were restricted in their previous employment, such as second charge, bridging, and commercial. He suggested these as opportunities for growth.
Maybery said Mortgages Wales was also reaching out to people on social media platforms such as TikTok, to “cut through the noise of clickbait” and inform borrowers that things are not as bad as the headlines suggest.
