Property-Porn Stars

In this episode, David Lindley sits down with Sam Ashdown - Co-Founder of AshdownJones, a premium estate agency in the Lake District, who have enjoyed huge success since launch; doing things differently to conventional agency! 

In this conversation we get in to some of those different strategies, including: 

 • From Kitchen Table to Premium Brand: Ashdown Jones launched with no premises, no investor funding and no big backing. It began at Sam’s kitchen table, proof that premium agency is built on strategy and mindset rather than budget. 

 
 • Selling the Unsellable: The first listing was a property that had been with multiple agents, with many failed attempts to sell. They succeeded without reducing the asking price, simply by transforming presentation and narrative.  

 • Brand Before Property: Sam believes the agent brand and feeling of trust come first. Clients need to believe in the brand story before they believe in the listing. It is not just about the home, it is about who is representing it.  

 • Marketing That Feels Premium: They focus on poetic property descriptions, lifestyle storytelling, magazine-level photography and bespoke brochures. Presentation is the differentiator in premium agency.  

 • Video Should Serve the Agency, Not the Listing: Sam does not believe property videos with agents presenting outside a house are effective. Instead, she uses video to build her agency brand and connect emotionally with the audience. 

 
 • Direct Mail Is Their Biggest Growth Lever: Their most successful lead generation channel is direct mail, sent with consistency, relevance and personality. It remains the most predictable and scalable method they use.  

 • Premium Clients Choose People, Not Portals: Vendors want to feel their home is valued, cherished and understood by the agent. They are not looking for a portal listing. They are looking for a steward of their asset.  

 • The Office Is Not a Shop Window: Ashdown Jones intentionally chose not to be on a traditional high street. Their rural location fits their brand, creates exclusivity and reflects a premium lifestyle experience.  

 • Not a Lifestyle Business: Sam speaks openly about the difference between a personal brand business and one that has true asset value. She believes in building something saleable, scalable and not dependent on a single individual.  

 • And lastly....47 Home Moves: Sam has moved house an unbelievable 47 times, which gives her deep empathy for sellers and buyers and a personal understanding of the emotional journey involved in moving.

The premium market is NOT doing what you might think...! 🤔

Simon Gates kindly sent through his premium market report for the latest month's data, and even he labelled it as 'surprising'...

So see what you think, and let me know 🙂

Click here: https://us21.campaign-archive.com/?u=db74f5b588c5289dd2935b2fe&id=002db01c01 to subscribe to receive Simon's full report (plus an unorthodox top tip coming into the winter period), plus some cracking content from Elaine Penhaul and Simon Leadbetter (and myself!) to boot, in November's Premium Estate Agency News.

In this extraordinary episode of Property-Porn Stars, David Lindley sits down with Andrew “Diesel” Bennett, a former police officer whose life was turned upside down when he suddenly lost his entire memory at the age of 30.

Andrew shares the unimaginable story of rebuilding his identity from scratch, relearning who he was, rediscovering his family, and rebuilding his life through sheer determination. From there, he found purpose in the world of performance psychology, going on to work with Olympians, Paralympians, business leaders, and Formula 1 champions, including Fernando Alonso.

Together, David and Andrew explore what “high performance” really means, the psychology of resilience, and how understanding yourself and your human wiring can transform both life and business. They also dive into practical strategies for estate agents and entrepreneurs: how to recover quickly from setbacks, build resilience, and understand clients on a deeper human level.

It is one of the most powerful and moving conversations yet, raw, inspiring and packed with lessons for anyone who wants to perform at their best.

In this conversation, we cover: 

 • Extraordinary Life Story: Andrew recounts his time in the police, exposure to trauma, and the sudden onset of dissociative amnesia that wiped his entire memory at age 30.
 • Rebuilding from Zero: How he relearned everyday life, from making coffee to re-meeting his wife and family, while living with a 24-hour memory span for two years.
 • Finding Purpose: Transition from police work to Porsche driver, to VIP chauffeur at Heathrow, to stroke survivor, and ultimately to high-performance coach.
 • Turning Trauma into Strength: How personal tragedy, including his brother’s suicide, became the catalyst for understanding mental health and resilience.
 • Defining High Performance: “Anyone who wants to be better than they were yesterday is a high performer.”
 • Practical Mindset Tools:
 • There is no failure, only feedback. Learn, adapt, and move forward.
 • Resilience is “how quickly you return to standard performance after a setback.”
 • Language, Attitude, Behaviour: the core framework for personal and team success.
 • Understanding People: How to read communication cues — visual, auditory, and kinesthetic — to better connect with others (perfect for agents understanding clients).
 • Spotting a Liar: Insights from his police training on reading body language and eye-movement cues.
 • Performance in Sport & Business: Lessons from coaching Formula 1 drivers and Olympians, and why mindset and data awareness separate good from great.
 • Human Connection: Why success begins with self-understanding and empathy. “Know your human being.”

Is the premium market struggling with pre-budget nerves?

The answer might surprise you - find out in this month's premium market update in 3 minutes.

(OK the video is longer than that, but I threw in some brucey bonuses from Simon Gates full report, which you comes out tomorrow, subscribe in the link below)

Also, did you get the answer to the 'cliff hanger' right?

Read last months, and subscribe to receive October's edition, here: https://us21.campaign-archive.com/?u=db74f5b588c5289dd2935b2fe&id=b4ba42cc4f

In this episode of Property-Porn Stars, David Lindley and Matt Giggs sit down with Sarah-Louise Fairburn, Founder and MD of Imp & Maker, the luxury hamper and gifting company shaking up the food & drink market.

Sarah-Louise shares her journey from running one of the UK’s biggest farming businesses to starting again with a disruptive new brand. We discuss the challenges of building a luxury business, the sacrifices behind the glossy exterior, and the importance of resilience, vision, and surrounding yourself with the right people. She opens up about balancing entrepreneurship with being a single mother of four, lessons from her mentors, and why disruption and high standards are at the heart of her success.

Sarah-Louise also appeared on BBC’s Dragons’ Den, pitching her vision for Imp & Maker to the panel of investors. She shares candidly what the experience was really like behind the scenes — from the preparation and intensity of the pitch, to how the Dragons reacted, and the lessons she took away from being in that high-pressure spotlight. It’s a fascinating look at what most viewers never get to see on the show.

If you’re an entrepreneur, business leader, or simply curious about what it takes to build a modern luxury brand, this episode is packed with insight, inspiration and honesty. 

In this episode, we discuss: 

 • Vision & Disruption: Imp & Maker was born to modernise gifting — every item should be used, loved, and create memories (not just wicker baskets and re-gifted tea).
 • High Standards: Sarah-Louise refuses to settle; inspired by mentors like Judith Batchelar (ex-Sainsbury’s), she obsesses over every detail of brand experience.
 • Entrepreneurial Drive: Built one of the UK’s largest egg brands, then started again from scratch after a separation — now determined to prove herself again.
 • Resilience & Sacrifice: Talks openly about scars from setbacks, grueling challenges, long hours, and the emotional toll of building a business.
 • Surroundings Matter: Emphasises the importance of the right people, both in personal life and in business networks.
 • Scaling Challenges: From supply chain problems to expensive lessons in Google ads and tech systems — learned agility and adaptability are key.
 • Brand Positioning: Differentiates through modern, artisan, relevant products and an exceptional unboxing experience.
 • Women in Business: Candid reflections on being a female entrepreneur, navigating biases, and inspiring her daughters to believe they can achieve anything.
 • Health & Balance: Stresses discipline in eating, exercise, and family meal times as ways to cope with burnout.
 • Long-Term Ambition: Aims to build one of the UK’s biggest gifting brands and, longer term, help other entrepreneurs from a place of real experience.

The usual monthly premium market update, but featuring the stats man himself Simon Gates! So instead of the usual 3 or 4 minute long summary, we analyse the premium markets performance this year so far, and how August fared, in light of political turmoil affecting the market. 

What all this means to you, your sellers and your buyers? Find out here!

In this episode of Property-Porn Stars, I am joined by a hugely successful premium agent, with arguably the most incredible story in the industry.  

Alice Watson-Smith, Managing Director of Fine & Country French Riviera & Provence shares her story, and her insight, grit and determination needed to succeed in a hugely competitive market. 

Alice’s story is nothing short of remarkable. Born in Zimbabwe, her family lost everything overnight when their farm was seized during Mugabe’s land reforms. Forced to flee to South Africa with only suitcases in the car, they eventually rebuilt their lives in Europe, starting again in Cannes.

Today, Alice leads one of the most respected premium real estate agencies on the French Riviera. She shares:

- The dramatic story of leaving Zimbabwe and starting over from nothing
- How her family turned chance property purchases during the Cannes Film Festival into a thriving business
- The six tough years of door-knocking and prospecting it took to establish their office, eventually building the business up to 18 self employed agents working alongside her
- Why she championed *exclusive mandates* in a chaotic French system, changing how sellers and agents work
- Insights into today’s Riviera market; from €400k apartments to €5m+ villas, and a client base 60% international, 40% French
- The importance of resilience, reputation, and daring greatly in both business and life

And lastly, a profound message that has stuck in my mind for 5 years since I heard Alice share it on stage…maybe it will stick with you too. 

If you’re interested in luxury property, resilience in business, or what it really takes to build success from the ground up, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

In this episode of Property-Porn Stars, host David Lindley speaks with Mark Breffit, a leading figure in London’s premium property market.

With over £1 billion of property sold, Mark shares his journey from working at Dexters, Knight Frank, and Hamptons Private Office in prime central London, to launching his latest venture — KnokKnok, a prop-tech platform aiming to reshape how buyers and agents connect.

We cover:
•Life inside corporate agency vs the independent mindset
•Mark’s early career experience with Airbnb and what he learned about innovation
•Why tech, personal branding, and consumer behaviour are reshaping estate agency
•The inspiration behind KnockKnock, and how it bridges the gap between portals, social media, and direct client connections

If you’re interested in property, startups, or the future of estate agency, this is a must-watch conversation.

In this super-short episode, we cover the headlines of what is going on in the premium property market (spoiler, there is lots of activity!) for July 2025. 

All stats provided by Simon Gates, whose full report will be out on Friday as part of Premium Estate Agency News - you can read last month's episode and subscribe for free here: https://us21.campaign-archive.com/?u=db74f5b588c5289dd2935b2fe&id=dd3de8a355

Is your business worth what you think it is?? 

This is crucial listening for agents, in order to avoid a nasty surprise down the road, and to set their business up for future success if and when they look to exit. 

This month’s guest is Adam J. Walker, who is a Business Transfer Agent (or, put another way, he is an agent for Estate Agencies!). With decades of experience and having accomplished over 700 agency sales in his career, he shares with us the pitfalls, traps, and value-reducing mistakes agents make… as well as how to set yourself up for maximum value on your exit. 

Plus, how all this plays out in the new world of Self-Employed agents, as well as the future of valuations in the agency market. 

In this conversation, we cover:

Lifestyle business vs. saleable business, how even profitable businesses can be almost unsellable.

The importance of lettings in business valuation

Valuation benchmarks, and how to sell for more…

Common deal structures, and what to avoid

Top mistakes agency owners make when selling

When to start planning a sale

What the characteristics of a saleable agency are (and they might not be what you think)

Industry trends, changes over the past 25+ years, and what to expect next

Perhaps most interestingly, when Adam thinks that traditional sales agencies will be the most valuable… i.e., when to sell!

Certainly not one to miss….