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Meet Our Team
Joanne Alderton - Managing Partner
Before establishing Aldertons, Joanne was quite the dedicated globe trotter, working all over the world for large tour operators, with spells in Sri Lanka and Cuba and placements that allowed her to explore the whole of Spain. When Joanne and her husband finally decided to settle down and buy a home in their beloved Benissa the experience was a very frustrating one, and at the same time Joanne was constantly being asked by friends (and friends of friends) for help with Spanish paperwork. Hence the idea of starting a relocation company was born. In September 2015 the business began with Joanne working “home alone”, but the company is now a busy team of five multi-lingual and experienced professionals. A typical working week for Joanne is keeping busy searching for several homes for new clients, as well as liasing non-stop with architects, builders, decorators, landscape gardeners and some “very tricky” town halls for other clients with renovation projects, whilst at the same time, preparing houses to be furnished and photographed in order to be placed on the holiday rental market, add in to this organising and preparing for the various property shows that Aldertons attends throughout Europe, whilst simultaneously ensuring her 2 young girls attend their sailing, ballet, gymnastics and dance classes, a slightly barmy husband gets to his walking football club at least twice per week and 4 dogs who get to run in their favourite forest daily, and you start to see why Joanne is famous for her love of Cava!! If you have yet to meet the boss think of the best juggler you've ever seen, the longest to do list ever written and the biggest warmest smile. That's Joanne!
Andrew is the newest member to the Aldertons Team, albeit he's been around since the very start as he is married to Joanne. When the family first moved to Spain, he continued to work in the UK for one of the most well respected children´s shoe brands in the world, as their Brand Training Manager. However the commute to and from Spain soon started to wear thin, and he realised that the Spanish lifestyle was suiting him more and more, he has now jumped head first into Aldertons... officially as the head of marketing and sales, but in reality he is our tea boy, dogsbody and office jester all rolled into one. With a focus on customer care and a passion for his adopted homeland, Andrew is happy to meet with Aldertons clients to chat through their dreams for their new lives overseas or hopes for their holiday homes. With a keen eye for detail, and a catalogue of experience dressing some of the most famous stores in the UK (Harrods, John Lewis, Russel & Bromley, to name a few), he is spearheading our renovations department and paving the way for our holidays & rentals team ensuring our clients will holiday in the best villas and apartments available.
Emma Peta Jones - Operations Manager
Emma is probably the most important person within the Alderton’s team. She singlehandedly manages our head office operations, whilst juggling the bureaucratic applications for driving license changes, NIE, Residencia etc, whilst at the same time keeping the rest of the team organised with their property finding tasks! She’s a real all-rounder!
Moving to Spain with her parents when she was just 12 years old, Emma is the perfect person to assist our clients who have worries about moving to Spain with children as she has first-hand experience from a child’s perspective. Upon finishing her studies in Spain, she jumped feet first in to the real estate and construction industry within the Costa Blanca, passing the Spanish examinations for Property Advisor and Legal Auctions in 2007. Having supported countless clients through the process of purchasing and building property here, her in depth hands on experiences of how the system works makes her our “font of all knowledge”.
Passionate about the Costa Blanca, and Spain in general, Emma is an avid outdoors person and you will often find her in Benissa port preparing for a scuba dive, in the Benissa mountains tying her laces for a mountain run or even saddling up her horse to go on a countryside adventure.
We feel extremely lucky to have Emma managing us – and we just know that all our clients feel the same!
Sara Higgins - Lettings & Property Manager
Sara is enthusiastic and excited at the prospect of taking the Aldertons brand forward in the holiday rentals and property management sectors.
With over 30 years experience in administration spanning conveyancing, marketing, Human Resources (the University of Manchester), travel (Go Direct – Airtours) and manufacturing, together with her passion for travel, having put together trips to Canada, Australia, Thailand, Maldives, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Canaries, Belgium & her jewel in the crown … Spain. Planning, organising and making it happen are Sara’s strengths; she’s ready to hit the ground running!!
Sara has always believed she was destined for a life by the sea (well, preferably on the sea in a huge yacht … life goals!) and after having her children, 2 boys, she and her husband made the life changing decision to up sticks and leave their hometown of Manchester for Moraira, where her heart truly lies. Sara understands the frustrations and challenges that go with such a move, but her motto is ‘feel the fear and do it anyway!!’
She’s confident you’ll love our piece of paradise and who knows, maybe you’ll make that life changing decision to relocate too!!
Having worked in the property industry for over 24 years Reyes is a powerhouse of knowledge and contacts within the Northern Costa Blanca. Originally from Jaen in Southern Spain, the Valencian region captured her heart in more ways than one when she met her fabulous husband Paco as a young student studying tourism. She is an integral part of the Alderton’s team, not least because of her passion for the property market within the Marina Alta region – which she refers to as the most beautiful and pleasant region to live in – but also for her love of the history, culture, gastronomy and nature of the area. Often to be found picking flowers in the local countryside, or searching for herbs, wild asparagus, garlic or snails, she is constantly bringing nibbles and dishes into the office for us to try… From fideua to paella, tortilla or fresh grown veggies, whenever we see Reyes entering the office with a package, we know we’re in for a culinary treat! Aside from her gastronomic prowess, Reyes is also an amazing linguist and speaks no less than 6 languages: Spanish, English, German, French, Italian & Valenciano. Having lived and worked in Germany, UK and throughout various regions of Spain, she is perfectly equipped to assist customers from all over the world with their relocation requirements, and loves to become their personal tour guide, as she introduces corners of the region that may otherwise have been overlooked. Reyes believes there is magic in the work that we do, and this is evident in the faces and happiness of the clients for whom she helps secure their perfect property in their perfect location..
Chris and his family moved to Spain in 2018, with the help of Aldertons, and it soon turned out to be a mutually beneficial move.
With more and more of Aldertons' clients undertaking renovations when they purchase their new homes, Joanne & Andrew had been actively looking for a reliable, conscientious and experienced builder to join their team. Having been let down on a few occasions, it was becoming ever difficult to contract anybody trustworthy to control the property management side of the business and also somebody to rely on for the inevitable minor repairs needed during the busy summer holiday season, then along came Chris. With his can-do attitude, his unswerving ability to find the solution and his dedication to budget and timing he is a perfect fit in the Aldertons team. And how do we know he's so good... well we speak from first hand experience... He has worked on Joanne & Andrew's house, finished the renovations of Emma's apartment and has installed new bathrooms into the Aldertons office in Benissa. We only ever use people who we would (and do) use ourselves.