Former homeworker Lee Butler is reporting a big uplift in takings since moving onto the high street in his hometown of Aberdeen.
In the month since he opened his store, just outside Aberdeen’s main thoroughfare of Union Street, Lee says he’s taken 116 bookings, worth £442,000.
His average transaction value has almost doubled since his homeworking days, he said, adding that this was due to ‘the trust a physical, welcoming space builds with customers considering the big-ticket holidays: luxury cruises, escorted tours, and once-in-a-lifetime trips that people simply won’t commit to online’.
“People want to see something above the door and look you in the eye,” added Lee. “If they’re spending twenty grand on a holiday, they want to know exactly who they’re trusting with it.”
Lee, whose agency is part of the JLT Group, also has a growing social media following of more than 5,800 on Facebook – where he regularly posts stories about his Aberdeen life – with monthly views ‘regularly topping half a million’.
“I want people to feel like they know me personally,” said Lee, who has previously worked for the police force, in car sales and – during the pandemic – as a taxi driver.
Working alongside him in his new agency is his partner, Callum, who left his own career to join Lee full-time in the business.
