She oversees a team of over 50 people and operations generating a multi-million-pound turnover. She provides much of The Mortgage Hut’s expert advice with a focus on how to get a mortgage approved and what changes in the housing market mean for buyers.
I’m Managing Director of The Mortgage Hut, a mortgage brokerage based in Southampton, where I look after a team of 50 people, including a team of 30 advisors who collectively deal with over 2000 inquiries a month. We generate a multi-million-pound turnover and are a conglomerate for several other brands including Police Mortgages and Airline Mortgage Shop – it’s certainly busy, but I wouldn’t have it any other way!
Before joining The Mortgage Hut in 2015, I worked in banking and then spent five years as Cabin Service Manager for British Airways, where I could share my love for travel every day.
I’ve taken quite a roundabout route to get to where I am now. I started in banking after school but I love going on adventures so when the role at British Airways came up, it felt like it was just perfect for me. I was there for five years and studied for my CeMap at 37,000ft – working with my colleagues as cabin crew gave me an insight into the pressures of managing an irregular income and how this can have an impact when looking for a mortgage. It’s great because I’ve been able to take that knowledge and experience forward into my role now.
My biggest challenge at The Mortgage Hut has been driving forward the implementation of our employed advisor model, moving away from a self-employed model. We now have greater control within the business and have streamlined everything to make it more efficient. So, I am really proud that I have managed to pivot the business that way. It’s not only improved the overall experience for the customers, it’s improved underlying profitability and made the recruitment of amazing talent much easier.
As a female business leader, I have always been committed to helping other women thrive in the industry. I’ve done this by proactively supporting and promoting female colleagues in The Mortgage Hut office, as well as women in businesses in the surrounding area. I’m proud that The Mortgage Hut office has a fifty-fifty split of men and women colleagues and I love being able to use my influence and connections to lift other women up.
My children. I work hard every day to provide a happy and healthy life for them. I want them to have every opportunity available to them to achieve their dreams. They teach me constantly about compassion, inclusion and positivity.
I love mentoring and have mentored several of our support staff through their training to become mortgage advisors. Helping someone to achieve their goals and seeing them grow in confidence is the ultimate reward.
There are lots of initiatives that can and do help accelerate change with gender equality. A good example of this is shared maternity/paternity leave so it isn’t just down to the mother to take time off to raise children. We have seen this first hand in our business with fathers taking time off to share childcare. There needs to be more initiatives like this enabling women to have more choice.
The best advice I’ve received is that dreams will always remain dreams until you take action. So I’d tell my younger self exactly that, to be brave and just go for it!
Every day has a new challenge, but you know, I think now is a great time to be a woman in business. There are lots of new opportunities, and although there’s still a lot of education to be done, women are doing amazing things, they’re really challenging the barriers of entry and pushing everything forward.
As for the future? Well, I love flying and one day want to learn how to fly and become an airline pilot. I got a bit of a taste of it when I was at British Airways, but I’d love to pursue it at some point in my life.