Newark octogenarians John and Marjorie Hope leave retirement behind to return to global property business
Twenty years after first opening their global property business, an octogenarian couple have come out of retirement with an ambitious new plan.
Marjorie and John Hope, of Newark, first opened the Property Shop in the town in 2005.
In the same year they opened an office in Sri Lanka — where they married in 2002, and survived the 2004 boxing day tsunami, fleeing with seconds to spare — to help bring some money to the island they loved to help it recover.
Now, two decades later and despite recent setbacks which have interfered with their physical capabilities — Marjorie has coped with two hip replacements and John very recently had a major operation to treat stomach cancer — the pair are back with an ambitious programme to restart their worldwide property interests.
While the rehabilitation following John’s illness can limit his travelling, modern technology now allows them to hold meetings with distant partners, although the pair are considering renewing their passports.
They have already secured marketing agreements with property developers in Cape Verde, Croatia, Cyprus, and the Dominican Republic with negotiations going on in other areas including Sri Lanka, where Marjorie spent several months running their previous operation.
John said: “We’re really delighted to be back and we’re thrilled to bits with the response we’ve had from overseas developers.
“The turmoil the world is in will make people look at safer investments, so we’ve picked a good time. I keep my finger on the pulse with business, and there’s a lot of uncertainty — any individual with stocks and shares will be feeling it, but property is protected from that.
“It’s an exciting opportunity to invest in new places, we’ve got involvement in two countries in Africa which is terffic, you don’t often see Africa put forward. It’s really exciting, it’s not just holiday homes, it’s investment opportunities and a chance for people to look beyond the European market.”
The official launch of their venture will take place at the Lincoln Business and Property Expo on Wednesday (March 26), where they will feature investment opportunities in those countries, as well as some UK developments in the hotel accommodation market.
During their previous global operations, the husband-and-wife team sold properties in Spain, Portugal, Cyprus, Malta, Turkey, Florida, Dubai, Bulgaria, and were the UK brand leaders for Sri Lanka and Poland, where they also opened an office in Kraków.
Now, they are also joined by neighbour, Cheryl Guzmán, who spent ten years living in the Dominican Republic and has been influential in negotiating an agreement with a major property developer on the island.
Cheryl’s husband, Pablo, who is from the Dominican Republic, has also played a part and is currently back in his home country making arrangements with additional property providers.
A self-confessed work-a-holic, John was awarded the Newark and Sherwood Business Person of the year award in 2016 and the Queen’s award for volunteering three years later. Daytime television is certainly not on their agenda, although John has admitted to considering a greenhouse.
