Our 5 Minutes with Jamie Lewis

May 19, 2019 by Leigh-on-sea.com

1. Lets introduce you with your vital stats…. What’s your name and what local business do you own?  
Hi, My name is Jamie Lewis and I am the Managing Director of Affinity Mortgages

2. Can you tell us a bit more about Affinity? Where can we find you and what do you do?
We are a totally independent Mortgage, specialist finance and Protection brokerage with headquarters in Hamlet court road and an office in Liverpool Street, London. We have brokers dotted around Essex and London also. We specialize in Mortgages of all shapes and sizes from standard residential, high net worth private banking relationships, commercial, bridging, asset finance, invoice factoring and everything in between. Our other main area of expertise is in the world of protection where we have a dedicated team who look after both individuals and businesses alike.

3. What have you found is key to running a successful business in leigh-on-sea?
Our power really lies in our people and our process – our people (in my humble opinion) are the best in the industry – they care, we do more, and we value our clients – we have also made it our business to really understand our market place, which is why we are recommended by so many Leigh Estate agents and solicitors – I guess they just know they want the best available outcomes for their clients.

4. What made you decide on a career within your sector?
A slightly embarrassing story! After a short period in the ‘god knows what to do with my life after college period’ – my Mother advised me (and shouted quite a lot) that I should pursue a career as opposed to dream about becoming a footballer, which was never really on the cards – so I decided to move into the world of property and Estate Agency. I started in this industry at the age of 17 and by the age of 22, following some travelling and sole searching realized that I needed to fulfill my potential (and I wasn’t a very good estate agent tbh!) I qualified over the year following the travelling and it was a natural fit to move from selling the properties to funding them.

5. So, a little more about the little town that we all love… Where is your favourite place in leigh-on-sea? Are you more of a Broadway soul or an old town soul?  
I was a Grand sort of guy, so for me nowadays I love the Broker for football and the Black cat for cocktails and socializing – the honest answer is a glass of wine and a nice meal is probably more my thing these days!

6. If you could live anywhere else in the world, where would it be and why?
I think probably somewhere in the French alps, it is hard to say though as there are still so many places I’d love to visit – but I love snowboarding and most extreme sports so wherever I were to end up it would have to have a mountain with some snow on it!

7. Can you tell us your favorite memory you hold in Leigh-on-sea? 
I think my days at the Grand – I used to plot up for the day, even in my Teens with my friend – we would buy a paper, and sit in there from when it opened to when it closed watching football and drinking a Guinness or two (or ten!!!!!)

8. Do you have a favorite bar or restaurant you go to in the town and if so, which one is it and why?
I think my favorite spot, as I mentioned earlier is Black Cat – I love the vibe, I love the drinks, and I love the dark!

9. When did you last do a forward roll? 
I am not sure it can be counted as a full forward roll but my son has been trying to teach me to front flip – sadly I am not quite as supple as I once was!!!!

10. Finally, there any immediate exciting plans in the pipeline for Affinity that you would like to share with our leigh-on-sea.com readers?
We have just released our website, which is a fully immersive online journey meaning our customers can give us their details at a time and place convenient for them, and we can do the rest – I think the only other piece of news is that we have outgrown our current premises so we may be moving Home in the not too distant future!