BERRIM A N E ATON ’ S
BIRTHDAY Tettenhall Office 10 year members left to right: Linda Davies, Jane McGuire, Nick Berriman, Vicky Blakemore, Tric Gooding, Sarah Brown
The well known local Estate Agents has celebrated its tenth birthday having been created in 2006 by the amalgamation of David Berriman and Eaton Estates both of which have their roots in Walker Barnett and Hill, the old established Wolverhampton multi discipline firm of Estate Agents and Auctioneers which dated back to 1780 when it was started by Randle Walker. He would be astonished by how Estate Agency has changed since then. David Berriman started as an articled pupil with WB&H in 1953 earning £1 per week and remained there, with the exception of two years National Service when he qualified as a pilot, until the business was sold to General Accident in 1987 when he was senior partner. He remained on a service contract until leaving in 1990 to start his own business in Albrighton with a stock 124
of twelve properties. That has now grown into a business which agreed sales of £150 million in 2015. Caroline Eaton started as a trainee with WB&H in 1987 and since she was trained by David she now blames him for the very rare mistakes she now makes! She showed immediate promise and two years later aged nineteen she was entrusted to manage the Perton Office becoming the youngest known office manager in the country. She remained with GA managing the Wolverhampton branch until leaving in 1994 to start her own business in Wombourne as Eaton Estates. This business prospered with some friendly rivalry with David Berriman and expanded to open an office in Bridgnorth.
Nick Berriman completed a Law Degree in Manchester and spent some years training as an Estate Agent in London before coming back to join his father in 1998 who had moved from Albrighton to Wolverhampton in 1995 as larger premises were needed. David sold up and stood back to be a Consultant in 2005 when Nick took over and then in 2006 Nick and Caroline amalgamated their two firms to create Berriman Eaton. They knew each other and were friends. They were confident that they had complimentary skills and abilities and would benefit from having someone else to discuss things with. That confidence has been borne out, the business has grown exponentially and they are still
wolverhampton west magazine | march 2016