Previous to joining Welsh Country Cottages, I worked for North Wales Tourism for 12 years. It was my responsibility to collect grading fees, which was great because it means I am well versed in the VisitEngland grading scheme, which all our properties must adhere to. (All our Welsh cottages are graded to the same exacting standards as VisitEngland).

I love North Wales and I’m passionate about tourism and people. I get a lot of satisfaction out of helping owners give their properties the ‘wow’ factor. In fact, I work with owners to achieve everything from photography that is truly representative of their property, to offering helpful advice on increasing a property’s desirability and guidance regarding income.

Throughout the last 7 years, I’ve discovered that there’s no such thing as a typical owner. I’m lucky enough to work with an amazing variety of owners who understand today’s holiday market. I like to think I provide them with enthusiastic, honest and helpful advice and as a previous holiday home owner myself, a unique ability to understand their requirements.

Obviously, the most important aspect for any owner is occupancy rates and I work constantly to help my owners increase occupancy however I can. Achieving the highest VisitEngland grade possible is always a good place to start, but simple advice like how they present their property for photography can also make a dramatic difference.

Owners come to me with a wide variety of questions and requests, these usually consist of support or advice for increasing the desirability of their property – because of my experience in the tourism sector, owners are always keen to know my opinion or point of view.

As an owner it’s extremely important to make sure you’re well informed and have covered every angle as guests expect far more from a holiday cottage nowadays. In fact, they expect the property to be presented better than their own home and they love unexpected extras – it makes all the difference to them and shows that the owner really cares.

Sometimes, it doesn’t matter how much effort or thought an owner puts into their property the unexpected can happen, so it’s a very good idea to have plans in place – and that’s where I come in. During the particularly cold winter of 2010, two nights before Christmas, a guest had turned up to a property to find there had been a burst pipe. Of course, at that time of year it was difficult to find them alternative accommodation but I did everything I could and soon found them somewhere else to stay and their Christmas was saved.