Where there’s a will there’s business...

Clare and Mike Appleby outside their new premises in Failsworth

CLARE Appleby believes she has discovered a niche in the legal market and after two years working almost incognito has opened a street-front office.

Applebys Solicitors is based in a former tattoo studio at Manchester Road, Failsworth, close to the junction with Ashton Road West.

Specialising in wills and probate, Clare (33), from Newton Heath, has invested around £10,000 to transform the two-office building and install fixtures, fittings and equipment.

Husband Mike, who has his own business working with solicitors along the M62 corridor, is helping out part-time with marketing, but Clare insists she is a sole trader.

She said: “Naturally I want to expand my business and my client base, and there may come a time when I need to take on an additional solicitor to share the work load, but I don’t envisage creating a legal empire.

“I believe I have found a niche in the market for working people and older people who want a quality, value-for-money service.

“I tell people from the outset what the service will cost.

“I don’t just quote hourly rates, that’s not what I’m about.”

Clare read law at Stafford and later studied at Manchester Metropolitan University before training with a practice in Cheetham Hill.

She concluded: “A lot of people involved in elderly-client work are interested only in high net worth clients — that isn’t what I am about an I am hoping that this move into high-visibility premises will help grow the business.”