40 years of Sotogrande in postcards

This year Holmes celebrates 40 uninterrupted years of business in Sotogrande, and we’re celebrating it with a unique series of #detodalavida commemorative postcards that are appearing in the El Periódico de Sotogrande newspaper throughout the year.

Already becoming a collectible series, the postcards offer a unique look at Sotogrande’s evolution, including the many highlights experienced since our founding in 1979. One outstanding year was 1982, when Holmes co-founder, Ian Bateman, brought the Scottish national football team playing in the ’82 world cup to Sotogrande, where they could train and focus in a peaceful, beautiful setting.

 1979 saw the founding of Holmes in Sotogrande, which opened its offices in the clubhouse of the ‘Nuevo Club de Golf Sotogrande’, as Valderrama was known back then. Real Madrid added glamour to the local scene by staying in Sotogrande, and the following year the Octógono Beach Club was opened. In 1981 the Bateman family moved to Sotogrande fulltime and Ian was appointed hotels and catering director to run The Tenis and Golf Bungalow hotels, the Club de Playa and the restaurants at the two golf clubs.

Not much later, Holmes sponsored its first major event, the International Week of Golf, a four-day men’s and women’s tournament played across Sotogrande and culminating with the Copa de Jerez. Travel agencies specialising in golf began to promote Sotogrande to the international market, with accommodation provided by Holmes.

These are just some of the fantastic memories we have of our time living, working and raising a family here. Holmes has become a household name in Sotogrande real estate, but also an integral part of the local community – both as a property company that people have come to rely on for its local expertise and ethical business style, and as individuals whose children have grown up here and attended the local schools.

In forty years, we have become part of Sotogrande and it has become part of us. Contact us now for your property needs or for your copy of our unique #detodalavida postcards.