Yellow Pages Windows   Glasdeko Cristaleria Siegfried Felst Tenerife Windows

The enterprise evolved out of the well known British concern Wimpey, after a management buyout in 1997. At the head of WimPen is Ivan Pengelly, who originally came to the islands as Regional Director for Wimpey in 1983. He brought with him, not only years of experience in the construction business, but his personal understanding of other cultures, already having lived in countries such as Egypt, Venezuela, Pakistan and Spain.

Ivan began his career here looking after the first timeshare resort in the Islands: Las Casitas in Lanzarote, as well as Las Rosas in Santiago de Teide, Tenerife. His move here was meant to be temporary, but 27 years later Tenerife is still his home and he is surrounded by his family, several of whom work in the company, based in Playa Paraiso.

WimPen has gone from strength to strength and much of this success can undoubtedly be attributed to Mr Pengelly himself. He is a hands-on director and is involved in the company’s business at all levels. He also, however, appreciates his staff’s strengths and is renowned for having created a stable working environment, something which is obviously appreciated as some employees have worked with him for over 20 years.

The company weathered the bad press timeshare received during the eighties and nineties and Ivan fought hard to improve the industry. He is also suitably disparaging of the more dubious side of timeshare and of the way some companies have tried to continue making big profits. He acknowledges that some of the ‘holiday packages’ which are now being sold are, “less than moral”, and deceiving its clients has never been part of the company’s business practice. Ivan does, in fact, believe wholeheartedly in transparency and perhaps that is why WimPen is still so trusted by its clients.

Ivan has always believed that it is important to keep moving forward and find new ways of dealing with the changing socio-economic climate. For instance, timeshare owners now have the opportunity to exchange their weeks between resorts, something that wasn’t available until last month. He is proud of what the company has achieved, still thoroughly enjoys his work, has no plans to retire yet and is making solid plans for the future. WimPen will, “build on new projects and its good reputation”.

Diversification is the key; WimPen now not only manages timeshare resorts, but also residential and community projects, such as Pueblo Don Thomas in La Gomera. Providing a first-class service is also paramount. Ivan sees himself as a, “servant” of his clients and works hard to maintain standards.

On a personal level he does have a passion other than his work. He owns a small collection of classic cars, mostly Jaguars, and regularly takes part in runs around the Islands.

He is a charismatic gentleman who has played a significant role in the Island’s development. He also has high hopes for the archipelago’s future. Whilst the government’s plans to raise the standard of tourism here may not have immediately paid off, he believes that there will, eventually, be an up-turn.

Optimism and lateral thinking are necessary tools to help us all through this crisis; it’s refreshing to encounter someone with the ability to keep looking forward positively whilst being flexible enough to adapt to present circumstances.

Gallery: Sharing time

1 picture found: Go to gallery