The “Miltons” companies served by this website are businesses run by the third and fourth generations of the same Milton family which has been serving the North West for over 100 years. They run the four shops in Chester, Liverpool (St. John’s Shopping Centre and Church Street) and Birkenhead (see Contact Us for more details).
We have over eighty staff, only some of whom can be listed here :
Mr. Haywood Milton, M.A.(Hons), R.J.Dip, JVA Specialist Valuer is the Managing Director, a council member of the National Pawnbrokers Association and a specialist in Rolex watches from the 1950s to the present day. He has lectured the UK’s National Association of Goldsmiths and the National Pawnbrokers Association on the subject, written a number of technical articles on Rolex identification and has appeared widely across national television / radio channels discussing a range of trade-related matters. In April 2022 he was invited to become a Specialist Member of the JVA (Jewellery Valuers Association), specialising in Rolex watches from the 1950s to present day. His role as both a pawnbroker and retailer is perhaps reflected by his appointment in November 2015 as the National Pawnbrokers Association’s “Ambassador for Code Liaison” with the National Association of Jewellers. A Classics graduate with a First Class Masters degree in Ancient Greek and Latin, former winner of the National Association of Goldsmiths prestigious Greenough Trophy, an R.J.Dip. and the first pawnbroker in the country to obtain the Certificate in Pawnbroking Excellence, In 2016 he became an “Approved Person” with designated responsibilities under the Financial Conduct Authority. Haywood’s main focus is meeting the high expectations of our regulators and financial service customers while raising the standard of stock, service and environment which the Milton companies offer.
Mr. M. Wilkinson, M.I.R.V, R.J.Dip is the most senior Pawnbroking Manager. He is a member of the National Association of Jewellers’ prestigious Institute of Registered Valuers, one of very few in the region. He has worked for Miltons for over twenty years and has valued many millions of pounds’ worth of diamonds, gem-set and gold jewellery.
Mr. N. I. Bailey, F.I.R.V. is Miltons’ technical expert in jewellery matters and in charge of all valuation work. He holds the very rare status of Fellow of the Institute of Registered Valuers and has valued tens of millions of pounds’ worth of jewellery all over the UK. He worked for Miltons for over twenty years, rising to be the pawnbroking manager before spending a few years as one of the UK’s most prolific full-time valuers. We are delighted to have him back on the Miltons team.
Laura Leadbetter MIRV 99822, PJDip, Cert GA and
Kay Oakes MJVA, Cert GA (JVA Registered Valuer 22255) are now fully qualified members of our valuation team. Both having previously passed the NAJ Certificate of Appraisal Theory (CAT), in early 2022 they respectively demonstrated their skills to the NAJ’s Institute of Registered Valuers and The Jewellery Valuers Association.
Mr M. Wilkinson (see above), Ms. L. Leadbetter, Mr. N. Bailey (see above) and Mr. A. Painter are the respective managers of the Liverpool St. Johns, Birkenhead, Liverpool Church Street and Chester stores. Each of them takes pride in offering the greatest level of service and will be delighted to give you personal attention. Each shop has private rooms available for meetings and sensitive transactions with clients, no matter how large or small the value involved.
Mr. Jim Laycock, former manager of M.S.Milton Ltd in Birkenhead and with decades of experience in pawnbroking and jewellery retail at Miltons, now provides management support across all sites.
Ms. J. McIlroy is P.A. to the Managing Director but in truth her role extends to cover administration, recruitment, support services, property, employment, I.T. ……just about everything which isn’t specific to jewellery or pawnbroking!
Within Miltons we have a dedicated, specialist Watch Team working directly under Haywood Milton :
Mr. P. Ellison was formerly the Manager of Rolex and Breitling main agents William Pyke & Son before joining Miltons. Despite having extensive, official training in both brands he has said that his true education in them began when he started here. Phil heads the watch team day-to-day and oversees the methodical examination of each high-end watch which crosses our path.
Mr. P. Aspinall, R.J.Dip, was formerly Assistant Manager to Phil and has enjoyed the same comprehensive watch training given to main agents before joining Miltons a few years ago. He was also an NAG Registered Valuer. Paul has an especially hands-on role and is rarely seen without his legendary high-magnification visor. He has unsurpassed skill at refurbishing watch cases and bracelets, a gentle touch he acquired while tending his precious bonsai trees !
Mr. M. Williams is a passionate fan of watches including some more unusual pieces, with a special interest in the auction market. He also worked for Breitling, Omega and Rolex main agents before joining Miltons. He now spends a couple of days a week with the others in the Miltons watch team and the rest of his time as our resident watch specialist in the prestigious Chester store.
There are around 70 other, wonderful members of the Miltons teams, many with jewellery qualifications, mostly with vast experience from a lifetime in the industry and a number with additional, specialist knowledge in various gem-stones, Rolex watches and more, but all here to serve you.