James Oliver, director of property search company Find And Build, aspired to a nomadic life before building a career for himself out of bricks and mortar.

Finding himself in that uncertain no-man's land between classroom and work place, he did what thousands of other 20-year-olds do - went travelling.

He said: "I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do with myself but I knew it didn't involve a suit.

"So I packed my bags and went travelling. I visited Australia, south-east Asia, Africa, Europe and, for the most part, I had a fantastic time."

James spent two years travelling the world but a brush with death on the high seas with a motley crew of fellow travellers hastened his return to England and the start of a career in property.

He was on board a boat sailing to Madagascar when his early-morning sleep was shattered by a horrible cracking noise, followed by a loud crash.

The mast had snapped and smashed on to the deck of the 35ft boat.

He said: "We were just off the coast of Somalia at the time but luckily we had just enough petrol to make it to the northern-most tip of Madagascar.

"When I returned to England I was desperate to have my own flat and I thought a good way to get to know the area and what kind of properties were out there was to make it my job so I started applying for work with estate agents."

He cut his teeth at Foxtons in London where he was taught how to spot a bargain.

After four years, he went to work for a small, up-market estate agents in west London before becoming an acquisition director for a property investment firm.

His task was to find properties ripe for development and make decisions about whether or not to purchase them.

In 2000 he moved to Brighton to start his own property search and renovation business called In Space, the first of its kind in the city.

In Space was aimed at first and second-time buyers with little time to spend house-hunting and specialised in loft and apartment conversions.

Over the past three years James has seen a steady shift in his client base with growing interest in Brighton and Hove's mid-to-upper end property market.

He said people were still looking to buy in the £500,000 property bracket but because these properties were more likely to be snapped up, buyers with busy work schedules needed someone on the ground with a mobile phone.

James decided to re-brand the company to appeal to a wider, older audience and in June, In Space became Find And Build.

He is now engaged and shares his Preston Park home with fiance Phoebe and daughters Poppy, seven and Nancy, one.

Despite this new-found domesticity James said: "Eventually I would love to buy some top-end properties in prime locations such as France, South Africa or Madagascar and rent them out so they pay for themselves."