AT JUST 27 the new owner of Marsh Farm has a business most people twice his age would envy.
As well as managing a troupe of successful party entertainers, James Sinclair, pictured in the poster above, owns five indoor play centres, two laser combat centres, and two nurseries.
But it is as Jimbo the Partyman that James is in his element. Twelve years on from starting out as a children's entertainer, he still dons his wacky clothes most weekends and heads out to make youngsters giggle.
He said: "I absolutely love it, I couldn't stop doing it as I would lose a vital part of me, corny as that sounds. I put a lot of thought and energy into it, and it keeps me fit."
James was born in Elm Park, near Hornchurch, but grew up in Brentwood, where he started his company in the spare room of his nan's house.
Unable to keep up with demand for his act, James took on other entertainers and thus the Partyman Company was born.
He said: "If you are going to run a business it may as well be in an area that is fun. I'm so excited about taking on Marsh Farm. There's such a passion among the staff here. They have been great. They know things could not have stayed as they were, and they know we are going to make it work. I think they are happy it was not taken over by a big corporate company.
"I want people who work for me to feel empowered, to make suggestions, and for managers to make their own decisions. I see my senior managers as mini entrepreneurs."