Tammy Levy

May 1985: The opening of the frontier, a turning point for Gibraltar and a liberating upheaval in which our British peninsula became the Mecca for professional transactions. As I delve into the story of how Attias & Levy law firm came to fruition, I am taken down a path of history, humour and personal introspection.

Having met each other in 1975, Abraham and Levi, the founding partners of our local Gibraltar law firm, began their professional careers in London. Having successfully completed their independent degrees in Political Science & Education and International Relations & African Studies, they jointly decided to study a twelve-month diploma in law at City University. 

With hard work, perseverance, and comically revising their one thousand file cards for every single case study covering all core subjects of the law while sitting on the London underground tube, “you really are stumbling in the dark the moment you transition from qualification to practice”.

Originating from different legal practices, they decided to build their own law firm and form a strapping union characterized by an ethos of “hard work and good efficient service”. With shrewd intellect, determining perpetuation and a wealth of support from fellow local practitioners, the two young lawyers became notorious for their bravery, tenacity and perseverance in 1985.

With many law firms reaching out and offering work, assistance and support both administratively and also within the wider profession, “Gibraltar became the glamour boy of the Costa del Sol. The business community suddenly saw a certain standard of life that had not been experienced earlier”. With the Doña Lola building complexes being advertised at the time, the opening of the frontier and the influx of international clients generating a financial boom, Abraham and Levi “were ready to take it on. The first few years [they] worked together were the best years. There was so much creativity, and they were exciting times for Gibraltar’s finance sector. With travel and attending international commercial fairs, this opened up a new vista for [them], and there were certain products Gibraltar was offering that made it very attractive to do business. [They] had an ex-pat community right on [their] doorstep. From Sotogrande to Torremolinos, [they] tapped into it, developed [their] connections and that’s how the business started growing. As Gibraltar’s community became more affluent, [they] as a business grew with it”. 

From hard work and perseverance, to laughter and humorous anecdotes, Abraham and Levi strived to build up their successful law firm as it stands today. From an intern’s accidental shredding of legal documents and destructive office building floods, to a lack of hope by their very first employee who lasted half a day and saw “no future for the firm”, the pair progressed from summer jobs selling Amar Bakery’s rolls, to diligent studies and finally setting up the business. Gaining the courage to make their hopes and dreams turn into a reality, and with a vibrant fervour of tenacious determinism, our local law firm is a product of enthusiastic endurance.

With time, social modernisation and the new digital era, business development vastly changed throughout the years. According to our partners “the best form of public relations is word of mouth. Understandably, the new generation taps into the world of social media, but it has introduced an uncanny speed by which the respectability of practice has been lost because of accessibility to emails”. From telex to telephones, “doing a good job for someone and having them recommend you is the best way of developing a business”.

Having transitioned from being “jacks of all trades” with a tremendous ability to embellish legal diversity in day to day practice, as it stands today the firm is more departmentalised. Offering a wide range of legal services, its traditional strengths have been in the areas of property, financial services, trusts, private client work, corporate structuring, civil & commercial litigation, conveyancing and shipping.

With a deep-seated interest in every aspect of their practice, beneath “the theatrics, civic glamour and pomp of the law” there lies a stringent sense of humility and hard-working aesthetic at Attias & Levy law firm. Priding themselves on this ethos, their positive sense of sedulous creativity is an inspirational force to be reckoned with.

Born from the tumultuous upheaval the Covid-19 pandemic has brought to the world, Kiki’s Creative is a product of artistic passion, Venetian influences and a love for avocados!

Nestled in the heart of Trevone Bay where Kiki’s Creative was born, the root of inspiration for this design business dates back to 2014! With a background in Art History and a love for travel, my cultural- infused, globe- trotting experiences inspired the creation of the Creatives! An amalgamation of Venetian intricacies, pearlescent sunset glows and a timeless lull of effervescent colour and beauty, the birth of Kiki’s Creative is a highly personal experience. 

Having always been a lover of the arts and continuously infected with the culture bug, my personal artistic journey has led me to work in various sectors of the art world. From being a Journalist, Art Historian, Presenter at the National Gallery, Photographer and most recently, PR & Marketing Designer, Kiki’s Creative is a product of my greatest interests and came to fruition during lockdown of April 2020. 

Benefitting from a laptop lifestyle, and in the midst of the worldwide pandemic, Kiki’s Creative is an online business which aims to re-vamp the aesthetic of companies, and help them learn about the world of social media while gaining an organic online presence. Able to work from anywhere in the world and use online video calls as a means to communicate with clients to discuss larger scale projects, the concept of Kiki’s Creative is to provide a service which is unaffected by the Covid-19 pandemic, aesthetically modernise new and existing businesses, teach entrepreneurs how to implement the use of social media in the work place, and serve as an aid to help online growth by creating  a fresh, simple, economic and modern look which brings a smile to people’s faces. 

Having never been keen on the use of social media platforms, my life paradoxically took a turn in that direction! Becoming certified in Content & Social Media Marketing, I initially began by testing the waters and experimenting with Instagram as a way to promote my business, learn about the world of online marketing, and engage with like-minded artists. From having no knowledge of the concept of “hashtags”, “stories” and “followers”, to suddenly finding myself diving into the virtual abyss that is social networking. By taking risks and sharing my passion with others, the feedback received has been nothing but positive and full of encouragement and support. From the thousands and millions of endless topics, images and artistic masterpieces shared with the world through Instagram, one builds a sense of community, becomes encapsulated in this intricate web of social media and truly inspired by the overwhelming amount of talent that exists. 

Serving as a digital portfolio to showcase one’s talents and passions, Kiki’s Creative aims to give those freelance photographers, web designers, marketers, graphic designers and writers a chance to express themselves by doing what they love the most! Offering a broad design service for businesses and individuals, Kiki’s Creative has a diverse range of artistic resources. From Website Design, Social Media Management, Brochure & Logo Design and Re-branding, to Photography and Journalism. With our team of passionate artists, and in collaboration with Frank Scalici Photos Gibraltar, we offer an economic means of branding your business which enables entrepreneurs to take a step back and allow us to pave the way for businesses to have as much organic reach as possible. With “love” being the overriding and most essential ingredient incorporated into every project that comes our way, at Kiki’s Creative we work flexibly and closely with our clients to find the perfect business aesthetic in a simple, clear and affordable manner. 

From waking up at the crack of dawn to snap that perfect photograph, and braving the elements in the name of art and photography, at Kiki’s Creative it’s our love for what we do and chasing our passions that fulfil us every day. If there’s one thing I have learnt, in the words of wisdom by Sylvia Plath it is that “the worst enemy to creativity is self- doubt”, so always have faith in yourself and keep doing what you love!

www.kikiscreative.com hello@kikiscreative.com