London Property Adviser of the Year Award
Entries:
EA Shaw
EA Shaw manages prestigious villages, including Carnaby. We are letting agents on some of the best office buildings. We sell and let premium residential properties. We add up to a serious player in the central London marketplace.
Doing things differently
Rebranding
We recently updated our branding, to reflect the modern, vibrant company we are. The new brand positions us well to grow in the future.
Development Consultancy
One key area of future growth is in Development Consultancy. Over the past year, we have been appointed on over 50 new schemesin central London, giving commercial, residential and management advice.
Our people
We have recruited a marketing manager and renowned expert Kim Tasso as non-executive director. We have a staff of 50, from whom we have promoted two Equity Partners, one Partner, and two Associates.
“We were absolutely delighted with the level of professionalism and advice at both pre and post completion of the scheme and with the highly successful outcome.”
Stephen Lane Scottish Widows Investment Partnership
“For us, EA Shaw are the only agents we’d use in Covent Garden, as they always give us exceptional service.”
Hugh Chivers, Rugby Estates PLC
Voltaire Financial LLP
Voltaire Financial LLP is an advisory firm specialising in arranging commercial funding for UK and Western European real estate companies and professionals. Voltaire is proud of its achievements since launching in November 2010:-
– Began during a very difficult funding market and has made a successful start.
– Evolved its new approach to brokerage resulting in acclaim from our lender and professional relationships.
– Successfully partnered with a specialist lender to offer unprecedented service and efficiency to the marketplace.
When Voltaire began many of the established brokers in the market were struggling with the difficult market or closing down.
Voltaire are committed to a new style of brokerage whereby fewer transactions are taken on and subsequently presented to often just one lender in extremely high detail: fact-derived overview, exhaustive supporting documentation, and analysis of risk with mitigating factors.
At inception Voltaire identified an unprecedented need for mezzanine/senior stretch funding due to the conservative gearing offered by senior lenders in the fields of both term and development finance. Voltaire consequently allied itself to one of the most competitive and fastest-growing mezzanine/senior stretch lenders in the UK market, Maslow Capital LLP, via a formal cross-referral joint venture structure.
Few other firms in London have had the confidence to choose to incorporate in what are deemed such uncertain times. Voltaire Financial has done so successfully. Both Voltaire’s approach and structure are novel in the market and recognition of its achievements would lead to a greater number of, often struggling, real estate companies and professionals secure the funding they require.
Testimonials attached:
– Oliver Bamber – Director at Savills (Valuation)
– John Smart – Owner of John Smart Architects (Client & Developer)
– Ellis Sher – COO at Maslow Capital (Lender)
“From our perspective at Savills we have found Voltaire to be highly efficient and effective advisors to both our Banking and Developer/Investor clients. It certainly helps from our perspective when finance brokers involved in a deal are realistic about deal parameters and targets, and able to give a balanced outlook to our mutual clients; this is certainly the case for the team at Voltaire.
I personally would have no hesitation in recommending Voltaire to any of my clients”.
Oliver Bamber MRICS Director
‘We are an architect led development company driven by quality, uniqueness and creativity. We were delighted to have recently discovered Voltaire who intuitively felt appropriate to our business from our first meeting. Their deliverance and performance was well beyond our own expectation whilst they also offered a highly tailored and professional approach.’
John Smart Director Bespoke Homes Ltd.
‘Voltaire has made a real and significant impact on the UK real estate finance market since commencing trading last year and reputable recognition in the form of an award from EG would be fitting. We have closed numerous transactions together and I feel well placed to give an account of our thoughts on how Voltaire do business.
Maslow Capital is delighted to be working with the Voltaire Financial team having known the partners at their previous business where we enjoyed an excellent working relationship.
Maslow values the quality of their origination and the depth of due diligence that they conduct on the deal and the borrower. The Voltaire deal packs and client presentations are among the very best in the market. The transactions are presented in a way which incorporates an unprecedented level of insight and analysis into both the strengths and weaknesses of the deal is crucial to our understanding of a proposition. It is this level of attention to detail that provides Voltaire’s clients with the highest probability to secure funding in this market.
We look forward to working with Voltaire over the coming months and years and wish them the very best of luck with their application’.
Ellis SherPartner Maslow Capital LLP
King Sturge
Throughout the year our business has developed in areas of strategic importance and we have been able to quickly adapt to support this. For example we:
acquired an established affordable housing team from Drivers Jonas Deliotte
refocused existing staff and created a dedicated business recovery team
opened a new office in Heathrow in January 2011 providing a new base for our Industrial, Building Consultancy, Project Management and Lease Consultancy teams.
Achieved a market leading position selling UK residential property to the Far East in the last 12 months we have sold 1800 units with a £1billion aggregate value.
The London industrial team and offices team were recently placed first and fifth respectively in the EGi Deals Competition 2010. These contributed to us being placed as the second most active agent in the UK up from fifth in the previous year.
We have maintained and improved our client base, both in profile and size, through encouraging cross selling and developing our client relationships. We continue to provide innovative solutions including the recent introduction of virtual viewings which enable overseas buyers to view and experience properties of interest through the internet.
In 2010, our residential team capitalised on the current trend in foreign investors purchasing property in London, and advertised The Heron on the international market. By the end of the year we had exceeded the clients expectations by 100% achieving 150 sold apartments out of a total of 284.
We have increased our profits by over 50% and our staffing levels have increased over the last 12 months to meet the demands of the business.
Client testimonials
“After a competitive tender, RHJI appointed King Sturge in January 2010 to advise on the relocation of Kleinwort Benson Private Bank (KBPB) from its offices in the City. The advice required was on a Central London basis and was particularly confidential and sensitive due to the recent purchase of KBPB.
During the acquisition of our HQ, comprising 52,000 ft² at 14 St George Street, W1, we had first class advice throughout. The team at King Sturge was innovative, tenacious and discreet and we were able to acquire a high profile building in Mayfair which replicates the image and profile of the business. We have subsequently appointed King Sturge’s Management, Business Rates and Project Management teams who are providing seamless advice to enable our occupancy of the building in June 2011.”
Acquisition of 14 St George St, W1 for new Headquarters for Kleinwort Benson Private Bank (purchased by RHJ International).
Rüdiger Schmid-Kühnhöfer, RHJ International
‘I only employ the best advisors. I require a consultancy team that are able to add real value, they need market facing knowledge, great judgement and commitment to me the client. I chose KS because they are that agency, adding real value to my business. Recently this has again been shown with actively increase the rates of sale on projects, to this end KS has sold 62 of the 79 apartments at Marconi House, The Strand, London WC2 in under two week of marketing at ground breaking values – long may it last’.
Stephen Conway – Galliard Homes
Hatton Real Estate
Hatton Real Estate was formed in July 2010 by Ricky Blair, Michael Raibin and Shaun Simons, three former directors of Richard Susskind & Co, who have between them over 30 years’ experience of London’s City fringe market. The firm’s business model is centred on an understanding of the impact that the Internet and digital communication has had in transforming traditional marketing and publicity. Hatton Real Estate believed that these techniques could, and should, be combined with tried and tested methods and applied to the commercial property sector.
The firm’s philosophy is that the use of new technology and new working practices, to make property information and market knowledge accessible to as wide an audience as possible, can produce major benefits for both landlords and occupiers. Please visit the website www.hattonrealestate.co.uk to see this in action.
Since its launch Hatton Real Estate has utilised the potential of social media and other forms of digital marketing, integrating the latest web-based techniques and platforms into the its day-to-day working practices that promotes information about individual properties to as wide an audience as possible. As an example, as part of its service, the firm provides clients with professionally produced, high-definition videos that can be incorporated into a variety of online and digital platforms – broadcasting the property’s availability to potential buyers and tenants using various channels.
This radical approach to real estate marketing has, in only seven months, made Hatton Real Estate a significant player the City fringe market. In that time it has been involved with investment transactions worth almost £60,000,000 and the firm’s unique blend of traditional and modern marketing techniques has enabled it to build a client list which already includes Derwent London, Threadneedle, Aberdeen Asset Management and Land Securities.
Shaun Simons, Director
