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Hartnell Taylor Cook boss Q&A; Carter Jonas appoints head of commercial; Cushman adds senior consultant

New hires, promotions and other personnel changes in UK commercial real estate
Max Lavan (left), Stuart Howell (centre) and Alexandra Houghton (right).
Max Lavan (left), Stuart Howell (centre) and Alexandra Houghton (right).
CoStar News
January 29, 2025 | 2:40 P.M.

Hartnell Taylor Cook managing partner on growth

Independent property consultancy Hartnell Taylor Cook has welcomed 32 new faces through the doors of its London and Bristol offices in the last year and its managing partner, Stuart Howell, insists the firm wants to add more.

Four senior hires who joined this month, read here, continued the company's response to growing demand for its services, according to Howell, who says the building consultancy and property asset management divisions of HTC have been particularly busy.

But he insists "you don't need to be big to compete" despite the dozens of appointments, explaining the company of 130 people has been very successful in securing repeat business from major names, such as retail giant Marks and Spencer and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

"Being a service industry, we obviously need people to help us with servicing those instructions and servicing that growth, so the two run together," he said in an interview with CoStar News about its recruitment drive over the last year.

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4 Min Read
January 29, 2025 09:43 AM
Managing partner Stuart Howell discusses the firm's recruitment drive and its plans for growth.

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Carter Jonas appoints head of commercial

National consultancy Carter Jonas has appointed Alexandra Houghton as its head of commercial. She will take up the role on 1 May and join the firm’s management board. Based in Carter Jonas’ London headquarters, One Chapel Place, Houghton succeeds Scott Harkness, who has been in the post since 2011. Harkness becomes head of transactions in the commercial division. Houghton has 20 years of property experience, specialising in public sector consultancy and advising public and private sector clients on strategy and estate change. She joined the firm in 2014 and was added to its commercial board the following year, achieving equity partner status in 2021.

Cushman adds senior consultant in Manchester

Cushman & Wakefield has recruited to its UK land, development and planning team by hiring Max Lavan as a senior consultant. Lavan, based in Manchester, joins from infrastructure consulting firm AECOM where he has been an economic development consultant for the past three years. He will support the growth of Cushman & Wakefield’s national economic development and appraisal practice area, as well as help clients secure public sector funding for land, property and infrastructure schemes. The recruit will also work on the provision of business case development and appraisal, and economic modelling advice to both public and private sector clients.

Newmark confirms UK businesses name change

“Newmark's rapid and early-phase expansion throughout Europe reflects our commitment to delivering world-class expertise and solutions to our clients across the globe,” said Barry Gosin, chief executive, in a statement this week as it confirmed its London-based real estate advisory firms BH2 and Gerald Eve now operate as Newmark. The news, first reported by CoStar News in December, was the largest US brokerage firm without an independent operation in the UK until 2019. New York-based Newmark has been on a major acquisitions drive since ending its 15-year alliance with Knight Frank in 2020.

(from left): Emma Cariaga and David Walker. (British Land)

British Land appoints Emma Cariaga as COO

British Land has made Emma Cariaga chief operating officer, succeeding David Walker who became chief financial officer last year. Cariaga was previously joint head of Canada Water, a 50:50 joint venture with AustralianSuper. She will manage British Land’s property management, sustainability, digital placemaking, marketing and communications, and commercial finance functions. She will also continue to lead the residential business, including at Canada Water. David Lockyer, who as head of development oversees all the REIT's development activity, takes on more responsibility for the delivery of the Canada Water project, working alongside Roger Madelin.

BNP Paribas Real Estate adds in Birmingham

Craig Chatwin has been appointed as head of Birmingham building consultancy by BNP Paribas Real Estate, joining after almost a decade at Cushman & Wakefield. There he held the role of associate building surveyor, working for both investors and occupiers across the Midlands. Chatwin has a specialism in the student accommodation sector and has worked with Greystar, Eon, Ministry of Justice and the Department for Work and Pensions. He will work closely with Ian Bragg, UK head of building consultancy at BNP Paribas Real Estate. Bragg said: "Craig’s appointment strengthens our ability to provide exceptional expertise across the Midlands."

Bidwells unveils environment society economy team

Bidwells has formed an environment society economy team to help clients "better assess and articulate the social, economic and environmental impact of new developments" that will be led by partner Mark Teasdale. The firm said it will offer services, including: EIA, economic impact assessment; demographic modelling; housing land supply and needs assessment; social value measurement and monitoring; health impact assessment; and advice on the equalities impacts of new development. The seven-strong team includes partner James Alflatt, who is head of environmental impact assessment, and backs its growing investment in sustainability services.

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