Alder King hires leading adviser in Bristol
Bristol offices expert Andy Heath has joined Alder King as the firm looks to improve on what it has called an "exceptional year" for deals in the city in 2025, joining as a partner from CSquared.
Heath bolsters the firm's Bristol office agency team, which landed two major deals at the city's Welcome Building this year, including Hargreaves Lansdown's 90,000-square-foot lease. The firm said its new partner "brings extensive experience" from time in London as well as Bristol.
Before joining CSquared in 2021, Heath was head of leasing at Cushman & Wakefield, formerly DTZ, where he spent a decade, and has also worked at Strutt & Parker and JLL.
Alder King partner Simon Price said: "Andy’s appointment comes at an exciting time for our Bristol Agency team. Building on a record-breaking year, his expertise will help us seize new opportunities and continue delivering best-in-class advice to our clients."
RLAM appoints head of development
Royal London Asset Management Property has appointed James Rowbotham as head of development, who joins after a decade at Landsec. Rowbotham oversaw the delivery of the real estate investment trust central London office pipeline as head of development, including major headquarters offices such as 21 Moorfields for Deutsche Bank and 1 New Street Square for Deloitte. The recruit will be responsible for Royal London Asset Management Property’s £4 billion national development pipeline. Andrew Mott, former head of delivery at Peabody, also joins the team as development manager. The firm said it is planning to make seven hires across the team to boost its capacity.
Edge bolsters international leadership team with two hires
European real estate developer Edge has strengthened its international leadership team with the appointments of Peter Pecnik as managing director and Nikolai Worp as acquisitions advisor. Pecnik will oversee the firm's international operations and growth strategy, concentrating on regions where the company is expanding beyond its established markets, including the UK. Pecnik spent more than 15 years at HB Reavis, where he held senior leadership roles including chief executive for Poland and CFO for the group. Worp returns to Edge around a year after leaving and will focus on acquisitions, joint ventures and strategic investment opportunities.
Knight Dragon appoints new chief executive
London-based property developer Knight Dragon has appointed Emilie Giles as CEO. Giles will help lead the developer through the 150-acre Greenwich Peninsula regeneration project with the Greater London Authority. Prior to joining the business, she was vice-president and associate general counsel for CTF Development International, the international real estate and hospitality group behind Rosewood Hotels & Resorts. She has more than 18 years of experience in real estate, large-scale development and hospitality. Giles assumes the role from former chief executive, Matt Hawkins, who is leaving the company after two years at the helm, to pursue new opportunities.
Ares consolidates global logistics platforms under single brand
Ares Real Estate co-head Julie Solomon has said the consolidation of Ares' global logistics platforms into one new brand called Marq Logistics will help the business to strengthen its top three global leadership position in one of its highest conviction sectors. The global investment manager explained this week that the unification of its global logistics brands had been prompted by its acquisition of warehouse giant GLP earlier this year. Ares said Marq will represent its vertically integrated global logistics real estate platform, managing facilities that total more than 600 million square feet across the Americas, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.
Strettons appoints managing director
Multi-disciplinary property consultancy Strettons has appointed Mark Bolton as its managing director, succeeding the late Simon Tilsiter who passed away in October following a brave battle with cancer. Bolton has been with Strettons for more than 30 years and, prior to the business' relocation to its London headquarters in Shoreditch this summer, he headed its City office for over 15 years. His experience spans agency work across a broad cross-section of market sectors, as well as valuation, development consultancy and lease advisory services. Bolton said: "Simon was my friend and colleague who had a distinguished career spanning over 30 years with the firm. During his tenure he played a key role in delivering the board’s vision for the direction and growth of the firm. His values and input have left an enduring legacy."
Leading UK retail and leisure adviser Justin Taylor dies
Justin Taylor, one of the best-known and regarded UK retail and leisure advisers, has died. Taylor is the co-founder of leading retail, leisure and placemaking adviser P-Three and the former EMEA head of retail at Cushman & Wakefield. Taylor stepped back from the day-to-day business of P-Three in early 2024, moving to the role of chairman, where his responsibility was the company’s strategic direction. His professional legacy includes some of the most significant and high-profile retail and mixed-use developments in the UK and Europe, working on the likes of Birmingham Bullring and Grand Central, Liverpool ONE, Edinburgh St James, St David’s Cardiff, and Brent Cross.