Property consultancy Vail Williams has appointed a highly experienced chartered surveyor to help drive building consultancy business development in London.
Richard Jones has joined as a partner after two years as the national head of building consultancy at construction consultancy firm Naismiths.
The strategic hire comes amid growing business demand as Vail Williams embarks a new three-year business plan aimed at further innovation, service excellence and sustainable growth.
Richard will be primarily focused on the strategic aspects of the business together with leading on distressed assets and development projects for administrators, receivers and funders.
He has a broad experience across all sectors including commercial, residential, health, education and rail, providing the full range of building consultancy services including building surveying and project management.
Prior roles have been as diverse as leading the UK business of multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy to valuation and professional services provision.
James Lacey, Vail Williams London regional managing partner, said: “We are excited to welcome someone of the calibre of Richard Jones, who has worked in and around the London market for many decades, to Vail Williams.
“He is tasked with driving building consultancy in London into its new evolution, focussed within the M25. He has very good contacts in and around the capital, is adept at business development and we are expecting great things of him.
“In a previous role Richard looked after teams across the UK but was keen to step away from a broader leadership position to take up the challenge of leading the growth of what could be a multi-million-pound team in London as we look to the future in building consultancy.”
Richard, whose key areas include technical due diligence, distressed asset management and pre-acquisition and disposal advice, said: “I am thrilled to have been appointed by such a go-ahead firm as Vail Williams.
“I am determined to use my extensive business leadership, management and business development experience across a range of sectors and markets to propel London building consultancy services into a new era..
“As a highly experienced chartered surveyor with leadership roles across property, construction and multi-disciplinary firms including engineering, design and project management, I believe I am in a great position to help the exceptional building consultancy team in London move forward.”.
Vail Williams, an active property adviser in the capital for more than two decades, has a team of 20-plus experts working from its base just off Soho Square.
The firm’s property experts provide a range of advisory services for occupiers, landlords, investors, developers and lenders across the city.
Services provided cover everything from investment expertise and business rates support to lease advice and property valuation.
