Director of Property

The Company:

Our client is one of the leading operators of pubs and hotels. Their award-winning design approach means excellence in ambience as well as service and location.

They continually look to grow through a combination of investing in their existing pub estate and opportunity led acquisitions.

The Position:

Reporting to the Chief Executive, the new Director of Property will primarily be responsible for the development of the current estate and managing the varied needs of the portfolio valued at more than £800m across pubs, hotels and a small unlicensed estate. Additionally, the business has a strong appetite to grow through a programme of new acquisitions.

This is a rare opportunity for someone to join the senior management and leadership team and bring in a new perspective – an exciting proposition for someone looking to take ownership of the function and put their own mark on how it is approached and executed within the wider business.

Other key duties and responsibilities will include:

• managing all aspects of the current estate
• overseeing and managing the physical quality of the properties including advising on and managing development schemes and the physical health and safety aspects associated with the property fabric
• identifying, negotiating and acquiring new opportunities and taking these proposed sites through the acquisition, legal, planning and post exchange completion phases
• the Director of Property will be part of the decision making process to ensure that the quality of new sites enhances profitability, business performance and drives growth of the company
• evaluating and presenting financial and physical site assessments to the Board for approval
• management and compliance with the technicalities of property law and legislation, including the Voluntary Pubs Code
• management of the capital expenditure programme – including development and maintenance of the estate, identifying development opportunities and taking project management responsibility for larger projects
• managing the company’s internal design function and team
• creating and nurturing a network of contacts with Agents, Developers, Landlords and others within the industry to acquire and deliver new sites, including the management of legal’s etc
• managing, motivating and inspiring the c14 strong property and estates team including their personal development and reinforcing the company’s principles and culture
• working closely with both internal and external stakeholders
• advise on relevant trends and developments in the pub/hotels/leisure sector including reviewing competitor activity etc
• undertake any other tasks, responsibilities or assignments upon requests from the Chief Executive

The Candidate Profile:

Candidates are most likely to be qualified Chartered Surveyors who have a successful track record within the Pubs/Hotels and Leisure sectors.

Other key attributes sought are:

• experience and knowledge of how the managed pub market works and ideally experience of the hotels business
• detailed understanding of the commercial property market
• demonstrated ability to build, manage and inspire teams
• understanding of what is needed to deliver a performance culture in an AIM listed PLC with strong family history
• exceptional leadership skills with the ability to deliver projects on time, quality and budget
• have outstanding organisational skills, with strong attention to detail and able to manage many work streams at the same time across different disciplines
• must be a strong team player who is also able to roll up their sleeves and get involved
• have the ability to deal with and manage multi-locational teams
• ability to demonstrate strong strategic and problem solving skills, create and build practical solutions that deliver outstanding operational performance through the maximisation of property
• will be an able communicator, who is emotionally intelligent and able to build relationships both internally and externally
• should be energetic and self motivated
• must have strong commercial focus and good presentational skills

The Location:

The Director of Property will be required to manage their own diary and have visibility and presence in the business, be that out in the Pubs or at the client’s Head Office.

The Salary & Supporting Benefits:

Attractive base salary, Bonus, LTIP, Car Allowance, Pension, Life Assurance, Private Health, 26 days holiday etc

The above are principal elements in an attractive and comprehensive package reflecting our client’s determination to appoint a first class candidate.

It is our policy to practice equal opportunities in recruitment and selection for all candidates. We have a responsibility to avoid unlawful discrimination.