James Caan’s and Faisal Butt’s Hamilton Bradshaw Real Estate has backed online estate agency eMoov.co.uk with the aim of creating a £100m firm.
eMoov was launched in July 2010 by Russell Quirk, a former high street estate agent who started in the industry in 1984, running five branch offices between 1999 and 2009.
The fixed-price online estate agency has sold more than £250m worth of property since its inception.
HBRE has assembled a board including Ivan Ramirez, director of global product at Groupon and co-founder and director of early-stage VC firm Zerimar Ventures; Jonathan Galore, CTO at Wonga.com and co-founder of Wealthfront.com; and Sheraz Dar, the former group marketing director at Digital Property Group.
All three have co-invested alongside Caan and Butt.
Caan said: “I’m confident that with the team we have put together eMoov can be a serious challenger to conventional estate agency and lead online estate agency into the mainstream.
“If customers can get the same result for less money and with added convenience, why wouldn’t they choose online agencies just as they have done with travel agencies.”
Quirk added: “This deal is less about raising new capital and more about the networks that HBRE provide.
“In the next few months we will be launching a new version of the website and spearheading a nationwide awareness campaign. Exciting times lie ahead and I am looking forward to it.”
nick.whitten@estatesgazette.com
