Knight Frank has named West End leasing heavyweight Philip Hobley as its new head of London offices, EG can reveal.
Hobley joined the agent in 2001 before becoming a partner in 2011 and taking over as head of West End agency in 2013. He succeeds William Beardmore-Gray, the real estate giant’s newly appointed chairman.
The new offices boss said he hopes to expand Knight Frank’s London business during a period of change in the sector, both in terms of headcount and profit. “There is a massive opportunity for us to grow,” he said. “I think we can almost be twice what we currently are.
“That’s not for the sake of size, but more for the service that we are able to offer to our clients across the London market.”
However, Hobley added that his tenure would bring “evolution, not revolution”, and that he would carry through lessons from the past two years.
“During the pandemic we focused on supporting our people, so that they in turn could focus on supporting our clients,” he said. “I was proud of how we went about that, and the response from our clients was that we got it right. I want to continue that: our focus on delivering the best advice we can for them through these interesting times, where there remain a lot of challenges.”
“Strong direction of travel”
Despite ongoing headwinds, Hobley struck a positive note for the prospects of London as a whole.
“The weight of money still looking to come into London is incredible,” he said. “The breadth of geography and investor type that it is coming from – and of the assets that it’s looking to invest in – is a real flag to its appeal for investors.”
On the occupier side, he pointed to five consecutive quarters of growth in take-up, which is expected to exceed 8m sq ft in 2022.
“That’s a really strong direction of travel, and we’re not even in the post-pandemic era,” he said. “For London to respond that quickly, for people to connect to that amount of real estate while holding virtual board meetings during a lockdown, is nothing short of extraordinary.”
New talent
Hobley said he will prioritise promoting new talent in the firm. “This is a people industry: it’s all about working with people and getting the most out of them,” he said.
“If you are smart, you realise that the young people coming through are better than you at so many things now. They are part of a new generation, and they are connecting with others of that generation on the client side.
“I wouldn’t have this opportunity now if the people who were mentoring me hadn’t opened the door, chucked me work and said: ‘Go on, you do that now.’”
And making the agency a more diverse employer will be “front of mind”, he continued. “When we look at the structure of teams on jobs, we want to make sure we are providing balance, both for our own team’s benefit, but also for clients.
“But it is not a numbers game, it’s about what we want to achieve from bringing new people in. When you have that purpose in everything you do, you can drive change so much more quickly through the business.”
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