In this month’s Real Talk, BBC broadcaster James Max meets Killian Hurley, chief executive of Mount Anvil. Established in 1991, the house builder and developer has delivered more than 5,000 homes and plans to build at least 2,500 more by 2018.
“Residential is sexy now,” says Mount Anvil chief executive Killian Hurley, “It wasn’t sexy before”.
“One of the big changes we have seen is the amount of players in the market. The number of players coming into London is quite staggering. It is a good benchmark of the success of London as a world class city, but it will bring its own challenges in the next few years.”
Those challenges, he says, include being able to cope with the demands of an ever-more-discerning clientele. The challenge for developers of new homes in the UK, and London in particular, is to create homes that people really want to live in and spaces that will pass the test of time.
Hurley talks a lot about place-making and legacy in regards to Mount Anvil and its business philosophy.
“The real skill in development is being able to respond very quickly and to give people choice. But at the end of the day it is about quality, design and good workmanship. You have got to get those fundamentals right,” says Hurley. “This is a home at the end of the day. It needs to be good quality, have good design, good place-making and be in the right place.”
He cites the firm’s Keybridge House development in Vauxhall, SW8, as an example. The site used to house the world’s largest telephone exchange, and was London’s ugliest building according to Hurley – who was once told off by his sales director for labelling it so. But, now that the peregrine falcons that were nesting in the building have moved on, Mount Anvil can begin demolition and start building 441 much-needed new homes across a planned two towers.
“It will be the tallest brick building in the UK,” says Hurley. “It is on one acre of landscaped grounds, is in Vauxhall rather than Nine Elms so is closer to the station and has the established transport links, it will be surrounded by a number of shiny towers and we think we can give a very good value offering there. But again, it is about the basics – the quality, the design, the materials, the landscaping. All of that so people will be happy to call it their home at the end of the day.”
Large-scale schemes of several hundred homes are a focus for Mount Anvil as it continues to expand the business, joining up with partners to create “fantastic places”.
But Mount Anvil will not just get into bed with anyone to achieve its ambitions. “There is an old Irish expression,” says Hurley, “‘Don’t marry the alcoholic and complain about the drinking afterwards.’ Getting to know our partners and them getting to know us is equally important.”
He adds: “We have a pretty simple philosophy on life. We try to do the right thing, work collaboratively, raise the bar and empower our people. If they don’t sit right with a potential joint venture partner then we won’t do a scheme. We pulled out of something last year where we felt the chemistry wasn’t right between the partners, even though it was a great location.”
When it does find the right partner, Mount Anvil is in it for the long term. With asset manager Ares it seems to have found the perfect mate. To date the pair have collaborated on 15 ventures.
“We like working with people who take that long-term view,” says Hurley, “who are interested in legacy and happy to do the right thing and that which is most profitable in the long term. That phrase ‘long term’ goes around a lot in our jvs and the people we have done repeat work with share those values.”
The key to a successful (and long-term) partnership, says Hurley, is trust. “We break trust down into two parts. One is competence. You just have to be good at what you are doing. The other is decency. What kind of person are you?”
And at a time when public opinion of house builders and developers is at a low, that is a good question to ask.
• Each month EG Radio brings you Real Talk with James Max, an audio show interviewing chief executives across the property and wider business community. So far, we have heard from Land Securities chief executive Rob Noel, Shaftesbury boss Brian Bickell, Derwent London’s John Burns and Celine Thompson, Urban Splash’s Tom Bloxham and Ares senior partner Bill Benjamin.
To listen to these and more Real Talk shows visit www.estatesgazette.libsyn.com and click on the Real Talk tab.
