Vail Williams has made its move on the West Midlands by taking over a niche Birmingham firm and poaching a Lambert Smith Hampton director.
South East-based Vail Williams has bought six-strong asset management specialist City Property Management Services in a part-cash deal, with an earn-out based on performance over the next two years. Principal David Neale will stay on as a partner.
CPMS turned over around £750,000 for the year to 30 April 2006. Clients include British Waterways and Birmingham Cathedral.
Vail Williams plans to expand the firm into a full-service business, and has hired LSH office agent Ross Bendall as its Birmingham chief.
Bendall, who joined LSH just a year ago, was previously at CB Richard Ellis and Jones Lang LaSalle. LSH said Bendall was on gardening leave and the terms of the departure had yet to be agreed.
Vail Williams chief executive Ian Rudland said the move was driven by its growing corporate business, with clients such as technology company EDS and defence and civil contractor VT.
“Our clients have significant property in the Midlands and the North, so we felt that we needed to be there,” he said.
“We’re not going to compete with the global players. Top-level business for us isn’t top-level business for them, but the customer needs it.”
Vail Williams has 150 staff in nine offices. Turnover for the year to May was more than £12m, up from £11m last year.
Rudland said he would look for other acquisitions once this deal was bedded in.
