GKR London Property Recruitment has just returned from sunny Cannes following a very successful if extremely tiring MIPIM, 2018. A full week was spent in the sunshine this year, catching up with contacts we met last year, meeting with new professionals in the industry and discussing some recent successes in the market. It was fantastic to return in larger numbers and we are thrilled with what we achieved. Plenty of new jobs, numerous new clients and passive candidates! But for those not considering new options just yet, we wanted to share our takeaways from the renowned industry event and offer you some tips in case you’re considering it next year. Meet some of our team and discover what they took away and what they wish they’d known before going!
Grant Kaveney, Founding Director
With 12 years’ specialised recruitment experience and a passion for property, Grant founded GKR in 2010. In 2013, Grant received the investment and support from Recruitment Entreprener to grow his business to the next level.
Returning to MIPIM for the second year running, it was fantastic to speak to so many positive influencers in the property market right now. One of the most popular discussion points was the flexibility and future of modular construction. Several of our clients are exploring the options of modular building due to time frames in delivery; it’s not cost effective yet, but you can reduce project times significantly compared to traditional onsite construction timescales. Student accommodation has also become a hot topic, due to the impact modular builds could have on such an industry.
TOP TIP: Plan ahead and know what you want to achieve, don’t overload your diary and keep it flexible with maybe 3-4 meetings per a day up until 19:00 then move from place to place. Try to use the opportunity to co-host lunches with clients, the benefits are two-fold!
Michael Woda, Residential Director
Michael joined GKR in mid-2013 after eight years at Knight Frank in residential agency. Michael manages a team of five and recruits respectively across estate agency, new homes, development & proptech.
Prop tech has a very interesting place in the market and has developed globally very quickly, and agents are responding by linking start-ups with potential investors. Over the past 12 months, many of our clients such as Nested, have developed a great reputation in the market for themselves, and the business model they have implemented seems to have caught the attention of those outside of the London residential market.
TOP TIP: I would advise anyone interested in attending MIPIM to have some structure to their day/week. You want to meet with the right people who are relevant to you and the markets that you work across as it’s very easy to become distracted/disorientated with the amount of people around you at any one time. You need to remember what’s important to you, your market and your business.
Luke Joy, Senior Commercial Recruitment Consultant
Luke joined us in early 2016. He has worked closely with Grant to grow the commercial desk at GKR and recruits across project management, surveying, acquisitions, proptech & executive search.
This year at MIPIM, I couldn’t believe the influx of developers; the atmosphere was very different from 2017 where everyone was talking about Brexit & Trump. Fast forward 12 months and there seems to be far more stability in the market. Investments are taking place, not just in London but the midlands & the north of England. The first blockchain property purchase has also just been recorded by HS Property Group, in Manchester. People want to do deals and can move forward now as opposed to waiting to see how the market settles.
TOP TIP: Don’t miss your initial flight, you may end up taking a flight to rural France and then a nine hour coach ride…. Dedication to the cause!
Rohit Jain, Senior Recruitment Consultant
Rohit joined the team in mid-2017, with considerable experience in the finance recruitment market. As well as assisting us with the growth of our senior financial support desk, Rohit has immersed himself within the commercial and technical sector placing surveying & project management professionals.
As it was my first time over in MIPIM, I had spent a lot of time anticipating what it would be like ahead of my arrival, but my expectations were blown out of the park. As a specialist in the property finance industry my aim was to arrange meetings beforehand with finance professionals I have previously worked with, using the opportunity to develop our relationships further. What I found is that if you really immerse yourself within the crowd professionally, introducing yourself to the right people to have valuable conversations, they tend to be very responsive. I very much look forward to catching up with some of the new contacts I made this year now I’m back in London.
TOP TIP: Remember you’re there to SPEAK to people and get your name out there; don’t be scared or embarrassed to go up to people and speak with confidence about your market. People buy from people and it’s not exclusively about the short-term wins, long-term gains through relationship building are key.
Frederick Vinall, Head of Contract
Fred joined GKR in January 2018 with a track record in the recruitment industry already and having successfully completed a BA in Interior Architecture. Fred joined the team to assist us in the delivery of our contract and interim desk covering interior design & architecture.
For as long as I’ve been working in this industry, MIPIM has long been hailed as one of, if not the ultimate real estate event... A land of opportunity where investors, architects, property developers and everyone in between rubs shoulders and in many cases, shakes hands! It being my first experience, I kept an open mind as to what I would find and fortunately I was not disappointed. Not only did I reconnect with many talented architects and designers I already knew, I also had the pleasure of making plenty of new acquaintances. I was also pleasantly surprised to find my role take form as a conduit between design professionals and more investment focussed developers, leveraging both my and GKR’s extensive networks. Common ground established itself in every instance without fail and I look forward to nurturing the relationships created this year.
TOP TIP: Drink plenty of water!
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If you are looking for a new role, new hire or just a new face to share market information with, get in touch with one of our teammates today! We are also currently hiring to meet the demands of the growing market we work within, if you want to work in property recruitment call GKR London today.
Compiled by Molly Shoesmith, Operations Manager at GKR London Property Recruitment.
Web: www.gkrlondon.com
Tel: 0207 048 3304
Email: molly@gkrlondon.com
