Saturday August 4, 2018

In Catalonia they have a lovely old expression when bidding farewell to a friend. “Que no haya novedad”. “Let no new thing arise”. Because as we know, change usually means trouble. But in business change must be seen as an opportunity to be embraced. Possibly the biggest change to hit business in living memory was […]

Thursday May 3, 2018

Organising a photo shoot for our newest staff member Kayley McKnight was not rocket science but it meant I had to ensure everybody knew where they had to be and when. This done, I sent out an email headed “we are ready to shoot Kayley. To be informed that I had probably blipped the radar […]

Monday August 29, 2016

Few people shed a tear when bank stress test results are announced. Indeed, one professional colleague recently speculated that the introduction of thumb screws might improve the process.  But while bank stress test results hit the headlines, the results from banks own stress tests on private landlords fails to make the news. On a mortgage […]

Wednesday December 2, 2015

The ‘studentification’ of Newcastle city centre, and other cities like it, is certainly a talking point in the property industry. I warmly welcome the increase in bespoke student accommodation in and around the city. For too many years the standard of dedicated student property has been left at pretty poor levels, or ignored altogether. The […]

Friday December 5, 2014

Since December is now upon us it is OK to talk about Christmas, although the pubs and venues have had their ‘Book Now’ posters up since August. Coming from an Italian family, Christmas for me means time spent around the table; eating, drinking, catching up with family and friends. And when an Italian says ‘at […]