News: Alex Gould joins Powell Williams as Partner

As we undertake further expansion across our national network of offices, we are delighted to welcome new Partner, Alex Gould, who has joined the practice based at our London HQ at 150 Minories in the City.

Alex joins from Stiles Harold Williams in Croydon where he was a Director, prior to which he was an Associate at Savills, trained as a specialist in technical due diligence. He also spent almost seven years at GVA, now Avison Young, in London.

Working alongside Partner Darren Ward and Associate Partner Natasha Lovegrove, Alex is primarily dealing with the firm’s investment and pension fund clients, and also supports the wider team across the firm’s offices in Birmingham, Chester and Leeds.

Alex said:
“Powell Williams has a great presence in the City, working for some of the country’s most active funds and investors, with a passion and commitment to client service that is very apparent. I appreciate and share those values and am excited about helping to grow the business in London and support the teams nationally.

As the market emerges from the recent effects of the pandemic, the transactional market is expected to present some interesting opportunities for astute investors who are looking beyond the short-to-medium term challenges, and our experience of de-risking those investments will be crucial.

Expertise in technical due diligence will be invaluable to those clients looking to acquire property with a view to re-purposing and adding value in a diverse range of property types and sectors. I look forward to supporting their growth strategies and that of the business itself, preserving and promoting the Powell Williams ethos of combining expert knowledge with a superior quality of client service.”

The past year for Powell Williams

Our existing business model fared well during the pandemic thanks, in part, to the partner-led structure and collegiate ethos. The commitment of the team enabled us to adapt quickly to the new ways of working with no interruption to client service, and also take on instructions from new clients who needed immediate strategic support for their short-term property requirements.

In fact, the practice has seen an increase in activity over the last 12 months, with a significant volume of dilapidations and project management work, and the teams assisting both tenants and landlords in responding to the changing and challenging conditions.

Further expansion

We’ve exceptional client retention rates. With the expected growth in work from our new and existing clients, alongside the anticipated upturn in transactional work, we’ve sought to increase our head count across each of our four offices, resulting in a firm-wide recruitment drive which has also seen the very recent arrival of Associate Partner & Senior Principal Designer, John Rutter, and Senior Surveyor Matthew Bielby in the Chester office.

Our London team continues its growth strategy and is actively recruiting two additional surveyors.

Andy Williams, Managing Partner, said:
“We are extremely pleased to bring Alex into our London team, further strengthening the service we provide from the capital, particularly with regards  to TDD for acquisitions and disposals, given his pedigree in this area.

Recruitment within our sector is fiercely competitive and it is therefore all the more satisfying to attract such high quality candidates as Alex, John and Matthew, all skilled and motivated individuals who are enthused by the work we are doing here.”