Property consultancy FHP launches first West Midlands office
The growing influx of consulting firms arriving in Birmingham has increased once more, with the arrival of FHP. The property consultancy arrives amid a boom of development projects in the UK’s second city.
At present, there is a huge amount of development work taking place in Birmingham, as the largest city of the West Midlands is undergoing arguably its largest transformation since the 1960s. With HS2, a huge office development at Paradise and a major residential development planned at Smithfield, this looks set to continue for many years to come. At the same time, as the London consulting market has become saturated, numerous firms from the South East in particular are migrating to Birmingham because of the level of opportunity that’s available there at the moment.
In the last 24 months, a wide range of advisory firms expanded into the UK’s second city, with Alvarez & Marsal and Big Four firm PwC being joined by a variety of engineering consultancies. These include Ramboll, Brentwood, and most recently, Meinhardt, one of the world’s largest engineering firms.
Now, a property consultancy has joined the clamour to grow into Birmingham, opening its first office in the city. FHP has opened its new West Midlands office as it continues to expand its operations. With five offices across Nottingham and Derby, FHP has taken a lease at 122 Colmore Row, from where it will offer a range of agency and consultancy advice across the retail, leisure, office and industrial sectors.
Established in 1990, FHP is now one of the largest private commercial property consultancies within the Midlands. It offers services in sales and lettings, acquisitions, valuations, business rates, rent reviews, lease renewals, development consultancy, compulsory purchase and service charge consulting. FHP Birmingham is already working on a number of projects across Birmingham and the West Midlands, with high-profile instructions on Bennett’s Hill and Temple Street and hopes of announcing two new leisure names to the city centre soon. It is also marketing 2,500 square feet of retail and leisure space, opposite the proposed HS2 station.
Doug Tweedie has been appointed as head of FHP’s Birmingham office, having joined from Cushman and Wakefield, where he was head of Midlands retail and leisure. Over the course of a long career, Tweedie has advised landlords, investors and developers on a wide range of projects nationally. He has also provided strategic acquisition and disposal advice to clients including Apple, Vodafone, TM Lewin and Wolseley.
Commenting on the opening of the Birmingham office, Tweedie said, “I’m very pleased to have joined FHP and am hugely excited by the challenge of developing the company’s presence in Birmingham. The response we have received to the new office has been incredibly encouraging and we are anticipating a growing number of clients in the area. I’m looking forward to steering the strategic direction of the office and recruiting a strong, multi-disciplinary team that has the capabilities to replicate the considerable successes the FHP business has achieved to date.”
Alan Pearson, Director of FHP, added, “FHP is a strong Midlands practice, which is dominant in the East Midlands, and so opening a Birmingham office was a natural move for us. I’m delighted that Doug has joined FHP. He is an established and hugely experienced property agent who will continue to grow our business throughout the West Midlands.”
