news

IT, without tempting fate, seems to be running more smoothly now so we have been able to concentrate on real money generating work. Our head of IT, Rob, has had a better couple of months in respect of problem solving and general IT ‘issues’ so stress levels have now returned to normal…

The bank account is growing which bodes well for being able to afford a Christmas party for 3… rather than a table for 3 at the local Wimpy!

The sexier investment and development deals are still hard work with sellers and buyers as unpredictable as the pricing. Rob has several bids out at present but the champagne is still firmly on ice. Luckily lease re-gears are proving a good source of revenue. We are currently handling three re-gears, one of which has completed and the other two are in solicitors hands. Whilst it’s a tricky thing knowing how to balance tenant’s rent and incentives against capital uplift in this market, the lack of tenant demand in the present market makes undertaking re-gears with existing occupiers an obvious way of limiting voids for our Landlords.

Our JVC instruction at Harp View Business Park, Staples Corner has grown somewhat by the inclusion of their main distribution warehouse which adds an additional 119,280 sq ft for us to offer. The warehouse was built about 4 years ago and can be combined with the existing top spec office accommodation of 42,570 sq ft, which was built at the same time, to create a superb head-quarters complex located next to the attractive Welch Harp lake. All enquiries gratefully received…

Life is never predictable these days… We sponsored a Development Agents lunch at Balls Brothers in November, which is an excellent event held every 6 to 8 weeks and is a great way to catch up with colleagues in the business and swap ideas etc. All best plans and all that… I had been trying to arrange a meeting in Leeds with one of my clients and it transpired that the only day he could make it was… yes you’ve guessed it; the same day as the lunch! Thanks to Rob for going on his own and holding court with about 30 agents and he came back with a great lead that he is progressing now so well worth it!

On a similar note, having raced Moto-Cross for many years as a younger man, I was coerced into racing at this year’s crazy Weston Super Mare Beach Race and so we decided to brand my bike as a ‘BrayFoxSmith Yamaha YZF 250’… There are over 1,000 bikes on the start line, racing at ludicrous speeds down a 1.5 mile start straight to be followed by another 2 miles of man-made sand dunes with 40 foot faces! The weather is unpredictable at best with the race held in October, and this year was bad… really bad! Rain coming down diagonally driven by savage winds off the sea.

The weather was so bad and the tide narrowing the start straight so much that there was an almighty crash half way down the start straight involving 17 bikes and riders; all 17 of which ended up in the local hospital, and 7 of those were seriously hurt. Amid rumours in the pits of a fatality, we eventually got to the start line again….only to be told that the hospital could not take the risk of more injuries as they had run out of beds! The good old HSE finally called off the race. Gutted – another BrayFoxSmith sponsored outing I had to miss out on! Oh well… there’s always next year!