IM Properties (IMP) has head-hunted one of the country’s best-known planning advisers, Turley’s David Smith, to take charge of its 12m sq ft industrial land bank.
David has been with the high-profile consultancy for 13 years, based out of its Birmingham office, but with a national remit on helping its logistics clients bring forward key strategic sites and assisting occupiers in meeting their operational requirements.
The next step in his career is to join Midlands’ based IMP as planning director during January 2017.
IMP’s UK development director, Kevin Ashfield, is understandably delighted, and believes David’s appointment will enable the privately owned property company to deliver planning on IMP’s growing land bank
“We’ve brought over 6m sq ft of space through the planning process to date but now we’re looking to take the business to the next level.
We’ve secured land which could deliver 12m sq ft of logistics and manufacturing space in the short-to-medium term and the appointment of David is key to achieving this ambition,” he says.
“David’s name was the one that really stood out to us as he has worked with IMP for a number of years on various projects. He has a clear vision of the future delivery of industrial sites – he understands the sophistication of the logistics market, it’s challenges and is widely respected. We are very pleased to have persuaded him to make the move.
David concedes that it was a difficult decision to leave Turley stating that “I have hugely enjoyed my 13 years with Turley and I am grateful for the opportunities and support that the business has given me to grow and develop my logistics experience for developers and occupiers alike. I leave the company knowing it still has significant capabilities to service this sector and hope to have opportunities to continue working with them in my new capacity”.
“My new role at IMP will predominantly be to focus on the logistics sector, helping the business deliver the 12m sq ft of space they have under control, and looking to new opportunities that might be on the horizon. E-commerce is still very much driving the sector, and land supply remains a critical issue. With IMP’s track record and growing team, I am confident we can deliver planning,” he says.
“IMP is hugely ambitious. There are few major commercial developers with an in-house planning capability, which made this role very appealing. I believe this appointment can deliver a strategic advantage to the business in sourcing, securing and delivering sites. I’m familiar with most of the land bank, which is at different stages of the delivery process with some already attracting the interest of major occupiers.”