Property Interview: Richard Lumley, chairman of Castlehouse Construction
Castlehouse Construction is aiming to reach a £25m turnover in this financial year and chairman, Richard Lumley, feels that people are central to achieving this success.
The firm employs around 30 staff from its Leeds headquarters. Turnover has increased from £195,000 in 2011/12 to a projected £25m in 2018/19, which Lumley says is as a result of its growing partnerships with major retailers including Lidl – for which the firm has recently completed its 20th new build project.
“At the end of the day, what we do isn’t rocket science. It’s about getting the right team together and managing the projects well,” explains Lumley, who set up Castlehouse in 2009 with Frank Kofler. They combined their extensive experience of working for and founding major companies in the Yorkshire region over four decades.
Lumley is well aware of how difficult some firms found the crash of 2008/09 and said it was incredibly hard setting up a business at this stage. He said: “But the marketplace is pretty resilient at the moment. The great thing about 08/09 was that it got rid of a lot of the cowboys. But the real shame was that some really good outfits went to the wall.”
Lumley added that he had no desire to hit extremely high turnover without delivering on the high standards he set. “I would much rather do £25m really well than £50m delivered below par.
“We are about working with people that we want to work with and for those that pay us, something that not all developers do. Our growth has all been organic because we have got the track record. We have got a fantastic team.”
Current projects include a £4m care home in Whitby and the firm also has a nationwide framework agreement in place with Lidl, which has accelerated the company’s growth since it secured the contract for the first one.
“Most of our work is in the M62 corridor but our philosophy has always been that we will look at anything, anywhere. We just ask ourselves ‘can we deliver it well?’ and ‘can we make money from it?’. It’s an ultra-competitive market ” he said.
“But Leeds is buzzing at the moment. You only have to look at the number of cranes to see what’s going on. It’s a great place to be.”
Lumley said he loved being able to see progress on so many different sites and named the construction of Apperley Bridge marina as a particular highlight of his career because of the complexities involved and the fact it was the first of its kind for many years.
Reflecting on his career, Lumley said he wasn’t think of retiring soon but instead welcomed the adaptations needed to bolster the construction sector further, including enhanced technology and the introduction of health and safety. “At the heart of everything is doing a good job for the people we work with,” he concluded.
Outside of work commitments, Lumley has a herd of rare breed cattle and enjoys moto GP.
