On the Move: The latest West Midlands hires

Bibby Financial Services (BFS) has appointed Jim Davis as managing director for construction finance as it looks to further its support for SME businesses in the sector.

Joining BFS from Yorkshire Bank in 2011, Davis held the role of head of sales for the West Midlands since 2011 and was instrumental in the opening of BFS’s West Midlands Business Centre in 2014.

Most recently he led BFS’s export finance team, spending the past 12 months leading the support for SME businesses that trade overseas.

In his new role, Davis will be heading up a team of 50 in BFS’s construction finance team. He will be focusing on people development, training and cross function collaboration with the sales and operations teams to further develop BFS’s construction finance offering.

Sharon Wiltshire, commercial director at BFS, said: “We’re proud of recognising and retaining the talent we have within our business so we’re delighted to appoint Jim as the Managing for Construction Finance.
“During his time with BFS, Jim has delivered fantastic results and I’m confident he will continue this journey by further enhancing the support we provide to subcontracting businesses in the UK.”

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Gerald Eve has strengthened its Midlands lease consultancy offer with the arrival of three new team members at its Birmingham office, working with team lead Ian Gascoigne.

Phil Smith, an existing partner at Gerald Eve, has relocated from London to lead the growth of work in the retail and restaurant sectors. Phil acts for both landlords and occupiers on all aspects of lease consultancy and his clients include Pizza Express, Azzurri Restaurants, Costa, WH Smith and Byron Hamburgers

Also joining to work with retail and restaurant sector clients is Millie Evans who arrives from HRH Retail as a graduate surveyor, and will be working on rent reviews, lease renewals and regears.

Finally, Felicity Cooper has been recruited as a surveyor. She joins from Rapleys with four years’ experience, and will be servicing both existing clients and facilitate further expansion, working with Ian Gascoigne on the office and industrial sectors.

Jon Ryan-Gill, partner and head of Gerald Eve’s Birmingham office, said: “Lease consultancy is an area where we have seen considerable growth, and anticipate further expansion as both landlords and occupiers seek specialist advice in their negotiations. These new arrivals are a key part of our expanding service offer, and they will help us deliver an even better level of services to clients.

“As a firm we have always sought to invest in talent where it can help us be better aligned to client requirements, and these appointments are very much in line with the ongoing expansion of our Birmingham office capabilities.”

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PR and creative agency Nathan Rous PR has recruited Michelle Dalton has senior designer.

Founder and director Nathan Rous said: “This year has been one of tremendous growth for us both in terms of clients and staff, and it’s great to finish the year with yet another excellent appointment.”

After graduating with a degree in graphic design Dalton has worked in senior design capacity for the likes of Wolverhampton Wanderers FC, the Shropshire Star and Express & Star newspapers and The Sun.

Her appointment follows that of Kim Tomlinson who joined the company as an account executive in January, Jodie Perkins who joined as junior account manager in March and content manager Nathan Rowden who started in July.

It also follows the setting up of a satellite office in Vancouver to help strengthen overseas relationships and build its international offering.