People: Property consultancy boosts planning and development team; Pennycuick Collins welcomes latest recruit; and more

Gerald Eve has appointed Julia Chowings as a partner in its planning team and Tom Dolan-Bent as a partner in its development team.

Chowings, who will be based across the London and Birmingham offices, as well as linking closely with the team in Manchester led by Harry Spawton, will work with both London and regional clients on opportunities outside of central London.

Drawing on over 25 years of experience, most recently at British Land and previously as a partner at Drivers Jonas and Deloitte, she will focus on town-centre repurposing, logistics projects and major regeneration areas.

Dolan-Bent will be based between Gerald Eve’s Leeds and Manchester offices and will focus on growing and enhancing the team’s well-established government contracts work.

Simon Prichard, senior partner at Gerald Eve, said: “As many of our clients look to grow their portfolios beyond London to capitalise on the rapid regional growth of sectors such as serviced living and build to rent, life sciences, retail repurposing and town-centre regeneration, we are investing in our already-established national team to ensure we’re offering best-in-class knowledge and service on both a national and regional level.”

Lisa Webb, partner in the planning and development team at Gerald Eve and a member of the executive board, said: “Both Julia and Tom come to us with impressive track-records, expertise across multiple real estate asset classes and a commitment to deliver for our clients. This is a hugely exciting time for Gerald Eve as we continue to grow our teams across the UK in response to strong and growing client demand as the post-pandemic recovery sets in.”

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Andreas Coombs has joined Pennycuick Collins as a graduate building surveyor.

Associate director David Baker said: “We are delighted to be welcoming Andreas to the team. He will play a vital role in delivering building consultancy services on a number of interesting projects for a variety of our management and investment clients, whilst we will also aid Andreas in furthering of his career, as part of our continued investment in the next generation of building surveyors.”

Coombs added: “I am looking forward to working with such an experienced and accomplished team, and I am motivated to add to the culture of hard work and excellence that has been apparent from day one.”

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Warwick-based automotive eCommerce agency drivvn has appointed Anu Shahi as head of product and technology.

The appointment will support the company’s plans to accelerate innovation to support vehicle manufacturers and retailers as digital retail continues to grow.

Shahi joined drivvn in 2019 as head of engineering and was instrumental in managing the launch of new products across multiple markets.

Peter Brown, chief executive officer at drivvn, said: “Anu is a valued member of the team and will lead a talented group of developers and product managers to ensure that drivvn continues to lead the industry in developing tools that help optimise sales through better customer journeys. Over the last 12 months, we have seen exponential growth and helped global automotive brands in markets around the globe.”

The company continues to grow its team to meet demand. Earlier this year, it launched 12 new digital stores for four brands in just three months. The rapid roll-out saw Peugeot, Citroen and DS launch in Spain, Germany and Italy, while Opel launched in Spain, Italy and France.

Shahi said: “It’s exciting to lead a talented team at this important crossroads for the industry. The automotive sector has reached a tipping point, and consumers are buying vehicles online in ever-growing numbers. So we must continue to lead the market and innovate to solve the problems of tomorrow.”

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Birmingham-based agency Pink Leopard has appointed Liv Bevan as head of client success and operations.

Bevan said: “I am thrilled to have been appointed as Head of Client Success and Operations at Pink Leopard. I want to make sure that through monitoring and assessing the commercial performance of Pink Leopard, we are also able to improve the client’s journey, maximising return as much as possible.

“Though the client’s journey is a vital component of the role, I also want to ensure that the team is supported, both in maintaining a valuable and meaningful relationship with clients, as well as in their own professional development.”

The new addition to the team follows on from Pink Leopard’s recent recruitment drive, which has seen the team grow from just two members of staff in the summer of 2020 to 15.
Laura Hanlon, co-director at Pink Leopard, said: “We’re so pleased to have Liv on board at Pink Leopard and we cannot wait to see what this exciting new chapter will bring to the agency. Client relations is such an important and integral part to being an agency, and it is something that we consider to be highly important at Pink Leopard. With Liv at the helm of our client relations, we know that we will be able to deliver a high-class client service, whilst also making sure we continue to grow the business at the same rate as the past 12 months.”