PE-backed housebuilder opens office to accelerate regional expansion plans

Sheffield-headquartered housebuilder Honey has opened its 5,000 sq ft office in Leeds and made five new senior appointments to deliver expansion plans for its Yorkshire operating region.

Ben Smith has been recruited by Honey Yorkshire as land director and Kyle Danton joins as commercial director.

Simon Hogg been hired as construction director, while Wayne Moses and Curtis Sorren have joined as head of technical and head of sales respectively.

The Honey Yorkshire team is based in the Leeds office, which is on the Thorpe Park Leeds development.

Smith joins from housebuilder Avant Homes and has 25 years’ experience within the housebuilding sector. He will lead on Honey Yorkshire’s land acquisition strategy across the region.

With more than 36 years’ experience, Hogg joins from Keepmoat Homes. As construction director, he is responsible for the delivery of Honey Yorkshire’s new build homes.

Danton, who has 26 years’ experience in the housebuilding industry, joins from Avant Homes. At Honey, he is responsible for overseeing the commercial function of the Yorkshire region.

Joining from property developer and investor Artisan Real Estate, Moses has 26 years of experience in the housebuilding sector. His new position sees him lead on Honey Yorkshire’s overall technical delivery.

Sorren brings with him eight years of sales experience within the housebuilding industry, having previously held positions at Avant Homes, Bellway Homes and Barrett. In his new role, he will support Honey Yorkshire’s customers throughout the homebuying process.

Honey confirmed the launch of its two regional offices, Honey Yorkshire and Honey Central, following the appointment of Chris Coley as managing director.

Honey Central is based out of the housebuilder’s existing premises on Ecclesall Road in Sheffield.

Since being launched in October 2022, Honey has secured 19 sites across Yorkshire and the Midlands that will deliver 2,349 homes and a combined gross development value of £665m.

The company is backed by private equity firm Alchemy Partners and its Alchemy Special Opportunities Fund IV which has £937m of fully committed capital.

Honey chief executive, Mark Mitchell, said: “The opening of our Leeds office provides us with the perfect platform to accelerate our growth plans across Yorkshire.

“To enable this, we need the right people. Ben, Curtis, Simon, Wayne and Kyle all have outstanding experience within their respective fields and will play a pivotal role in Honey Yorkshire’s expansion across the region.

“I welcome all five of them to the business and look forward to working closely with them to build on the momentum with have already built and provide more people with the opportunity to own a Honey home.”