News and Blogs

18 December 2018
Investment is key as Garness Jones looks to build on success of 2018 by David Garness

As another calendar business year draws to a close with Christmas just around the corner, we have been reflecting on what has been another really positive year for our clients and Garness Jones. And it seems it is not only us that will be looking back at 2018 fondly.

At our recent Christmas drinks reception at Hull Minster, it was wonderful to speak to so many people who were positive about how business was going and how 2018 had proved a success.

The Humber Region certainly seems to be continuing to benefit from the positive ripples of 2017 when Hull was the UK City of Culture, and our commercial property work out into Goole, Howden, Doncaster and Scunthorpe has highlighted great confidence across Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire.

Business is buoyant, and as a long established property company operating in these markets, we feel a great sense of pride in the part we continue to play in helping companies become established, grow and thrive.

As the year comes to an end it is an ideal time to take a step back and look at what has happened over the past 12 months.

Property to value of more than £55 million sold or let by Garness Jones teams

The headline figures from our last 12 months are quite an achievement.

During 2018 we have formally valued and reported on property to the value of £50 million, across both our commercial and residential property operations.

The management department of the business has collected £6 million in rent, whilst we’ve sold or let property to the value £55 million through our commercial team.

These are statistics which demonstrate the growth and confidence in our region. Investors are increasingly finding the locations in which we have expertise an attractive proposition, and we know there is more good news to come.

Of course, there will always be market movement and media headlines are often focussed on any closures of household business names or decisions to close certain outlets.

However, we have seen in 2018 that national businesses are willing to put their confidence in the region, and developers are prepared to build with confidence that their developments will be a success.

We have recently celebrated attracting DHL to open its new logistics warehouse at the Ozone Business Park in Howden, work is due to start on the new £2.5m retail site in Kingswood, which is being developed by Priority Space and we are marketing, whilst work is pressing on at King William House in Hull, another £6 million project transforming an iconic building which had stood empty into a mix of retail, leisure and accommodation for city centre – right opposite Hull Minster and close to the thriving Fruit Market and Humber Street.

More development ahead for Garness Jones in 2019

Business is forever changing, and our team at Garness Jones is determined to make sure we change with the times too and be fully reflective and responsive to the ever changing demands and needs of those we work for.

Over the past 12 months we have strengthened our property management teams across both our commercial and residential businesses, and we will continue to invest into our teams and technology as demand increases among property portfolio holders.

It is why many of our clients from across all departments of the business have been contacted in recent weeks, and perhaps early into the New Year, and asked to take part in an anonymous survey about our work, our people and our services.

We are passionate about how we work for you, and have wanted to find out exactly what the people we serve feel about us, what we do well, and more importantly, what they feel we could be doing better going forward.

That will help us shape our vision going forward by giving us the extra knowledge we need to invest further, so we thank all for their support, and look forward to another prosperous year in 2019.