People Profiles
As a service-based business, our most valuable asset is our people. We employ a varied range of people with a broad range of experience and expertise. Each and every working day, all our staff make a positive contribution to the running of our business, and help us provide the best possible service.
OUR PEOPLE
All our colleagues have a story to tell, either in terms of their time with
Christie + Co or how they've progressed and developed their career since
joining our team. Here are some of those people and their stories:
Terry Norman. Director, Valuation Services, Bristol
Terry joined Christie + Co in 1990, initially at Exeter before moving back to his roots in Bristol. Here he established the Valuation Services department, which has since grown to be our largest provincial team. He was promoted to Associate Director in 1994 and was subsequently made a Director in 2005. Terry is the longest serving member at our Bristol Office and has a depth of experience across all of our sectors. Notable valuations have included; a funicular railway and camera obscura, a theme park, a castle hotel with mini opera house, a chain of funeral directors and a garden centre group. Terry follows local rugby and lives with his family in South Gloucestershire.
Sally Peck. Receptionist, Nottingham
Sally began working for Christie + Co as the Office Junior/Post Room Assistant at our Nottingham Office in 1987. She joined us at a busy time and the office was officially opened during her first week there. Two years later she became the Receptionist and later took on various administrative duties. After more than 20 years in her job she is the longest serving member of our Nottingham team. She has met and worked with some really great people over the years and has enjoyed her time with the company immensely. Sally is from the local area and lives in Nottinghamshire with her young daughter.
Simon Chaplin. Director, Corporate Pubs
Simon originally joined Christie + Co in 1983 and worked at our Ipswich and Bristol offices. After a period away, he returned in 1996 as a Pub Negotiator at the London Office and then relocated to the Maidstone Office when it opened in 1998. Within two years Simon won "Negotiator of the year" and was promoted to Associate Director. Proving himself to be a consistent performer he was asked to join the Corporate Pubs Team and was subsequently made a Director. Simon has a wealth of experience in the pub sector, which he uses to develop Christie + Co's range of clients and activities. He has enjoyed his time with the company – at all levels – and is looking forward to the many opportunities ahead. Simon has a personal interest in pubs and real ale (a reflection of how serious he takes his job!) and lives with his family in Kent.
Martin Davis. Director & Location Manager, Manchester
Having spent 15 years working in the residential sector, Martin joined Christie + Co in May 2001 looking for a new challenge. He began as a Pub Negotiator in our London Office and was later invited to join the corporate pubs team covering the South of England. In 2003, Martin won the Corporate Negotiator of the Year award and was promoted to Associate Director. In 2004, Martin was appointed Birmingham Location Manager and, within two years, the office won Location of the Year award. Subsequently, Martin became a Director and took on an even bigger challenge as Location Manager at Manchester. He and his team are currently working on increasing our market share in the North West and have their sights on the much-coveted Location of the Year award. Martin lives in Cheshire with his understanding wife and two daughters.
Jean-Christophe Charolle. Hotel Negotiator, Paris
Jean-Christophe has a masters degree in economics and joined Christie + Co as an Assistant at our Paris Office in June 2002. Over the next few years he assisted the management team on some of the office’s major deals and valuations. This enabled him to develop his knowledge of all areas of brokerage work, especially the detailed financial and legal aspects. In January 2007, he was promoted to Hotel Negotiator with responsibility for Christie + Co’s activities in southwest France. Today Jean-Christophe has a firm knowledge of the French hotel industry and has extensive experience of the market. Although his job involves travelling throughout France, he still lives with his family near his native Paris.
Kimmo Virtanen. Director & Location Manager, Helsinki
Kimmo joined Christie + Co in January 2005, having worked in senior positions with some of the UK’s leading hotel lending banks. Prior to this, Kimmo spent nearly five years with HVS International in London. He has extensive practical experience of hotel feasibility studies, valuations and advisory projects throughout Europe. Kimmo holds an MSc Diploma in Property Investments from City University (London) and an MBA in Hotel Management from Michigan State University in the US. He also has a BSc in Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management from Haaga Institute, Finland. Kimmo was promoted to Director in March 2007 and opened Christie + Co’s Helsinki Office in early 2008. The office covers Scandinavia, Russia and the Baltic states, providing hotel advisory and brokerage services in this region, thereby contributing to Christie + Co’s growing presence in Europe.
Courteney Donaldson. Director, Corporate Childcare
Courteney joined Christie + Co's Manchester Office in 1999 as a Graduate Valuer. Within 5 years she qualified as a Chartered Surveyor, had developed a niche in the children's day nursery sector and was promoted to Associate Director. In 2005 Courteney was asked to join the Corporate Care Team to develop Christie + Co's business in the childcare and education sectors. She was subsequently made a Director. In one capacity or another Courteney has been involved in every major UK nursery transaction since 2006, and is regarded as the UK’s leading expert in the day nursery sector. Courteney lives in Cheshire with her teenage son and is a keen sailor. She renamed her yacht 'Christie', as a tribute to the company which has supported and nurtured her career.
Jeremy Jones. Director, Corporate Hotels
Originally from Manchester, Jeremy worked for a large office development company before joining Christie + Co in 1995. Since then he has focused on the hotel sector where he is now our Head of Corporate Hotels.
Having cut his teeth in the private London hotels market, Jeremy rapidly moved on to larger national and international hotel transactions. He was appointed an Associate Director in 2002 and was promoted to Director in 2004. He won Christie + Co’s inaugural Directors’ Director of the Year award and has twice won the Corporate Hotels Negotiator of the Year award. Since 2000, Jeremy has been part of the team responsible for transactions such as the sale of the UK’s largest hotel (The Hilton Metropole, W2) and has acted for clients such as Goldman Sachs, Hilton Hotels, Intercontinental Hotels Group and global hotel investors such as Westmont Hospitality.A big part of Jeremy's job - and something he enjoys - is the domestic and international travel but, as he now lives in southwest London, he also sometimes has the benefit of an easy commute to our Victoria Street, SW1 offices.
