Living Brick - A Story So Far
Gareth Davies, Victoria Kennedy, Kevin Doran, David Cain
Liverpool has been on the crest of a wave over the past few years when it comes to property development. A plethora of new structures have carved out a new skyline for the city, enabling its economy to thrive, despite the uncertainty that Brexit brought. One such developer that has been working away, mostly behind the scenes is Living Brick. Trailblazer wanted to find out why they’ve waited until now to rear their heads and pull back the curtain.
Living Brick was started by Kevin Doran and Phillip Walsh, both from Liverpool. Kevin has worked in property for over 15 years, starting as a valuer for an estate agent then moving on to small residential units before scaling his successful model to developments upto and excess of thirty five thousand square feet. Living Brick differentiate themselves from similar outfits as they are the construction arm, developer and operator all in one, Living Brick manages the construction and development, with operations under sister company Town Hotels, ensuring a seamless process from initiation to completion and beyond.
‘We’ve purposely sat in the shadows over the past few years to see what worked, what didn’t, and importantly where the market was headed. Fortunately, Liverpool is no longer seen as a destination just for a stag or hen parties, these past ten years have opened peoples eyes to Liverpool’s beauty and as a result the city is attracting a more sophisticated clientele. That’s where we step in, through Town Hotels we offer a more personalised and unique stay through the serviced apartments and hotels we are bringing to the city, all of which can accommodate a multitude of guests from midweek corporates to weekend leisure breaks.
Living Brick already have finished developments in Liverpool, with more underway, so it’s understandably an exciting time for all involved. Kevin explained their proven model, ‘we use the fractional sales model, and we’ve proven it works for all involved. We have successfully delivered what we said we would by taking our time and sticking to our business plan. Our investors feel confident from the start because we carefully reconcile the buildings bricks and mortar valuation in relation to the monies leveraged.
We’ve got a brilliant team around us that beholds a wealth of experience, including Senior Project Manager, David Cain, Contracts Manager, Gareth Davies and Victoria Kennedy, Procurement Manager, working alongside our Town Hotels team.
It’s important we as owners utilise this experience for the benefit of all, as Steve Jobs correctly said “It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they tell us what to do.” We’re pleased with what we’ve achieved together and excited about what’s to come together even more so.’
It’s very clear that Kevin, the Living Brick and Town Hotels team share the same vision and harvest the same energy which is great to see from a home grown business that encompasses development, construction and operation in one. With completed developments already under their belt, all finished to a high standard, we are excited to join them along their journey.
For more details on their current and future projects take a look on their website…