Foxtons Appoints Guy Gittins as Group CEO

RNS Number : 1651N

Foxtons Group PLC

30 May 2022

 

    THIS ANNOUNCEMENT RELATES TO THE DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION THAT QUALIFIED OR MAY HAVE QUALIFIED AS INSIDE INFORMATION WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 7(1) OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (EU) 596/2014 AS IT FORMS PART OF UK DOMESTIC LAW BY VIRTUE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018

Foxtons Group plc

("Foxtons" or the "Company")

Board Changes

Foxtons Appoints Guy Gittins as Group Chief Executive Officer

30 May 2022 - Foxtons Group plc (LSE: FOXT), London's leading estate agent, is pleased to announce that Guy Gittins has been appointed Group CEO with effect from 5 September 2022. He joins Foxtons from Chestertons, the London and international residential property specialist, where he is currently Chief Executive, and replaces Nic Budden, who has stepped down from the CEO role he has held since 2014.

Guy has significant sector and leadership experience. Since his 2018 appointment as Chief Executive of Chestertons, he has exponentially grown EBITDA, and transformed the business into a technology led, performance focused business, winning market share; increasing sales in each year; and significantly growing the lettings business both via acquisition and organically. 

Guy started his early career at Foxtons, leaving in 2007 to become Sales and Marketing Director for Peter de Savary. In May 2010 he joined Savills, before moving to Chestertons in 2012, as head of their flagship Chelsea office.

Peter Rollings, currently a Non-Executive Director and former Managing Director of Foxtons, will act as interim CEO with immediate effect until Guy takes up his appointment. Peter is a highly experienced industry figure who was CEO of Marsh & Parsons from 2005 to 2016.

Current trading

Foxtons has made a good start to the financial year and current trading remains in line with the Board's expectations. 

Nigel Rich, Chairman of Foxtons, said: "On behalf of the Board of Foxtons I am delighted to welcome Guy back to the business. His experience and success at Chestertons should be invaluable to Foxtons as the company continues its drive to improve profitability. I would like to thank Nic Budden for his commitment to Foxtons over many years. Over the last few months since I became Chairman, Nic has initiated a number of actions to improve the profitability of the business which have had a positive impact, and we all wish him well for the future. I am grateful to Peter Rollings for taking up the interim CEO role; we are fortunate to have his significant expertise on the Board."

Guy Gittins, CEO designate of Foxtons, said: "I am incredibly excited to be returning to where I started my career; Foxtons has some of the best people, technology and data in the industry, and it is the most recognised brand in the sector. I am looking forward to working with the talented Foxtons team to realise the potential of the business and drive significant shareholder value."

Nic Budden said: "It has been a real privilege to lead the company as CEO for the last 8 years. It's a brilliant company with huge potential and a great team whom it has been a pleasure to work with."

There are no other details or disclosures required under LR 9.6.13R of the Financial Conduct Authority's Listing Rules. The Board of Foxtons has been independently advised by PwC on remuneration for the outgoing, incoming and interim CEOs. The information required to be disclosed under section 430(2B) of the Companies Act 2006 in relation to Nic Budden will be available on the Group's website at www.foxtonsgroup.co.uk/our-responsibility/corporate-governance shortly, together with supplementary information on the remuneration arrangements for the incoming and interim CEOs.

AGM update

The Resolution to re-elect Nic Budden as a Director will be withdrawn from the agenda of the Annual General Meeting ("AGM") of the Company's shareholders to be held at 10.00am on Wednesday, 15 June 2022.

The withdrawal of the Resolution does not affect the validity of the Notice of AGM or any proxy votes already submitted in respect of the remaining resolutions to be proposed at the AGM. The numbering of all other proposed resolutions at the AGM remains unchanged.

Arrangements for the AGM are unchanged from those previously notified.

Enquiries:
Foxtons Group plc	[e-mail]
Muhammad Patel, Investor Relations	[phone]
TB Cardew	[e-mail]
Ed Orlebar / Tom Allison	[phone]/ [phone]
Deborah Goodier	[phone]

About Foxtons

Foxtons is London's leading estate agent with the most recognised brand. Founded in 1981, Foxtons operates from a network of interconnected branches, offering a range of residential related services across three revenue streams: lettings, sales and financial services.

Foxtons seeks to deliver significant shareholder value by delivering against core strategic objectives:

· Driving organic revenue growth through market share growth, developing new revenue channels and enhancing cross-sell capabilities;

· Identifying, acquiring, and integrating high quality lettings portfolios; and

· Achieving profit growth by increasing staff productivity and continuing to streamline infrastructure and management.

To find out more, please visit www.foxtonsgroup.co.uk .

Notes to Editors

Guy Gittins

In 2012 Guy joined Chestertons, the London and international residential property specialist, as Director of the company's flagship office in Chelsea. There he strengthened the sales department and significantly increased branch revenue in his first year, subsequently being promoted to Sales Director where he was tasked with improving revenue performance across the Company.

In 2016, Guy was appointed Head of Residential Sales, before becoming Chief Executive in 2018. In the last four years, he has exponentially grown Chestertons' EBITDA, accelerated sales and lettings revenues and profits. Chestertons today has over 30 branches across London, with a focus on residential sales and lettings.

Guy previously held senior commercial roles at Peter de Savary and Savills, and holds a first class honours degree in Technology Management from Oxford Brookes University.

Peter Rollings

Peter was appointed a Non-Executive Director on 1 December 2021. He is a member of the Audit Committee, the Remuneration Committee, the ESG Committee and the Nomination Committee. Peter has extensive estate agency experience having started his career at Foxtons in December 1985. He later held the position of Managing Director between 1997 and 2005 where he made a significant contribution to both the growth and dynamics of the business. Peter left Foxtons in 2005 to acquire Marsh & Parsons with an Irish partner, the Sherry FitzGerald Group. During Peter's time as CEO of Marsh & Parsons (2005 - 2016) he presided over significant expansion and value creation.

Peter previously served as a Non-Executive Director at Sherry FitzGerald, the Irish estate agency group (2017-2020) and has undertaken a number of consultancy roles for businesses with a tech, sales, and people focus.

Peter is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (FRICS). He is a Non-Executive Director at Viewber Limited.

 

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