“The sector is massive, it’s the fastest growing sector. Hotels are popping up at 10% of the rate BTR is, it’s going to continue to grow… but to evolve it needs more of a focus on the service and the customer”.
Welcome to A New Lease of Life, a sub-series of the devcast…podcast, where you’ll be learning how experts of the BTR, PRS, student accommodation and retirement living sectors climbed the ladder of their professions.
Hosted by Nick Hammond, Head of Build to Rent at deverellsmith, our guest in the studio this time is John Angus, Managing Director at Switch Hospitality Management.
John is driven by his principal focus of enhancing investor returns and surpassing owners’ business goals, whilst exceeding the expectations of guests and residents. Join Nick and John as they delve into John’s recent venture into the Build to Rent industry, explore his strategic vision for Switch, and gain insights into where the Build to Rent landscape is headed in the next 5-10 years.
It’s a conversation you won’t want to miss…
Journey before Switch
John explains how his journey in the hospitality industry began as a hotel management graduate, but it took a turn when he started working with independent property owners. This led him to work for a company led by an entrepreneurial owner with a penchant for acquiring properties across Oxfordshire. However, his path eventually led him back to the corporate world, where he found the opportunity to establish his own company, marking the birth of Switch.
Fast forward to today, and Switch has grown to a dedicated team of 320 staff members across the group and is heading towards its 2nd anniversary.
Taking a step into Build to Rent
John explained that their partnership with Seven Capital, who not only own a couple of the buildings that Switch manages but are also valued shareholders drove their movement into the BTR sector.
Severn Capital was looking to build a PRS development in Birmingham, to build something more up-market, including suites.
During this journey with Seven Capital, John realised that BTR is fundamentally about service, and at its core, it’s all about customer retention and satisfaction – which is what Switch and its team do daily. By putting hotel-trained reception and customer service teams into a BTR development and found that customer retention and yields grow greatly.
Listen now to hear more…
