GVA boosts market share on RGA takeover

RGA Consulting, the hotel and leisure property adviser based in Edinburgh and London, has been sold to commercial real estate firm GVA.

The deal, which brings GVA into the Scottish leisure market, will see the smaller firm’s founders and nine employees stay with the business. It will be known as GVA RGA.

RGA specialises in three areas of leisure – hotels, tourism and culture. Some 80 per cent of its business services the hotels sector with recent clients including Bruntwood, Coplan Estates and Chardon Management.

Max Gaunt, managing director of RGA, said his firm’s expertise, particularly in the hospitality sector, would add “great value” to GVA’s offer, while his existing clients should benefit from the wider services offered by the new parent company.

“This partnership provides us with the strongest possible platform from which to gain further traction within our marketplace,” he said.

The companies did not release the terms of the deal.

Keith Aitken, GVA’s senior director in Scotland, said: “The acquisition of RGA puts us in a very strong place now within the Scottish marketplace and reinforces our aspiration for expansion, particularly in areas where we continue to gain market share.

“This niche sector requires a highly-specialised skills set and it’s important we offer clients that expertise.”

He described RGA as a “highly robust business”, with a healthy turnover and profit margins.

DOMINIC JEFF