Property consultant CKD Galbraith has announced the appointment of a new chairman as the expanding partnership celebrates the opening of a new office in the north east.
Iain Russell, 56, is to take over the reins of the 225-strong firm after it launched a new location in Aberdeen and James Galbraith stepped down following more than a decade in charge. He said he was honoured to take up the role at “a home-grown Scottish success story”.
Galbraith, which posted operating profits of £2.4m in the year to the end of March 2013, has continued its growth trajectory in recent years in spite of the ongoing economic turmoil.
“All aspects of the property market took a heavy knock during the recession but we worked our way through that by diversifying our services and that has borne fruit in the growth of the firm,” said Mr Russell, who currently heads up the company’s rural offering and who will move from his Inverness base to Edinburgh as he takes up his new role.
“The opening of an office in such a vibrant economy as Aberdeen and the north-east is a key part of our expansion throughout Scotland.”
Mr Galbraith, who has been chairman since the merger of CKD Finlayson Hughes and the Scottish arm of Cluttons in 2003, said it had been “very fulfilling” to lead an organisation where teamwork had proven the key to success.
“I look forward to still contributing as a partner and I feel that we are well equipped to go from strength to strength across our main business streams of rural, commercial, residential property and energy/renewables,” he added.
The firm said its new north-east site would focus on high-quality residential sales, farm and estate management and valuation.
It also announced a string of promotions, among them the elevations of Perth’s Alastair Harington to become a senior associate.
It manages in excess of one million acres of land across the country, from a network of offices including Stirling, Perth, Cupar, Aberfeldy, and Alyth.