MDL Marinas has appointed experienced property professional Colin Lambert as its new Head of Estates, strengthening its property expertise as the business continues to invest in and develop its marina estate.
With more than 20 years’ experience at Savills (UK) Ltd, most recently as a Director within its Licensed Leisure team, Colin brings extensive experience in leisure and trade-related property, with particular expertise in understanding the relationship between property and the operational requirements of trading businesses.
During his time at Savills, Colin advised corporate and individual clients across a broad range of property matters, with experience spanning valuation, agency and estate management. Based in Southampton, he managed complex nationwide valuation instructions of operational real estate, working with colleagues across multiple offices and divisions. Colin also spent 18 months client-side on secondment with Greene King as an Estate Manager, responsible for a portfolio of tenanted public houses across the South.
A Chartered Surveyor and RICS Registered Valuer, Colin’s experience of managing tenanted estates and understanding the operational needs of businesses will be a key part of his role at MDL. Working with tenants across the marina network, he will help identify opportunities to improve the estate, support investment and ensure MDL’s commercial spaces continue to meet the needs of the businesses operating from them. He will also help maintain a strong mix of on-site businesses and services that support berth holders, visitors and the wider marina community.
Colin joins an established Estates team led by Estates Director Jonathan King, whose background spans asset management, acquisitions, disposals and capital projects. The wider team includes Estates Managers with extensive experience across commercial property, leasing, development and day-to-day estate management, supported by dedicated facilities and administrative expertise. This combination gives MDL a broad range of property expertise and a strong understanding of the opportunities involved in managing and developing its estate, while supporting the business’s ambitions for the future.
Jonathan King, Estates Director at MDL Marinas, comments: “We’re delighted to welcome Colin to MDL. His experience goes well beyond traditional property management; he has a strong understanding of how property needs to work for the businesses occupying it, which is particularly important across our marina estate.
“Our marinas are home to a diverse range of marine, leisure and commercial businesses, and we want to provide well-managed spaces where those businesses can operate effectively and develop over the long term.
“Colin’s experience of asset management, tenanted estates and commercial property strengthens the expertise we already have within the Estates team and will help us work even more proactively with our tenants as we progress investment and opportunities across the portfolio.”
Commenting on his appointment, Colin Lambert, Head of Estates at MDL Marinas, says: “I’m really pleased to be joining MDL at such an exciting time for the business. Having spent more than 20 years working across property and the leisure sector, this role gives me the opportunity to bring that experience into a business with a diverse estate and a strong network of commercial tenants.
“I’m looking forward to working closely with tenants and colleagues across MDL’s marina network, understanding the requirements of each location and identifying practical opportunities to improve and develop the estate.
“I’ve also grown up around boats, so joining a business within the marine industry feels like a natural fit for me personally as well as professionally.”
Colin studied Real Estate Management at Oxford Brookes University and qualified as a Chartered Surveyor in 2005. He joins MDL with immediate effect.
With offices, workshops, retail units and other commercial spaces available across its network of 18 UK marinas, MDL offers a range of opportunities for businesses looking to operate from a marina environment. View current properties available to let at www.mdlmarinas.co.uk/commercial-properties.
