This man has co-created an iconic brand in Liverpool and Manchester over the last decade, but he is the quiet man of the partnership. This is the classic example of enterprising synergy – two talented people who’d have done well on their own, but together, they have made magic. Jonathan Falkingham and Tom Bloxham set up Urban Splash in 1993, and very quickly started making waves both in the property market and in the media. They were doing something different, striking out in a new direction, starting on a shoestring, but with enormous style. Over the five years to 2012, Urban Splash will see more than £1 billion of developments go through the books, with a respectable margin, to boot.
The challenge of each new project – that’s the buzz for Falkingham. ‘It’s a great luxury to do what I enjoy, what I feel passionate about. It’s not about money – at least, that’s not the driver for me.’
‘I’m a natural problem solver, quite grounded. I can distil complex problems into priorities, see the big issues – and so can Tom, ‘ he says. They struggled to delegate – we were both in every meeting, discussing everything from big deals to door handles. Not practical. But we’re getting better at it.’ Now they have 260 staff and 16 directors, they have learned to give people more of a free hand, ‘as long we keep on course, stay in overall control. We’re very open to ideas.’
Falkingham is ready to admit to his faults. A tall man with a soft voice and a diffident air, he is not a thrower of tantrums. ‘I become visibly irritated, but I don’t lose my cool. Tom says he’s never heard me raise my voice.’ The perfectionist in him gets frustrated at times, at which point he’ll have a moan to someone then goes and gets some exercise.........
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