Scottish commercial property consultancy Ryden is entering a new phase of growth after outperforming expectations during the first year of its strategic partnership with Lambert Smith Hampton (LSH), delivering stronger profits while laying the foundations for further expansion across Scotland.
The Edinburgh-headquartered firm has reported a 7% increase in profit year-on-year and exceeded its internal profit target by 23% during the partnership's first year.
Having spent the past year integrating the two businesses while retaining Ryden's independent brand and leadership, the business is now focused on accelerating growth through recruitment, acquisitions and expanding its service offering across Scotland.
Ryden’s Managing Partner Alan Gilkison said:
"Our ambition was never to become a different business. Our relationship with LSH strengthened Ryden's position without changing who we are or the culture our people have built over many years.
"The first year has been about building the foundations for long-term growth. We've spent time bringing the businesses together, understanding each other's strengths, connecting clients and creating opportunities that simply weren't available to us before.
"Today we're working on national instructions, benefiting from stronger relationships across the wider LSH network and investing in new service lines that will support the next stage of our development."
Ryden, which employs over 130 people across Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen, has several strategic initiatives under way, including acquisition opportunities, targeted recruitment and the expansion of specialist services.
The business has also re-entered the loan security market supported by the additional scale and capability of the wider LSH Group, allowing Ryden to offer clients a broader range of services. Over the coming year, Ryden will focus on enhancing existing service lines and entering new sectors, growing its team and strengthening its position as Scotland's leading independent commercial property consultancy while providing clients with seamless access to UK-wide expertise through LSH.
Ryden is already advising clients across some of Scotland’s fastest growing sectors, including renewable energy, advanced manufacturing, life sciences and data centres, and expects demand across these markets to continue increasing.
Gilkison added:
“We've built strong foundations during the past year and now we're moving into a period focused on growth. We have ambitious plans, a fantastic team and the backing to seize opportunities as they emerge. It's an exciting time for Ryden, our people and our clients.”
