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Time and place: How diversity can play a major role in building a successful career in property

In conversation with Rayna Hunter, CEO of LH1 Global

What is your career background and when did you first start your journey in the property sector?

Property is in my blood, from a young age I was exposed to the industry regularly when helping my father who led many successful property businesses when I was growing up. I was always gaining experience where I could, whether it was answering phones for an estate agency or sitting and taking notes during negotiations for high-profile land or development deals.

As a self-starter and extremely motivated, one of the first careers I embarked on involved the formation of my own PR and Events business, which I ran successfully for over a decade This initial career path involved arranging high profile charity events culminating in over half a million pounds being raised over the years, plus multi-million pound events and parties for high-profile individuals, including booking Rod Stewart for a private party in The Bahamas for one esteemed client.

There were also projects or briefs that fell into the property sphere, so I managed to keep my toes in the water one way or another.

It wasn’t until 2018 when I started in the sector full time to work alongside my husband, Benjamin Hunter, at LH1 Global a leading International off-plan property consultancy, which was growing quickly. I was originally heading up the UK Sales department then Global sales and then proudly taking the role of CEO which is testament to my business acumen and previous history in property. I may have entered the property world late, but to me it’s all about delivering results, to be able to work on some incredible projects on a daily basis is one that drives me on to keep leading and learning.

What has been your experience of coming into the industry later in your career?

You could say I came onto the scene in later life and especially as a woman in a leading position there could have been added challenges in what is a typically male dominated industry, but I’ve only seen my age and my gender as a positive. I try to use my experience and world viewpoint to create a more diverse team that can deliver the best results for our clients.

I still have enough background knowledge to be well informed of how the industry and property market works, whilst I can bring other skills and a fresh perspective to try to do things differently and improve current practices. There are still misconceptions of hiring older people into new roles, however, there is a lot of experience that is being lost and I am a good case study of being able to step into a new role in a relatively new industry and adapt and deliver.

Have you felt that being a woman has held you back at any stage or has it given you an advantage in the industry?

No, I don’t believe so, but I do believe a lot of that comes back to the experience I brought into the role. I wasn’t a junior making their first steps on the career ladder, I already had a base of knowledge and professional confidence developed over many years.

Albeit, I still had to gain the respect of my clients and male peers. I would say I have done that by being assured and confident in my abilities, it is this more than anything else that has allowed me to enjoy success in the industry. I feel that people have judged me by who I am as a person, rather than the fact I’m female, and that has allowed me to build trust and strong relationships.

If there has been any advantage to me being a woman in the industry it is the fact I may approach certain aspects of the role with a different viewpoint than some of my male counterparts and the fact I hold a senior role means that I can direct real change. I do believe there is still some way to go until females can feel as true equals in the sector, but I certainly don’t think we are necessarily held back, like anything it is just going to take time for overarching views or stereotypes to change.

How big of a role can women in play in the industry in the future and do you think there is enough in place to attract and support leading females?

Women can play a major role alongside their male peers in senior roles. Women must not feel intimidated by working in property or in a male workplace and need to be given the confidence and reassurance that they will be working in a secure, exciting, and challenging environment, whilst also having a voice that can be heard and respected.

In my opinion, you just need to embrace the challenge, it can be a rough and ready environment at times, especially if you need to spend time onsite. My team bought me pink safety boots, so I can still embrace my femininity, but that doesn’t stop me commanding the best standards on a working site. It’s how you carry yourself that’s important.

Ultimately, I believe there is a bright future for women in this industry, attitudes have changed enormously, and I hope that I and other female leaders in the sector can continue to inspire the next generations to get involved and continue to drive change.

How important do you believe diversity within a team is for delivering success?

Personally, diversity in the workplace and the industry transcends more than just gender, race, sexuality, religious beliefs etc. but also age and personal interest. It is no coincidence that we are seeing retired doctors, teachers and other professionals being enticed out of retirement as businesses and professional bodies look to bring that experience and know how back in. It’s something I’m a major advocate for in the property world and hope to be a role model of how positive an initiative it can be.

LH1 Global has recorded significant growth in the past 12 months, including an international expansion, what has your role been in influencing this?

It has been an incredibly successful period for the business during a time when the UK property market has stagnated. I believe we have achieved this by firstly building a strong team that has a multitude of strengths and experience that is perfectly blended to deliver excellent results for our developer clients and across multiple projects.

It is also largely down to the fact that we have established a fantastic model in the sales and marketing of off-plan city centre multi-unit developments. Overall, we find that our approach leads to faster sales and completions due to purchasers being managed carefully to ensure that if there are any issues, we are on hand to provide support or find a solution to the problem.

We are also very good at identifying emerging markets before they become overheated and work closely with our clients to source strategic sites, which will deliver homes that will prove popular once released onto the market in spite of any potential negative market conditions.

This has allowed us to expand the business into the international sphere and take our model to new and emerging global markets and it is a very exciting time to be spearheading the business alongside Benjamin Hunter who is driving this growth from our Dubai office.

What’s coming up for LH1 Global in the next year?

We have a number of very exciting developments that are close to launch. Our 2023 flagship development, Southbank Riverside in Leeds should be launching in October which is over 400 units and a GDV in excess of £100m. The time period ahead of the full launch is always a very busy period for myself and the team, as we are absolutely over everything when it comes to the sales and marketing collateral. We have been leading on tasks such as the marketing/brand name for new developments to ensuring we have an extensive batch of CGIs that are eye-catching, full of detail and can work across print, online and social media. Then when it comes to the launch we engage with our agent network to secure as many off-plan sales as we can.

We also have a growing pipeline of developments in some very exciting areas of the UK that will come to market in the next year, whilst we are also in the process of securing some very high-profile projects overseas that will allow us to showcase our work on a global stage.

From a business perspective we are focused on delivering for our clients and ensuring that internally we have a strong, diverse team that enjoy what they do, because when you are excited to get out of bed in the morning you will provide your best, so I’m just looking forward to keeping everyone focused and on track and doing everything I can as a female leader in this fantastic industry.