Our People

Darren joined Christie + Co’s Birmingham office as a valuer in 2001, before moving to Leeds in 2004 as Valuation Services Manager and latterly Location Manager of the Leeds office in 2005.

In January 2007 Darren moved to London to take up the position of national head of Valuation Services and now has overall responsibility for our national team of valuers, our appointments to bank valuation panels, RICS regulation and compliance and the Company’s Professional Indemnity Insurance.

Darren is a RICS qualified Chartered Valuation Surveyor, a Registered Valuer and also enjoys participating as an APC Assessor for the RICS. During his time at Christie + Co, he has worked on a variety of valuation projects on a local, regional and national scale, gaining substantial experience across all six of our trading sectors. In particular, he has extensive experience in the valuation of petrol forecourts, holiday & caravan parks and the pharmacy & medical sectors.

Chris Day joined Christie + Co in 1985 and, having worked in the Manchester, Birmingham and London Offices, was appointed Managing Director in 1993. He has overall responsibility for all Christie + Co's specialist transactional and advisory activities. Chris has overseen the successful expansion of Christie + Co into a truly global firm, which currently has 25 offices throughout Europe and in the Middle East.

Based in the London office, Chris has particular responsibility for our international operations and he travels regularly. He specialises in the sale and valuation of hotels, public houses and restaurants and has led teams handling numerous disposal and valuation assignments for many high profile clients.

Chris is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and member of the International Society of Hospitality Consultants (ISHC). He commenced his career in the property profession in 1975, qualifying as a Chartered Surveyor in 1980. In recent years he has chaired the Central London Branch of the RICS, and is currently a member of the London Regional Board of the RICS.

Having started his career in the hotel industry, Simon Hughes moved into the property sector more than 20 years ago and joined Christie + Co in 1987. Originally employed as a hotel sector specialist, Simon has worked with a broad range of clients over the years — from independent hotel owners through to some of the most recognisable operators, including Hilton, Whitbread and Marston Hotels. Initially based in the Nottingham office, Simon subsequently spent periods working in the Glasgow, Bristol and London offices, where he developed a full understanding of Christie + Co’s service offerings and a broad knowledge of all our specialist sectors.

Having successfully managed the London operation for a number of years, he was appointed UK Managing Director in 2005. Simon now has overall responsibility for Christie + Co’s full range of agency and advisory services activity across the network of 15 regional offices. He is also responsible for directing the activities of Christie + Co’s sister company Christie Finance.

Simon continues to take an active role in client projects, most recently focusing on the development of business in the retail sector, where he has been instrumental in Christie + Co’s expansion into the forecourt and pharmacy markets.