Simon Chaplin - Director and Head of Restaurants With over 25 years' experience in the pub and restaurant market, Simon heads our Corporate Restaurant division. Based out of London, Simon works with major restaurant operators throughout the UK co-ordinating our restaurant activity with sales and acquisitions. Recent activity includes the sale of 28 sites for Paramount Restaurants to the likes of Prezzo, Gondola and Costa, acquisitions for The Restaurant Group and handling the letting of 48 former Little Chef units around the country for Travelodge.
Neil
Morgan
Director and Head of Public Houses
Neil is National Head of the Pubs and Restaurants team and has been heavily involved in reshaping the sector. Since 1982, Neil has developed specific experience in the pub, restaurant, leisure and development sectors. Neil has national responsibility for Christie + Co’s activities in both the pub and restaurant sectors and has been responsible for the acquisition and expansion of a number of private/regional pub companies. He has also project managed a number of key pub company disposals and acquisitions throughout the UK and assisted in key strategic estate reviews.
Chris
Day
Managing Director

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 27 offices throughout Europe.
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.
Darren
Bond
Director and Head of Valuation Services
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.
David joined Christie + Co in 1972 and was Managing Director prior to the formation of Christie Group in 1985 when he was appointed Group Managing Director and later Chief Executive. David is Chairman of Christie + Co and has many years’ experience in the sale and valuation of businesses. In particular, he has extensive experience of the hotel sector worldwide.
Jon
Patrick
Director and Head of Leisure & Development
Jon joined Christie + Co in 1984 and has extensive experience of the sale and valuation of leisure businesses, together with the development of leisure and hospitality property involving both solus and mixed-use schemes. He has worked in our Leeds, Newcastle and London Offices, being instrumental in the development of our corporate pubs business in the early 1990s.
In 1995 Jon established Christie + Co’s Leisure and Development business working throughout the UK with numerous operators, developers and investors including the likes of Academy Leisure, Aprirose, Berkeley Group, Esporta, Fitness4Less, FX Leisure, GL-14 Group, Genr8, Grantside Developments, Harrison Developments, Leeds City Council, Moto Hospitality, Neptune Developments, Nexum, Nuffield Health, Opus Land, Oxford Hospitality, Rushbond Group, St Modwen, Starboard Hotels and Tesco.
Peter
Taylor
Director, Corporate VS Pubs & Restaurants
Peter has specialised in licensed property since 1977, undertaking valuations, rent reviews and lease renewals, principally on behalf of corporate clients in connection with public houses, restaurants and hotels. In 2001, Peter attained a Post Graduate Diploma in Arbitration from the College of Estate Management and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. He is on the RICS Panels of Arbitrators and Independent Experts and is appointed in these capacities to resolve rent review disputes.
Simon
Hughes
UK Managing Director
Simon Hughes joined Christie + Co in 1987 following a period in the hotel industry. Originally a hotel sector specialist, Simon spent periods in Christie + Co’s Nottingham, Glasgow, Bristol and London offices before going on to manage the company’s London operation until his appointment as UK Managing Director in 2005.
In his current role, Simon has responsibility for UK business and strategy across Christie + Co’s network of regional offices and recently, has led the Company’s expansion into the Medical sectors through the acquisition of Orridge Business Sales, which saw Christie + Co become the UK’s largest specialist pharmacy agency and advisory practice.
Stephen
Owens
Director and Head of Corporate VS Pubs & Restaurants
Stephen is Head of the Valuation and Advisory team in the Corporate Pubs and Restaurants sector and is a Fellow of the RICS and Associate member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. As well as portfolio valuation work, Stephen provides strategic advice and business reviews for banks, insolvency practitioners and operators in connection with restructuring, and Opco/ProCo structures. Stephen is an Arbitrator and Independent Expert and regularly acts as an Expert Witness in litigation landlord and tenant matters.
Ted
Darley
Valuation Services
Ted qualified as a Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors in May 2009 and subsequently joined Christie + Co in October 2010 with experience across a wide range of licence leisure property. Now based within the Corporate Pubs & Restaurants Valuation Team Ted works closely with James, Peter & Stephen on corporate projects, Landlord & Tenant cases and single asset valuations in London.
Ted makes a valuable contribution to the advisory side of our business, and his appointment gives us the capacity to undertake more projects across the ever widening range of services with which the team is involved.