There are less than two weeks left until the M.E.N Property Lunch 2019.
The lunch will take place on October 16 at Hilton Deansgate, Manchester, with hundreds of the region’s leading players in the sector set to turn out.
We have teamed up with Capital & Centric, Airport City Manchester and Together for the event, which is now in its sixth year.
Last year’s keynote speaker was renowned architect, Sir Terry Farrell.
This year we are pleased to announce that Piers Taylor, a renowned award winning architect, broadcaster and academic, will be keynote.
Piers’ major BBC Two series, which he co-presents with Caroline Quentin ‘The World’s Most Extraordinary Homes’ aired for its second series in 2018.
Piers has also co-presented three series of ‘The House that £100k Built’ on BBC Two which demonstrates to self-builders how to do more, with less.
The opening episode drew close to 3 million viewers – a first for an architectural TV series.
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Piers also presents the hit spin-off series’, Tricks of the Trade and The Final Fix also on BBC Two.
He has also presented Britain’s Most Spectacular Backyard Builds for BBC Two.
Piers has been called ‘One of the brightest architects in the profession’ and has designed a number of seminal buildings, including the RIBA Award Winning ‘Room 13’ and the house ‘Moonshine’ which won the AJ Small Project Award.
His built work has been published extensively and internationally, and typically pushes boundaries in terms of cost, technique and process.
He is known for his resourceful ‘thinking outside of the box’ and his challenging of mainstream convention in architecture and in education.
“I’m really excited to be speaking at the Manchester Evening News Property Lunch," said Piers.
" I’m going to talk about urban living and how the greatest contribution to sustainability has been the city, and provide the context for how Manchester and its surrounding regions can be a key part of this.”
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This year's lunch will be hosted by Chris Maguire, a familiar face in the north west’s property sector.
An award-winning journalist and accomplished speaker, Chris is the executive editor of BusinessCloud and the founder of iMeg Partnership.
Shelina Begum, M.E.N. business editor, said: “We are delighted to announce Piers Taylor as this year’s keynote speaker.
“This prestigious event is a chance to shine the light on the property sector and the vital role it plays in the success of our region and we look forward to hearing from Piers, a well known and respected architect.”
She added: “We are also excited to move the awards to the Hilton Deansgate where our guests will be able to try an exciting new menu.
“As always you can expect an interesting afternoon with the who’s who of the region’s property sector.”
Social Impact developers Capital & Centric is partnering with the awards for the third time.
Co-founder Tim Heatley said: “Manchester is no longer just competing on a national scale.
“We’re sucking in millennials from across the globe who are snubbing London in favour of our city’s culture, universities and jobs.
“Young people are drawn to city centre living but, at the end of this year, millennials start to turn 40. Soon enough many of them are going to flip into family mode, with a partner, maybe a pet and probably kids too.
“There’s a massive opportunity for the towns across Greater Manchester to soak up demand from millennials wanting a bit more space and a garden only a tram or train ride away from the city centre.
“They want all the things they liked about urban living – like the coffee shops, delis and bars – but with the nurseries, parks and schools that the city centre can’t offer.
“If towns like Stockport, Bolton and Rochdale can nail cool and contemporary housing and become the new places millennials aspire to live, then they can get their share of the growth and funding that the city has seen over the past decades.
Specialist lender Together is also backing this year’s event.
Andrew Charnley, head of corporate relationships at Together, said: “We are very proud to sponsor this highly prestigious event which brings together the region’s top industry professionals.
“The property sector plays a vital role in the success of Manchester, with outstanding levels of development and regeneration, and Together is expanding its specialist team to support its commitment to the property sector.”