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‘Industry heavyweight’ to lead giant’s commercial expansion plans

By Zarah Torrazo
14 June 2023 | 11 minute read
chris nicholl angus raine reb afxllb

An experienced specialist has been handpicked by a major network to steer its commercial division to the “next phase of growth”.

Chris Nicholl has been appointed as Raine & Horne Commercial’s head of network, charged with driving growth, supporting existing offices, and leveraging his international market acumen.

With an extensive track record spanning over 35 years in the commercial property sector encompassing both local and international, the network touted Mr Nicholl brings a broad range of experience to the table, including in proptech, industry bodies, as well as holding senior executive positions with globally recognised commercial property brands and valuation firms.

Mr Nicholl’s strong industry background is further highlighted by his resume, which includes significant roles prior to joining Raine & Horne Commercial.

Before aligning with the network, Mr Nicholl served as the Asia Pacific chief executive of Arealytics, a property information service provider serving the sector with real-time market data.

Prior to the role with Arealytics, he served as the market director for the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) in Singapore, where he managed the organisation’s activities throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

In his latest role, the industry heavyweight assumes the pivotal position of spearheading the growth of the network’s commercial brand.

This entails guiding the brand’s growth strategy and providing business support to over 30 offices across the country — including every state capital city, the ACT, and significant regional growth hubs.

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Notably, Mr Nicholl’s appointment comes at what the network described as an “opportune time” for Raine & Horne Commercial, following the brand’s recent expansion into the ACT and Newcastle, which is viewed by the network as “one of New South Wales’ most significant regional cities”.

Executive chairman Angus Raine emphasised the significant value of Mr Nicholl’s profound understanding of both national and international markets as well as network operations, stating it “will prove invaluable in driving the growth of Raine & Horne Commercial international office network”.

Citing the new executive’s “strategic vision and expertise”, Mr Angus expressed his confidence that Mr Nicholls is “well-equipped to lead Raine & Horne Commercial into the next phase of growth”.

We are thrilled to have Chris join our team as his extensive industry experience and exceptional leadership skills will help drive a more consolidated and coordinated approach across our expanding commercial and international office networks,” Mr Raine said.

Mr Nicholl, who returns to Australia for the leadership position, voiced his excitement for the prospect of playing “a pivotal role” that will revolve around “building sustainable momentum to facilitate and accelerate network-wide growth”.

“I believe my experience leading people and brands, together with my specific domain knowledge of the commercial property sector will contribute to the existing high-quality discussions as we progress to leverage our strengths, and capitalise on market opportunities,” he stated.

Looking forward, Mr Nicholl said he sees “several clear opportunities” ahead for the 140-year-old brand.

“[There] is tremendous potential to capitalise on our unique strengths to establish our dominance in the mid-market commercial property segment nationwide, which remains largely unclaimed by others thus far,” he stated.

Poised to lead a team which he described operates within a “well-established and sophisticated corporate infrastructure”, Mr Nicholl expressed his belief that the brand is positioned for further expansion.

“I am confident that we can work collectively to achieve the system-wide growth we seek,” he concluded.

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