The Property Franchise Group (TPFG) has granted share options to executives, including CEO Gareth Samples, CFO Ben Dodds and fellow director Michelle Brook, who is executive director of Belvoir.
The awards, linked to performance metrics such as total shareholder return and adjusted earnings per share over a three-year period, form part of the company’s Share Option Plan.
The awards recognize the executives’ roles in executing the company’s strategic plans and are expected to align their interests with those of shareholders, potentially impacting the company’s operational focus and market positioning.
TPFG’s last trading update – for the year ended 31 December 2024 – revealed significant organic and inorganic growth during the year with trading expected to be in line with market expectations.
Highlights:
+ Group revenue increased 146% to £67.2m (2023: £27.3m), with 52% (£35m) deriving from recurring revenue sources
+ Management Service Fees (“MSF”) increased 76% to £28.3m (2023: £16.1m)
+ Lettings MSF Like for Like has increased 8% to £10.7m (2023: £9.9m)
+ Sales MSF Like for Like has increased 15% to £7.2m (2023: £6.3m)
+ Financial Services commissions now a significant revenue stream at £19.2m (2023: £1.5m)
+ Licensing income of £7.2m from GPEA acquisition
+ Net debt of £9.1m after borrowing £20m to fund the acquisition of GPEA (2023: net cash £5.1m)
Last year was a transformational one for the group, with the merger with Belvoir and the acquisition of GPEA adding material scale and market reach in its franchise business, a significantly strengthened financial services division, and a new licensing revenue stream.
As a result, the group is now segmented into three distinct business divisions: Franchising, Financial Services and Licensing. TPFG says good progress has been made in the period in integrating the two new businesses and realising synergies, which started to materialise towards the end of 2024.
Franchising
As a result of the Belvoir merger, the company’s franchising division now operates across 15 brands, managing a combined 153,000 rental properties (3% of the private rental sector) and achieved over 30,000 sales during 2024, making it the biggest property franchise business in the UK.
Lettings MSF in 2024 grew 93% to £19m with the merger with Belvoir contributing significantly, with the group managing over 153,000 (2023: 78,000) rental properties at year end. This being a result of the combination of, minimising landlord attrition through strong relationships and market leading technical guidance, increasing the size of the letting book through acquisition and, continuing to see rental prices increasing across the network, particularly outside of London.
Sales MSF in 2024 grew 48% to £9.3m, performing well over the full year and particularly in H2 as consumers capitalised on the declining cost of finance resulting in a strong upturn in sales agreed and completed.
Total MSF on a like for like basis (excluding acquisitions) increased 11% demonstrating continued growth within the original business.
Ewemove, the group’s market disruptor brand, continues to grow in strength with a further 39 (2023: 31) new territories sold during 2024, and total revenue increasing by 17% year on year.
The acquisition of GPEA added a new licensing division. This being made up of Fine and Country where both UK and International licensees pay a fixed fee in return for being able to trade under the brand whilst receiving marketing and regulatory support, and the Guild of Property Professionals, which offers its members a well established brand that provides access to group buying power and regulatory guidance in return for an annual fee.
Total revenue in the licensing division for 2024 is £7.2m since the acquisition which completed on 3 June 2024.
The Fine and Country business has continued to grow since acquisition, with the addition of 17 new UK licensees as well as three new international offices in Barbados, Ireland and Dubai.
This year, TPFG’s has been on completing the successful integrations of Belvoir and GPEA, delivering the projected cost synergies and unlocking the additional income opportunities resulting from the scale of the combined Group.
The group anticipate that the upcoming Renters Reform Bill will provide an additional opportunity for the business, given the tough compliance requirements, to convert more landlords to the managed property model.
TPFG’s chief executive officer, Gareth Samples, said in January: “I am immensely proud of what the group achieved in 2024, with the delivery of two major acquisitions, now integrated into the group, as well as strong organic growth. Our success has culminated in yet another record-breaking financial performance which has redefined the scale of our business and set us up for ongoing success.
“FY25 has started with strong momentum and we look forward to the continued synergies from the two transformative deals, with Belvoir and GPEA, and other strategic projects initiated in the year coming to fruition in 2025, unlocking the full potential of the combined Group as it looks to its next phase of growth.”
