Connells Group ceo David Livesey to retire

Connells Group ceo David Livesey is to retire next year after 34 years with the business.

Livesey joined Connells in 1990 as mortgage services director, holding a number of senior positions before being appointed ceo in 2008. He was instrumental in the creation and development of several of the group’s businesses, guiding Connells to a market leading position in the residential property sector.

Through organic growth and acquisition he has seen the group grow from 997 to 16,000 staff, with several notable milestones including Connells being taken private in 1996 in a management buyout backed by the Skipton Building Society; the formation of Rightmove in 2000 with Connells a founding shareholder; the establishment of a number of strategic partnerships with firms including Zoopla and FixFlo; and the acquisition of Sequence from Royal & Sun Alliance in 2003 which more than trebled the size of Connells Group at the time.

The firm also acquired regional businesses such as Sharman Quinney, Peter Alan, Burchell Edwards, Gascoigne Halman and Rook Matthews Sayer and then bought The New Homes Group in 2007.

In March 2021 the acquisition of Countrywide more than doubled the size of the group.

Livesey said: “It has been my absolute privilege …