John Rowan and Partners’ executive director and head of hospitality and leisure, Andrew Nycyk, is retiring after an epic 40-year career. What does he make of the industry today, and what advice does he have for those following in his footsteps?

When Andrew Nycyk looks at John Rowan and Partners (JRP) in 2024, he still sees the same business he joined in the 80s. “We were young, entrepreneurial, we just had a go at everything,” he reflects on those early days. “When you’re a start-up there’s no other choice.

“But that’s all carried on to where we are now. It’s more controlled today, of course, more checks and balances, but the attitude is the same. The ‘youngsters’ are here to stretch themselves and test themselves. If the opportunity is right, and it doesn’t disrupt other clients, we’ll still always have a go.”

Andrew came aboard as a student in 1984 when his letter got the attention of John Rowan, our founder. A few weeks of work experience grew into a career that’s spanned five decades and multiple international markets.

No surprise, then, that Andrew remembers John fondly when we caught up. “We all worked in John’s house at first, while he was out getting the work. He had the gift of the gab, he told jokes and people got on with him. And he was tenacious; if he cold called someone 50 times and got told to go away, he’d call again and win a contract on the 51^st try.

“I think he’d be very proud of JRP today, as I am. He liked taking people under his wing, and some who’ve been in the business basically from the start are still here. They’ve matured into leadership roles. Seeing that would please him more than the fact that we’ve gotten bigger.”

Andrew has been an integral part of our executive leadership team and will be very sadly missed at JRP, as MD Mash Halai comments: “It’s an emotional moment in our company’s history to see Andrew retire. Andrew was John Rowan’s very first hire, even when there wasn’t enough work to justify it at the time. John took a chance on a young guy from Ealing with a lot of potential. As Andrew steps into this new chapter, we wish him nothing but the best and thank him for all the time and energy he has given to the business.”

Property development, warts and all

40 years of changes can never possibly be all good, and Andrew is frank about the challenges of today’s industry. A lack of home-grown skills is a serious pain point, a problem that isn’t going to get better on its own. And despite all the goodwill in the world, cost is still driving too many decisions.

But he wouldn’t have stuck it out this long if the situation wasn’t fundamentally positive. The industry is, by and large, headed in the right direction. Andrew is quick to point out many reasons to be cheerful.

“The main focus, and rightly so, is almost always safety now. Whether you’re working with landlords, local councils, private equity, safety’s the first thing they look at. That wasn’t always necessarily the case. The penny’s finally dropped that you can’t compromise on it.

“And to deliver those safety measures, to put the occupier first, collaboration has gotten so much better throughout the supply chain. The us-and-them mentality is gone. Technology improves everything, construction and development are recognised as skill-intensive sectors now. Even if there aren’t quite enough people in the industry, the talent we do have is first-rate.

“The only thing to beware of is letting specialism become limiting. People have their entrenched specialist areas and sometimes don’t want to offer advice on anything else, even when it’s directly adjacent to their work. Nobody wants to take overall responsibility. With so many interconnected stakeholders nowadays, that can make a project lead’s job harder.”

Maintaining the right atmosphere for growth

On the topic of JRP specifically, Andrew is still as energised as he was all those years ago. Joining Bellrock has added huge support in key areas like fire consulting and data management. Perhaps even more importantly in his eyes, Bellrock’s established network lets us introduce that expertise as early in a project as possible.

That’s only ever good news for clients, who appreciate a more holistic, turnkey service. But is this his favourite decade for work? For Andrew, that was the 90s and not just because of the music.

“We grew rapidly, off the back of Dixons expanding into out-of-town retail and high street electronics. That work took us from five or six staff to probably about 40. They were 80% of our business for seven or eight years, and we helped them become the UK’s biggest retailer at that time.

“It wasn’t only a good volume of work; we had an excellent collaborative relationship too. Perfect environment to grow a career. Of the people who joined us at that time as junior surveyors, most of our executive directors today come from that crop.”

And off the back of such a positive partnership with Dixons, came work that steered us into the wonderful world of hotel renovation.

“Dixons was the springboard that introduced us to the hotel sector, which we’re still very much involved with today. A group director of Dixons moved to the InterContinental Hotels Group, and he came to us and asked us to renovate 100 hotels for them – we’ve never looked back.

“I worked with IHG for eight years before becoming head of projects in Europe, where I worked on some amazing projects in Cannes, London, Munich and Paris – it was an exciting time, and it’s carried on being so.

“What’s really impressive is that it’s not just the sector that we’re still involved with today. In some cases, we’re still working with people in the industry who we were working with 30 years ago, which is fantastic.”

Aside from who he’s worked with, we had to ask Andrew about the projects he’s worked on. Which ones stand out from the crowd?

“I’ve been very fortunate to work on some fantastic projects over the years. Obviously, getting the Dixon’s portfolio was a game-changer for the business, so working on that for years will always be up there. Working with IHG on so many aspects of a project – from development to asset management in the UK and abroad – was inspiring and rewarding.

“As far as hotel projects go, I worked on three hotel renovations in Paris for Angelo Gordon & EQ Group, including the Hôtel Dame des Arts, which was an amazing one to be involved with. The hotel is stunning. And working on the London and Birmingham Metropole renovations with Henderson Park and EQ Group during the pandemic was an interesting one; every aspect was put to the test, but the outcome was well worth it – they are both fantastic spaces. St Pancras International is another memorable one – it was a fast-track project, which was hugely demanding but exciting to work on.”

Andrew also spent three years heading up JRP’s business in the UAE, where we worked on a $1Bn border crossing as well as luxury hotels and retail projects across the region. This work took our expertise into a new marketplace, which has been a corner stone in the growth of JRP.

Riding off into the sunset… for now

So, what’s next? Andrew’s looking forward to some well-earned quiet time (improving his golf handicap is on the agenda) but hopes to retain his ties to the hospitality industry to share his invaluable experience.

In the meantime, we asked him for the best bit of advice he’s ever been given: “Someone on the board of InterContinental Hotels Group once told me, ‘if it’s on more than one sheet of A4, I won’t read it.’ He’s an old friend of mine now but was always super busy.

“People in that position, you might get half an hour with them at most. They want to know what decision you need from them, as fast as possible. But you also need to know all the facts; if they’ve got a question, you should be able to answer it. That’s the balance. You’ve got to know everything, check and double check, but be concise about how much you’re presenting.”

It’s an approach that’s stood Andrew in good stead for a long time. After spending two thirds of his life with JRP, we wish him all the very best for a prosperous future. Our gift to him: peace of mind that the business he helped shape is still in the safest hands.