An Interview with Chris Oglesby

What’s your origin story?

I was born in Scunthorpe, but the family moved to Altrincham in 1971, when I was four years old, and that’s always given me a real affinity to Altrincham – it’s been very satisfying for us to work there in recent years. I went to school in Cheadle Hulme. Really, I was a kid of the 80s – I went to LSE to study economics, then switched to London City to do a property course.

I started work in investment and development at St Quintin, which later got bought by CBRE. Then there was the late 80s crash, and as strange as it sounds now, for a time it looked like the City of London was finished – Frankfurt was emerging as a financial power. For a time I was considering the Far East, but decided to move back to Manchester, where my dad Michael had started Bruntwood in 1976.

How did you and the business grow from there?

At the time, Bruntwood employed 12 people and the HQ was in Cheadle. I joined to develop the business in the city centre, originally opening an office at 127 Portland Street – our first employee was Sharon Johnson, who’s still with us. I became CEO in 1999 and for the next few years we really focused on a high level of customer service and a programme of refurbishments – the business grew tenfold between 1999 and 2008.

Then came the next crash – but by 2008 we were really focused on two key areas: flexible offices, and science & technology, and we were starting to develop the Oxford Road Corridor idea, looking at how we could pull together all those assets in science, health and technology located in the area – this really was the starting point for restructuring Bruntwood.

That’s how we got to where we are, working with L&G and GMPF on Bruntwood SciTech, and Bruntwood Places on town and city centres. Much of our work has been about working with those digital disruptors that Manchester has been so strong in nurturing, and those service providers that are re-examining their business models. It’s not a case of ‘science’ or ‘tech’, but more of creating an ecosystem.

Which scheme are you most proud of?

I’m going to cheat a bit here – over the last 12 years we’ve speculatively built nine buildings in the Oxford Road corridor. In themselves the buildings are great, but what’s unique is the ecosystem – no other innovation district has the volume of health, education, and cultural institutions clustered like this. Only Kings Cross comes close – every visitor we bring to the city is blown away by it.

None of those nine buildings – the three CityLabs, three at Manchester Science Park, and three at Circle Square – are in ‘traditional’ commercial locations, but they’ve worked. There hadn’t been a new building at MSP in 20 years. Circle Square has responded to a shift in occupier profile that isn’t all about professional services, but driven by companies moving back to where they once were. Back then they were there because it was where their manufacturing was – but now they want that location because it’s close to the talent they need.

What’s the most exciting thing right now?

Well, it’s the natural progression from Oxford Road. From the moment the University of Manchester merged with UMIST (Institute of Science & Technology) in 2004, it was clear that consolidation would be necessary, and there would need to be a new direction in the UMIST estate – it’s taken 20 years to get here, but it was the obvious next step.

When it became clear the university wanted not just to create a world-class campus, but be an active shareholder, it was something we fought very hard to be a part of in the competitive tender. Having dome all we’d done in Oxford Road, we didn’t want to miss out.

Sister is even more exciting than the way Circle Square has seen this innovation ecosystem develop, due to the physical nature of the site – the different levels, the quality of existing buildings and public realm. There’s lots to be excited about.

Favourite building in the world?

Manchester Town Hall. I look out from my office window, and the sweep of the town hall – now being revealed again – the Town Hall Extension, and those gorgeous buildings fronting Albert Square to the side. I love Albert Square and St Peter’s Square, they’re always buzzing with life.

What ideas and inspiration could Manchester take from elsewhere?

Manchester’s a classic magpie city, taking the best from other places. In East Manchester, lessons were taken from Barcelona in using sport to lead regeneration. The development of the Oxford Road Corridor was borne out of delegations to post-industrial Noth American cities like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia in the early 2000s. With CyanLines, the £100m, 100-mile blue-green infrastructure project, we’re looking to Copenhagen as the global best in class on active travel.

As the city continues to grow, we always have to keep in mind making sure people can get around, and the importance of maintenance and security within that. The city has to keep getting more and more liveable. I see us cruising though the 100,000 city centre residents barrier and heading towards 250,000. If we can make that whole wider concept of town – between the two football clubs, and from North Manchester General to Oxford Road -a walkable city, that’s a goal.

Is Manchester a global city now? What makes it so, and how does it progress further?

Manchester is a global city in so many ways. The Premier League is such a massive global brand, and we have two clubs at the top end. The airport is a global gateway, and is becoming a much better passenger experience. Seeing King Stret and St Ann’s Square coming back after fragmentation in retail is encouraging, as are Gary Neville’s plans for Kendals. Hospitality has moved on – our food offer, 10 years ago was woeful, but is now fantastic, and the hotel offer – Salboy’s project is a big, bold shout. And we have a rich professional services industry – not just a London back office but somewhere people see as an alternative.

The next step for me is deep tech. We’ve been good at the digital disruptors – entrepreneurial businesses that use tech – they’ve been Manchester’s unicorns, to use a phrase. But really growing our own businesses who lead the world in developing tech is another thing and that’s what we hope to be a part of with Sister.

What do you get up to away from the office?

We live in town mid-week now – my wife Jane runs our charitable trust – and there’s so much cultural stuff on in the week. At weekends, we’re out in the country where we have a regenerative farm, on which I’m basically her apprentice. I used to run a lot, but now it’s more clearwater swimming, which we both love.

Your global destination of choice?

We have a ski chalet in the French Alps, which is perfect for us both is winter and summer, the food is amazing, just a wonderful place to be.

What’s the book or film you recommend?

Jim Collins’ Good to Great (why some companies make the leap and others don’t) – at various stages I’ve gone back to this, because the basic principles are there. I love business books and biographies of business people – I’m a business nerd.

The bands you’d always go and see?

For me, there’s nothing better than going to the Co-op Live as a family, and seeing one of our Manchester bands play a euphoric hometown gig, whether that’s James, the Courteeners, Blossoms. Given its troubled start, Co-op Live has instantly become a huge asset for Manchester, the bands love it.

Final thoughts?

Bruntwood is 50 years old this year, and I’ve been here for 35 years, running it for 27. I feel incredibly fortunate to have landed in Manchester, rather than heading to the Far East – a real sliding doors moment.

There’ s something very special about our built environment community, I really would put it up there with anything in the world – we’ve got best in class operators in each sector, and the 30-year regeneration story gives us a wealth of experience. It’s important that Manchester continues to value the industry, and doesn’t take it for granted. People should be reminded about the positive impacts we as an industry have, and as we continue to grow as a city we need more positive impacts, for everyone in the city.