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Family Housebuilder’s Focus On Craftsmanship And Lifestyle

Posted 18 May 2021 by Keith Osborne

Daniel Ede, managing director of Ede Homes, on the importance of local skills in maintaining a respected family legacy...

Combining character building design and today’s lifestyle is leading to great success for Oxfordshire-based Ede Homes, as managing director Daniel Ede explains.

Daniel, Ede Homes has been established in Oxfordshire for 60 years, what do you think are the main factors that have contributed to this success?

As a local, family-owned and -run property business, we pride ourselves on the individual, high quality and unique homes that we build and the service that we provide. The business is largely driven by the family-orientated culture and loyal staff and subcontractors, most of whom have been working with us for over 25 years. The growth and the success of the business historically is very much a testament to my father, Jonathan, particularly the investment decisions he took and the joint ventures he became involved in, including co-founding the Four Pillars Hotel group that was then sold in 2008 with over 1,000 bedrooms. The business has naturally evolved over the past eight years since I joined and I have attempted to maintain the company’s hard-won reputation, whilst also updating our processes, home designs and specifications, to improve our product and yet to maintain our legacy. As my father always tells me, he never wants to drive past one of our sites and not feel proud of what we have created.

Have there been significant changes in the news homes industry over the last 60 years?

The industry has changed hugely over the last 60 years and we are fortunate enough to have survived its challenges (including three recessions!), whether it be due to planning changes, lack of available land supply, increased competition or rising build costs. However, it has also changed for the better – new homes are now far more energy efficient and are typically made from better-quality and longer-lasting materials. Infrastructure is also improving and the customer has far more choice if they want to buy a new build home. Despite the changes, I regularly remind myself not to deviate from what has served us so well and for so many years – to build individual homes in desirable locations and to provide an excellent service to our customers.

You pride yourselves on being a third-generation, family-run business, how do you think this benefits your customers?

As I have mentioned, we are truly excited by the unique and high-quality homes that we design and then build. We use local architects and our in-house team to come up with a product that looks and feels very different to the mass produced housing that is out there. Our houses are specifically designed for the site, taking into account elements such as location, views, architecture and materials. We then try to create something that a typical customer hasn’t seen before – a traditionally built house, but with a contemporary twist and using high-quality, locally sourced materials. Any customer of ours will always be treated with a personal touch as we only typically build around 40 houses a year and we will do our best to be fair, reasonable and responsive. As a final note and given that we have been trading for over 60 years, that we have a settled and loyal team and that we have no bank borrowing, any customer can trust in our guarantee and that we will be there to support them in the future as required.

The Lambourne'The Lambourne' at Applewood

How do you work with, and within, your local community to maintain your trusted reputation?

As a local company, our roots have always revolved around Oxfordshire, whether it is the site that we build, the subcontractor that we employ or the materials that we buy. We typically have a rule not to go further than an hour’s drive from Oxford itself and this has always served us well. I see one of the toughest challenges for the future of the company will be replacing our experienced, hard-working staff, as well as continuing to cultivate lasting relationships with our network of local subcontractors, some of whom have been working with the company for over 30 years. They are like an extended family and their success has mirrored ours as we have grown together. We try to work with the locals and with the local planning departments when it comes to any application and we will always want to improve an area or an old building (for a conversion). By operating under this mantra, we know that the product that we eventually then sell will be desirable to our customers and will enhance our local reputation for building quality homes.

Can you give us some examples of local craftsmanship featured in your schemes?

At our recent site in Watlington (Watcombe Manor) we used locally sourced and built oak frames for the original barn conversions and the oak staircases were all handmade by local carpenters. At Ardington (The Old Works Yard), all of the windows are handmade and then painted on site, whilst all of the steelwork and masonry is being completed by local skilled subcontractors. We have worked hard to improve our build quality and our specifications and therefore local craftsmanship is essential to the product that we provide.

What do you think the last year of Covid-19 has taught us about what we want from a home?

In my opinion Covid-19 has underlined the importance of a “home” – somewhere that you can enjoy living for an extended period of time. It has made us all realise what is important and to live life for now as well as the future and to certainly not take anything or anyone for granted. I think this is very much reflected in the increased activity in the housing market, as more people are moving in order to improve their perceived standard of living. Covid-19 has underlined the need for a flexible living space, for a home office and for a garden, as well as for local open space and for nice walks.

Ede HomesHave you noticed any particular buyer trends in the last 12 months, as many Londoners have looked to move out of the city in search of a new lifestyle?

Following the introduction of flexible home working patterns since the outbreak of Covid-19, we have had a number of reservations and purchases made by London professionals, particularly at our Churchill Farm, Harwell and Watlington sites. Families have realised that they are able to work from home and then commute into work two or three days a week, meaning that they can buy a home in the Oxfordshire countryside with a study and a large garden. It will be interesting to see whether this trend continues, as many large employers have suggested that flexible working could be here to stay.

How is your current scheme, The Old Works Yard in Ardington, different to other schemes you've built?

One word would describe our Old Works Yard site – unique. Unique in its design, unique in its location and unique to buy, given that most of Ardington is still owned by the Lockinge Estate, who sold us the site. The Old Works Yard was originally a collection of craftsmen’s workshops in the heart of the village and it had a permission for the nine units when we bought it at the end of 2019. Ardington is a picturesque and historic village that sits between the North Wessex Downs and the Vale of White Horse. We have very much attempted to retain the feel and the character of the original barns/workshops in our new home designs and high-quality specifications – we have retained vaulted ceilings and wooden features – whilst also modernising the houses with what current purchasers need and desire.

The Old Works YardThe Old Works Yard

We will create a selection of impressive, characterful conversions located in the centre of the village and within touching distance of the local amenities and idyllic countryside walks. The Old Works Yard will be different and yet appealing for those potential purchasers who would like a “wow” home in a beautiful village location.

Do you offer the opportunity for your customers to choose their own fixtures and fittings?

As you might imagine with the high-quality homes that we try to build, we will always try to work with our customers to try and create their ideal home. Therefore, we will typically offer our customers a range of choices when it comes to kitchen finishes, bathroom tiling, flooring, built-in wardrobes, garden landscaping and even staircase finish (assuming that they are early enough in the build programme).

And finally, what's next for Ede Homes in the next 12 months or so?

We have some more exciting projects coming up shortly – alongside the Old Works Yard, we are building eight family homes in the centre of Kingston Bagpuize and will be shortly starting nine large private homes at Over Norton, on a site with fantastic views of the Cotswolds countryside. Furthermore, we have also re-entered the hotel industry in a small way, having bought an old, run-down hotel on the Abingdon Road in Oxford (which we intend to hopefully demolish and rebuild a high-end and energy-efficient 40-bed hotel) and the old Council offices in Abingdon-on-Thames (called Old Abbey House), which we intend to convert into a circa 20-bed hotel, whilst also restoring the locally listed and beautiful building to its former glory. I am immensely proud of the company’s heritage and of what it has achieved to date and I’m inspired by my role to grow and protect it for the future.

 

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