Positively disruptive

Nathan North, ‘Eurobuild CEE’: Could you tell our readers a little about who Avison Young are and what the merger with GVA entails? Andy Mottram, principal, managing director, Europe, Avison Young: GVA, which is a UK-based business, has been acquired by and is now being merged into Avison Young, which is backed by Canadian pension fund CDPQ. So we are now in the process of putting these two businesses together. One is strong in North America, and the other in Europe – with a strong UK base. GVA also has a presence in Warsaw. Our plan is now to grow that presence further in both the UK and Continental Europe. We already have 1,500 people working in the UK. Michał Ćwikliński, principal, managing director, Poland, Avison Young: With this merger we now have 5,000 people worldwide and CAD 1 bln [EUR app 670 mln] in annual turnover, making us one of the biggest commercial real estate advisories in the world. And what does this mean for your Polish operations? AM: Thi