Gary Howell

• Managed and led the Letting Office and team of 9, overseeing the successful leasing of Stellenbosch University's commercial and retail properties
• Commercialisation activities, of which the Letting Office was a part, comprised 55% of the university’s annual revenue
• Negotiated lease terms that resulted in maximum revenue which produced an annual net growth in excess of 13% and a weighted focus on NOI
• Achieved occupancy rates in excess of 95%
• Devised and executed strategies which resulted in trading density improvement of 160% as result of strategic tenant mix revisions, optimisation, capital improvements and installations
• Introduced diversified revenue streams from fixed assets such as entertainment, advertising and activation activities
• Designed and optimized the retail tenant mix to enhance profitability and drive customer engagement
• Directed all property-related activities and operations, encompassing facilities management, financial management, procurement of service providers, installations and tenant relations
• Aligned with institutional strategic objectives
• Undertook all retail and commercial leasing management of approximately 90 contracts, negotiations, legal and compliance, reporting, forecasting, trend analysis, budgeting, financial analysis, retail trends and analysis to unlock improved performance

• Directed the overall management of a portfolio of prominent and high-profile commercial and retail properties in Cape Town totalling approximately 80,000 square meters
• Oversaw building staff and administrative staff, and controlled operational and facilities functions as well as financial performance, budgeting, forecasting, and investor reporting in respect of 15 properties
• Conducted asset management activities and utilized effective metrics, valuation methodologies and strategies to optimize revenue and maximize capitalisation value
• Client NOI growth of 26% and a Market Capitalisation of approximately R800 million
• Successfully executed lease agreements with approximately 260 tenants, managed tenant installations and compliance, and oversaw contractual negotiations with service providers, JBCC construction contracts and service level agreements
• Collaborated closely with legal professionals, consultants, engineers, architects, and quantity surveyors

• Responsible for managing estates, sectional title schemes, and associations as a specialist sectional title managing agent
• Performed administrative and financial control functions such as accounting, payments, receipts, reporting, meetings, budgeting, and management of service providers and maintenance, statutory and collections
• Provided property consulting services along the Garden Route region

• Acquisition and management of commercial properties in Johannesburg and Mossel Bay
• Total strategic, asset, financial, operational, facilities and tenant management
• Above Beta returns and value with planned exit strategy due to diversification and intensive cash flow, NOI and ROI approach

• Provided strategic management and leadership to a Property Investment Group with a portfolio of wholly-owned retail, commercial, and light-industrial properties
• Improved share value growth of 486% over 5 years
• Adopted a strategic risk profile for the group using the Capital Asset Pricing Model to aggressively pursue market capitalisation growth
• Repositioned and restructured group investments post-democracy with in changing market conditions in order to optimize returns and add investment life-cycle
• Restructured by acquisitions, disposals, mergers, diversification, exit strategies, and new business initiatives
• Personally acquired 100% of issued share capital
• Chaired board and shareholder meetings to drive effective decision-making with innovative solutions
• Attended to facilities, operations, administration, and assets to drive operational excellence
• Expertly concluded tenant lease terms, service-provider contracts, and collaborations to optimize investment objectives and value

· Junior applications programmer in the COBOL language

· Junior systems programmer in the Assembler language

· Coding, maintaining and testing of mainframe computer programs for banks

· Conducted performance management and capacity planning activities to maximise life-cycle

· Tailored the Hogan Banking Suite system from USA to SA branch-based banking environment