Nomad Developments founder Jack Simpson talks to Cultural Union about real estate, the importance of interior design, and their latest project, the Penthouse at Kingsdown.
From the rooftop eyrie of the Penthouse at Kingsdown, the world is looking as perfect as it ever has, with a bucolic view over the Surrey hills studded by the spires and turrets of historic Farnham.
Kingsdown is the latest project by Nomad Developments – a London-based real estate developer and interior design studio specialising in mid-sized projects in prime areas, delivering them as turnkey properties with considered architecture and world-class interior design.
These qualities are evident upon entering Kingsdown, a substantial building with smart, contemporary architecture in secluded gardens a few minutes’ walk from the centre of Farnham. The communal spaces are classic, tasteful and understated; the penthouse is reached via a graceful staircase or the wood-panelled private lift. Inside, the penthouse hallway has the unhurried, airy feel of a country house; the immediate effect is of generous space and informed, elegant design.
The penthouse is the final property to launch at Kingsdown; all other apartments in the building were snapped up on launch. At around £3m for 3,000 square feet, it’s finished to a standard that would command at least £12M in prime London, and the project is a vindication of Nomad’s high-spec, design-led approach. With its dramatic lateral space and enormous roof terrace balanced by intimate family spaces, quirks and personality, the overall effect is of a home designed with the care of the person destined to live in it.
Jack Simpson, Nomad’s founder, certainly emanates this sense of care. As we walk through the property, Simpson studies each detail with a critical eye, and it’s no surprise to learn that real estate is in his blood.
“My father was a house builder,” he explains. “He bought a house in the 1980s, built a house next door and thought: maybe I can start a business here. He went on to build a fantastic house construction firm.”
“If anyone ever asked me for advice, I’d say, get hold of a project that’s not going to destroy you if it goes wrong, and project-manage and source everything yourself.”
Jack Simpson, founder of Nomad Developments
That company was Millgate Homes, and Simpson joined in 2011. “They were highly design-led, with in-house interior designers, delivering £100 million-plus projects which were cutting edge for the time,” he says. His father also had a talent for spotting opportunities – an ability to see what others had overlooked. “I think that’s been ingrained in me – it was a great training to have.”
Following a stint in his early 20s as a snowboarding coach, Simpson took his first foray into independent property development when he bought a house with his brother. “It was a complete wreck. We did everything ourselves, added a big extension, lived there for a year and sold it for a nice profit,” says Simpson. “It was the first time I’d been able to live without spending all my paycheque in the same month, and we thought: hold on a minute – we could do another one here.”
Simpson spent the next few years buying, renovating and selling properties. “I concentrated on one project at a time. If anyone ever asked me for advice, I’d say, get hold of a project that’s not going to destroy you if it goes wrong, and project-manage and source everything yourself. It’s a great way to learn all the pitfalls you could come across on larger projects.”
In 2018, Simpson bought his first major project, West Hill Place in Putney, London – a development of four 3,000-square-foot townhouses, all to be built from scratch. And with it, Nomad Developments was born.
The properties were an extraordinary achievement, with architecture that blended into the vernacular of period southwest London while offering something altogether different: family living optimised for modern life. “The alternative all the buyers were looking at were Victorian terraced houses,” says Simpson. “But at Westfield Place, they were getting brand-new, detached, 3,000-square-foot, high-spec air-conditioned properties. There was no comparison.”
The finish and interior design were first-class; upon launch, they sold rapidly while setting new price records for the area – despite being during the COVID pandemic. “It was nightmare timing, with socially distanced viewings,” Simpson says. “But as soon as we opened the door, people walked in and were blown away. The overwhelming feedback was that we’d gone so far over and above.” He adds: “From day one, our approach was always to deliver something people weren’t expecting. And that’s been our approach ever since.”
“From day one, our approach was always to deliver something people weren’t expecting. And that’s been our approach ever since.”
Jack Simpson
With West Hill Place complete, Nomad began work on a pair of 4,000-square-foot riverside houses in the desirable London neighbourhood of Richmond. The project marked a progression for Nomad – not only in per-unit size, but in the priority given to the interior design and finish.
The Richmond development was a triumph for Nomad, scooping the prestigious Best London Home at the Evening Standard New Homes Awards. As with West Hill Place, the properties were presented to the market as turnkey homes with world-class interior design. More than half of the buyers requested to include all furnishings and even artworks in the sale.
Several years and projects on, Nomad are firmly established, with a pipeline of developments that includes a country estate renovation and a riverside project in Twickenham. After almost a decade of researching potential sites, they now have a formidable network, with a steady flow of high-quality sites being submitted to them. “You have to kiss 100 frogs before you find your prince,” says Simpson. “It’s the hardest thing to find a good site to develop – and even when you do, the margins are tight.”
On those margins, Simpson acknowledges the headwinds faced by the industry, with build costs 40% higher than when they started in 2018. Borrowing costs have doubled in that time, while land prices have remained unchanged.
“You have to kiss 100 frogs before you find your prince. It’s the hardest thing, to find a good site to develop.”
Jack Simpson
Yet in such a market, Nomad’s uncompromising design-first philosophy gives them a clear competitive edge. Looked at from the perspective of the end-buyers, Nomad inhabit the sweet spot: they are big enough to secure excellent locations and to create landmark properties, but small enough to remain intimately invested in each one At the Kingsdown Penthouse, for example, Simpson knows the provenance of every lampshade and artwork, and has a story to tell about every architectural decision.
As for the future, Simpson is committed to the growth of both sides of the offering. The interior design studio is now a self-sustaining, separate business with an expanding list of private clients; while the development side is beginning to eye projects globally – particularly in the United States.
But for Simpson, for all the auspicious outlook, the key to Nomad’s success remains unchanged and straightforward.
“People need homes,” he says. “They want to live in nice places. And there’s just a huge shortage of that.”