Black Cat Chat: The Building Podcast

In this episode of Black Cat Chat: The Building Podcast, two rising Black Cats from our Southampton team join Andy Clow to talk about their careers, their differing routes into surveying, and how they ended up working at Black Cat.Will Spriggs started his career on the tools as a trained carpenter, but soon moved to a Building Surveyor degree and APC success. Joe Merrett, however, took the Degree-Apprenticeship path while learning on the job. They reflect on life at CBRE vs the Black Cat model, the

Black Cat Chat: Brett Lee on Sheds, EPC wins and building a Liverpool hubIn this episode, And Clow sat down with the Director & Liverpool Lead Brett Lea to discuss his passion for buildings and Black Cat.From bonfire-night inspiration to leading our Liverpool office, Brett Lee shares how a teenage site visit set him on the path to building surveying. We cover why he is a self-confessed shed geek, how yard depth and clockwise yards shape real-world logistics, and why he earned an HGV licence to

In this episode of Black Cat Chat, we take a career deep-dive with Ollie Folkes – our Bristol Office Lead and one of the longest-serving Black Cats. From a 15-year-old’s first site visit to leading Black Cat’s Bristol office, Ollie shares lessons on cautious growth, team culture without bureaucracy, and why collaboration wins on major projects. Ollie brings a somewhat different approach to his way of working to some within the Black Cat team, with a calm reassuring demeanour that is

Black Cat Chat: Building Regulations, Risk, and Responsibility with Tony ThreadgoldIn this episode, I sat down with the brilliant Tony Threadgold — our in-house expert on all things Building Control — to explore the changing landscape of regulation and the role of the Principal Designer.Tony's journey spans from major projects like the Trafford Centre to founding and running a national Approved Inspector firm. Today, he's leading Black Cat’s Principal Designer (PD) service, helping clients navigate

In this episode of Black Cat Chat, Andy Clow welcomes Joanna Whitear, ESG Lead & Director at Black Cat Building Consultancy, to explore how sustainability is reshaping UK commercial real estate. Joanna shares her journey from early ESG consultancy to leading a team of specialists, offering insights into carbon-led asset strategies, ESG-integrated due diligence, and authentic, actionable reporting that cuts through the noise."There are two really important metrics in real estate right now –

In this episode of Black Cat Chat: The Building Podcast, Andy Clow speaks with Rob Mowat, Finance Director at Black Cat Building Consultancy, about how a unique and transparent financial model is driving rapid growth, employee satisfaction, and long-term success in UK commercial real estate. Discover how Rob transitioned from external accountant to leadership, and how Black Cat’s open-book approach to bonuses, unlimited holidays, and flexible working is reshaping consultancy culture. With insights

In this first episode of Black Cat Chat, founders Ben Golby and Stephen Barnes sit down with Marketing Director Andy Clow to discuss how the business came into being, how it’s grown, and what the future holds.We’ll be publishing episodes every fortnight, sharing more insights into the world of commercial real estate from colleagues across Black Cat.