Alistair Elliott elected as group chairman at Knight Frank

Alistair Elliott has been elected as Knight Frank's senior partner and group chairman. He plans to assume his position in April 2013 when Nick Thomlinson, the current senior partner and group chairman, retires from the firm.

Elliott, 50, started on the graduate scheme at Knight Frank in 1983, and was made a Salaried Partner in 1989, Proprietary Partner in 1995, and has been head of the Commercial Division of Knight Frank since 2006. Throughout his career he has concentrated on Office Agency and Development.

Nick Thomlinson, who started at Knight Frank in the graduate scheme in 1974, has been Senior Partner since 2004. Having started his career in London, he moved to Hong Kong in 1984 to head up Knight Frank’s operations before returning to open the first agency office in London’s Docklands two years later. In 1995, he set up the firm’s Indian operation in Mumbai, making it one of the first international firms of chartered surveyors to open in India, which now has 800 staff in seven offices. He became head of Global Residential in 2000.

John Snow will succeed Elliott as head of the UK Commercial Division. Snow joined Knight Frank’s West End Office Agency team in 1980, was appointed Head of Department in 1992 and subsequently took on the role of Head of Central London Offices in 1999.

Headquartered in London, privately-held agent Knight Frank and its New York-based global partner, Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, operate from 242 offices, in 43 countries, across six continents.