#142 Leo Shapland - Chief Executive of the King’s Cross Estate

6 snips

Sep 11, 2025

Leo Shapland, Chief Executive of the King’s Cross Group, shares insights from his extensive career in real estate. He recalls how the regeneration of Shad Thames inspired him to enter the field. Leo discusses his pivotal roles at Brookfield, Tishman Speyer, and Aviva, reflecting on lessons in capital raising and mixed-use development. He delves into the unique challenges of managing the expansive King’s Cross estate, which attracts 20 million visitors annually, and shares his perspectives on navigating today’s fluctuating market dynamics.

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ANECDOTE

Early Site Work Sparked A Career

Leo's early summers on a refurbishment site sparked his passion for real estate and its tangible outcomes.
He loved seeing disused buildings restored into homes and services, which confirmed his career choice early on.

ANECDOTE

Two-Day Grad Program Pivot

Leo lasted two days on Cushman Wakefield's grad program before a secondment to Multiplex became permanent.
That early leap thrust him into pan-European acquisitions and rapid responsibility at a young age.

INSIGHT

Broaden Roles To Improve Decisions

Leo deliberately broadened from investment into development to improve decision-making across the asset lifecycle.
He believes buyers should remain accountable for delivering the business plan, not hand it off entirely to others.

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Leo Shapland, Chief Executive of the King’s Cross Estate, joins me on the People Property Place Podcast 🎙️ this week.

He reflects on his formative experiences at Brookfield Multiplex, to building international platforms at Tishman Speyer, returning to London with Aviva, then leading at Workspace before taking on his current role overseeing one of Europe’s most successful regeneration projects.

Leo reflects on career pivots between investment, development, and leadership, the lessons learned on his journey.

He shares candid thoughts on today’s market dynamics, and what it really takes to run a complex, mixed-use estate that attracts 20 million visitors a year.

If you’re interested in global real estate careers, platform-building, large-scale regeneration, or the future of London’s office and mixed-use market, this episode is for you.

Key Topics Covered in This Episode:

• How watching the regeneration of Shad Thames sparked his interest in real estate.

• Leaving Cushman after just two days to join Multiplex, taking on pan-European acquisitions in his early 20s.

• What a decade at Tishman Speyer taught him about capital raising, transactions, and development.

• Lessons from moving abroad: delivering large office and residential projects in San Francisco and opening Tishman’s Seattle office.

• Why he shifted from pure investment to broaden out into development, operations, and leadership.

• Returning to London: Aviva Investors, governance, ESG, and making countercyclical bets during Covid.

• The Workspace experience: working closely with entrepreneurial SME customers and running a vertically integrated platform.

• Why Kings Cross is, in his view, one of Europe’s best regeneration schemes - and what the future looks like

• His take on the market – where demand is strongest and what is the hardest to make work right now.

And finally...

With £500m to invest, which People, what Property, and which Place would he choose?

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