About
Occam Advisers offer strategic guidance to the property sector, bringing together experts from across the globe to deliver inspiring, bespoke solutions.
Combining deep knowledge and experience in sales and marketing strategy for international developers, government bodies and private funds, we are trusted advisers to the world’s most iconic landmarks.
Occam Advisers are a boutique agency with offices in London and Dubai. We support clients through the full project lifecycle from master planning and positioning through to brand development, sales and marketing strategy, recruitment and mentoring of the project team and oversight of the project launch.
Our name and our approach reflect the philosophy of Occam’s Razor – the best solution to any problem is often the simplest. As trusted advisers to our clients, we offer practical advice and guidance, delivering real world solutions that work. We believe that unnecessary complexity is, well, unnecessary.
Services
We support clients through the full project lifecycle of the development from conception to launch to ongoing destination marketing.
Every engagement is personally led by one of the Founding Partners and we work as an integral part of our client’s leadership suite. Our in-house team focus on leveraging their deep expertise in strategic planning and guidance, providing an integrated service where needed to ensure that sales and marketing are fully aligned.
We work with a network of industry experts to implement strategy and plans, ranging from creative services to digital marketing to media campaigns, PR, and event planning. We can offer these services directly as part of the Occam team to provide you with a single point of contact or work with your procurement team to shortlist appropriate agencies, write RFP and provide technical expertise to evaluate and manage suppliers once appointed.
We also work with subject matter experts across all aspects of a mixed-use development from golf to marina to equestrian consultancy, through to estate management advisery services.
Our services include
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Leadership Team
OCCAM is a collaboration between three recognised experts within the property sector who came together in 2022 to form a new type of advisery service to the industry.
Hugo Thistlethwayte MBA
Founding Partner / Managing Director
Hugo is an expert in the global residential market and has advised private, corporate and Fund Management clients.
Prior to co-founding Occam and his Global Role at Savills, he worked in Central London and the UK prime country market, selling residential developments, and acting on some of the most significant Central London houses, apartments and private estates.
One of the founding members of Prime Purchase, Savills advisory arm for retained clients, Hugo was Managing Director from 2010-2015. As Head of International Residential in 2015 and Head of Operations for Global Residential in 2018, Hugo was responsible for the development of Savills global residential strategy and day-to-day business oversight, working closely with the residential network and international development clients and projects.
During his lengthy career, Hugo has gained a unique ‘helicopter view’ of key residential markets across the globe. This experience has enabled him to develop an unparalleled understanding of key financial trends, individual market rules of engagement and flows of wealth from one area to the next.
Rod Taylor
Founding Partner / Managing Director
Rod Taylor is an international executive with over 26 years’ experience within the UK, Middle East, Far East and Europe. Rod has a proven record of bringing external investment & related business opportunities to various projects. His ability to bring product to market at the right time is a key strength.
With dynamic expertise across Project Management, Sales and Marketing. Rod’s expertise and holistic approach has led to increased profits across all related development business streams.
Rod has been working since 2009 in the Private Office/ Family Office function. Firstly, with the Oman Royal Family and subsequently as Managing Director of the Private Office for Soneva Group. Rod rejoined Savills in March 2016 to take up the Global Head of development sales for the international team.
Until recently Rod was the Executive Director and Head of Residential for Neom, Saudi Arabia. He joined Occam Advisers as a Partner in 2023.
Grace Charrington
Partner
Grace is a qualified chartered surveyor and registered valuer, specialising in residential development.
Grace has provided strategic development, sales and marketing advice to a range of clients across the globe on projects that vary in size, scope and value.
Grace’s experience has predominantly been based in the EMEA region and the branded residential sector, advising on mixed-use and standalone residential developments in both urban and rural locations.
NATALIE BOGDANOVA
Principal Consultant
Natalie, a seasoned senior executive with over 21 years’ of experience, has excelled in managing luxury retail, shopping malls, real estate communities, and mixed-use developments. Her extensive expertise spans across management, development, real estate, sales, marketing, strategy, concept design, asset management, retail, operations, and customer excellence, cultivated during her 20-year tenure at Emaar.
In her recent role as COO/Acting CEO- Emaar Malls, Natalie effectively steered the financial performance and business operations of 36 shopping malls, covering 10 million square feet of leasable area, 3,000 retail units, and attracting 136 million annual visitors. Notable assets within the portfolio include Dubai Mall & Fashion Avenue, Dubai Hills Mall, Downtown Dubai, Dubai Marina Mall, Springs, Meadows, Souk Al Bahar, Dubai Creek Harbour, Gold & Diamond Park, among others. Beyond daily operations, Natalie led initiatives such as concept design, retail development, construction, operational strategy, and openings of Emaar-owned retail assets.
She played a pivotal role in the Emaar Senior Committee for Covid-19 crisis management, implementing a new financial retail model, cost-cutting measures, and a business plan that proved crucial to Dubai’s retail market resilience. Her collaboration with the Dubai Government set benchmarks for Covid market strategy and safety measures, influencing other major retail destinations in the region to follow suit.
Natalie’s expertise in retail management stems from her hands-on experience in opening and managing Dubai Mall over a period of 12 years, since mall opening in 2009 when she was appointed General Manager responsible for retail management, operations, customer experience, and marketing activation of 12 million square feet.
Annabelle Dudley
Senior Consultant
Annabelle is a dedicated advisor to NEOM, the leading giga-project in Saudi Arabia. Key Responsibilities include, providing a range of development and strategic sales advice to multiple development teams across the key assets along the Gulf of Aqaba.
Annabelle’s advice focuses on the optimisation of the residential development programme but feeds into the wider mixed-use masterplan.
Annabelle ensures individual asset development is in line with a macro development plan, supporting the senior management in their strategy and vision-implementation. Annabelle also works closely with multiple architectural firms and third-party consultants to provide detailed briefs as well as participate in regular workshops to refine and optimise the product in line with market demand.
Imogen Morgan-Harris
Senior Consultant
Imogen provides a comprehensive range of sales and marketing services focused on residential and mixed-use development projects located in key international cities worldwide.
With a global clientele that includes institutional investors, corporations, and private clients, Imogen is renowned for her expertise in navigating the complexities of international real estate markets. She excels in crafting tailored, market-focused strategies for sales and development, with an emphasis on maximising investment returns while effectively managing and mitigating risks.
Imogen’s approach is particularly beneficial for clients seeking to expand their residential projects into new, international territories, ensuring these developments align with local market demands and global trends. Through a combination of strategic insights and in-depth market knowledge, she enables her clients to successfully internationalise their developments, creating sustainable value in dynamic, competitive environments.
Sura Tartir
Principal Consultant
A seasoned business and marketing strategist with 20 years of experience across the global real estate, hospitality, and retail industries. Sura has worked with leading developers and economic players of the MENA markets, such as Emaar and Al Futtaim, heading global multi disciplinary teams where she crafts customer-first strategies to align business, brand, marketing, and communication strategies launching, selling and marketing global mixed-use destinations in multiple markets such as UAE, KSA, Oman, India, Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan.
Key achievements include:
- Shaping destination brands such as Downtown Dubai, Burj Khalifa, The Dubai Mall, and The Address Hotels from vision to grand opening.
- Introducing global brands and driving UHNWI sales with integrated customer experiences blending digital and physical journeys.
- Delivering global strategies for over 50,000 residential units, 2,000 hospitality rooms, and 10 million sq ft of retail and commercial spaces.
Sura excels in destination marketing management, strategic brand partnerships and collaborations, visitor centric and placemaking strategies and global brand launch management. making her a driving force in the MENA market and beyond.
Clients
