140 years in business is a good opportunity to look back – and also look forward. Hindwoods is celebrating its milestone with staff, former colleagues, partners, clients and friends. 

Posted on 4 June 2026

It’s easy to be blasé about marking business anniversaries, especially if you have been around for more than a century. But the team at Hindwoods decided that 140 years as an independent property firm was worth celebrating. It will be marking the anniversary throughout 2026 and in May threw a party for staff, former colleagues, partners, clients and friends. 

The party was a chance to share the business milestone with some of the people who have contributed to the Hindwoods story. They include colleagues who have helped build the firm and clients who have done business with Hindwoods in and around South London, in some cases across generations of the same family. ‘We have been doing business in South London since the company was set up in Charlton in 1886,’ says Kevin Bright, Director. ‘We wanted to celebrate here – near our Greenwich office – and with people who have worked with us.’

Looking back to look forward

It was also an opportunity to look back at 140 years of change. When Hindwoods first opened its doors, horses were still the primary mode of transport, the Blackwall Tunnel didn’t exist, and Tower Bridge was only just being finished. The firm has had a front seat as Docklands and the Greenwich Peninsula have transformed into commercial, cultural and residential powerhouses. Its work has been shaped by economic shifts, the move from manufacturing to service led businesses, a shift in property ownership, the more recent trend to hybrid working after the covid pandemic which has led companies to look for different office spaces, and so much more. 

But some things have remained consistent. For Kevin, who points out he has only been with the company for 24 years (compared with former directors Colin Aylott and Victor Hindwood who each did more than half a century), those things are company culture and the way clients are treated. 

‘Victor Hindwood put in place a lot of the ways of working that we still continue today,’ he says. ‘One of those it that we really do back the people who work in the company, and they in turn build relationships that help us do business better. It is still not unusual for entire careers to be spent in property, with a large chunk of time spent at Hindwoods.’  Examples include Valerie Relph has been with Hindwoods since the 1970s and at 79 still works as a receptionist, and Richard Gibbons who is now a Consultant in Residential Management and has been with Hindwoods for 21 years, and in property for more than 50 years. 

The other thing that Victor Hindwood put in place was an ambition to be an independent, but to acquire or merge with like-minded businesses. Some of those mergers have included White Dent & Co in 1990 and Hunter Payne in 1995. Being an independent for 140 years is no mean feat. ‘There is always an expectation that if you are in business, regardless of the sector that you should be rushing for the scale that comes with being bought. But we are motivated by being the best in the areas of business and the geographical area we work in,’ says Kevin.

In its recent history the firm has had offices in Blackheath, Dulwich, Croydon and Bexley as well as Greenwich. ‘Our team all now work from one Greenwich office, which reflects broader working patterns to give people a hybrid option where their job allows, but it is also good for the team to know each other.’ 

A 21^st century home

Greenwich has always been an important place for Hindwoods to do business in; it has a longstanding relationship with The Greenwich Hospital Estate, which owns retail, pubs, office suites, and housing in the heart of the World Heritage Site. Over the past 30 years the link between with the rest of Greenwich has strengthened. In 1996, as the Greenwich Peninsula regeneration started, Hindwoods began its involvement with the area that is now home to the O2 as well as commercial and residential developments. In 2026, as the Peninsula continues to develop – with the recent opening of the Silvertown Tunnel and the Elizabeth Line that connects areas close by – Hindwoods continues its close association. 

‘Many things have changed in Greenwich including the arrival of new transport modes and new retailers, as well as the bigger changes in the Peninsula. But it remains an area of historic significance,’ says Kevin. ‘In many ways the changes reflect our own – whilst we adapt in the 21^st Century, and use new technology or adopt new ways of working, at our core are the things that help make us unique: the people, the place and our rich history.’

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