Keller Williams UK master licence holder notifies creditors of insolvency plans
Keller Williams Global, which grants master licences to use its name and business model, says it has now taken direct control of the UK operation and it's 'business as usual'.
The company that holds the ‘master licence’ for Keller Williams in the UK is to convene a meeting of creditors that will “consider a decision on the nomination of liquidators, and if the creditors think fit, to appoint a liquidation committee”.
This announcement in the London Gazette under the Rule 15.13 of the Insolvency (England and Wales) Rules 2016 is the latest twist in a rocky road for the global estate agency brand in the UK.
Established in 2017 in its current form, Keller Williams UK has been promising for some time to revolutionise estate agency but after initially launching approximately ten ‘market centres’ these shrank to six last year after several closed in 2022 with further closures in 2023.
At the time Keller Williams UK said some had their agreements terminated by head office, rather than franchisees deciding not to renew their licences.
Master licence
The UK master licence holder is Grifettey Limited which trades as Keller Williams UK and has a single director, Ben Taylor (pictured), who in publicity material is named as its ‘leader’.
In August it was announced that Taylor would become executive chairman while Mike Readings became CEO. Grifettey Limited is also three months late filing its accounts with Companies House.
The global business behind the estate agency, Keller Williams Worlwide, last night released a statement saying that an agreement has been reached between it and the current master licence owners “whereby KW Worldwide will immediately take ownership of the Master Licence, and from this week, they will be working directly with the Market Centre Operating Principals to support them in continuing to delivering the growth, training and mentorship for all KW Agents in the UK,” it says.
“This is simply a change to the relationship between the six UK Market Centres and Keller Williams – meaning that all KWUK Licences are now in a direct relationship with KW Worldwide.”
“This is part of the continued development of KWUK to support agents and Market Centres so that both are successful.
“The top priority, as always, is to see all individuals within the KWUK structure, thriving as entrepreneurs and delivering world class service to customers and clients. There are no changes within the Market Centre structure – it is very much business as usual, and no redundancies will result from this restructure.”
