BLOG: From Mr Manchester to Liverpool Legend

Colin Sinclair wins ‘Property Personality of the Year’ award at the 2026 Insider North West Property Awards.

For our CEO Colin Sinclair, winning Insider’s North West Property Personality of the Year award at a packed Manchester Central exhibition centre was an extra special moment.

That’s because he picked up the prestigious property title in the city where he spent most of his working life, from owning the legendary Boardwalk Club and being a prominent figure in the Manchester music scene of the 1980s and 90s, to producing major televised international events, leading Manchester’s MIDAS inward investment and development agency, and helping to create what became known as Bruntwood SciTech.

When he left his second home of Manchester back in 2016, it was to lead and energise Liverpool’s relatively unheard of Knowledge Quarter innovation district. It may have seemed to many an odd move for someone who had become known as ‘Mr Manchester’, but the reason was soon to become clear.

Colin wanted to do for his home city of Liverpool what he had helped do in Manchester. Take his learnings about the renaissance of a city and its region and apply them to Liverpool. But this plan had a key difference - the focus would be innovation above all else, as Colin recognised this could set Liverpool apart.

Joined by his Bruntwood marketing manager Sally Bloor and Trish Wallace from the University of Liverpool, Colin set about creating a public-private sector partnership strong and bold enough to get the job done. Not just talk about it.

With the backing of the City and the City Region, Paddington Village was created as the expansion of the Knowledge Quarter (by this time known as KQ Liverpool). The KQ Liverpool partnership of Liverpool John Moores University, the University of Liverpool, University Hospitals of Liverpool, Liverpool City Council and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine came together and Colin and the team convinced the Royal College of Physicians to move north and The Spine was built. Momentum was created.

Today, ten years on, Colin is firmly ensconced back in his home city and leading a thriving Knowledge Quarter Liverpool. The team has expanded beyond Sally and Trish, but they remain firmly part of its continued success.

Assistant CEO Emily Robson was appointed a few years ago and has helped deliver the expansion of our KQ Futures schools programmes, which aims to inspire students from primary school up to 18 years old, raising aspirations and removing barriers to future innovation-led roles, with hundreds of local children having already benefited from the programme. Just one example of the ongoing Inclusive innovation which wouldn’t be possible without devolution and the support of the City Region Metro Mayor and the Leader of the City Council.

Together, the KQ Liverpool partnership has also created Sciontec Liverpool, in conjunction with the two universities and Bruntwood SciTech, growing its science and tech portfolio, with Head of Commercial Leanne Katsande key to the ongoing success of Liverpool Science Park and the launch this time last year of CENTRAL TECH.

The next step in that journey is Sciontec’s delivery of the 153,000 sq ft HEMISPHERE development, which will create much-needed labs and innovative workspace space to accommodate university spin outs, expand the city’s growing health and life sciences cluster and welcome pioneering science and tech businesses into the city region. Its distinctive red brick design draws upon the rich architectural connections between Liverpool and New York and further underlines the evolution of place that’s happening in KQ Liverpool and across the city region.

Colin also instigated Liverpool’s bid to be recognised as Europe’s innovation capital, with ‘Team Liverpool’ once again rallying together and helping it to reach the final, and plans are already underway to bid for the 2028 title. Our policy work for Liverpool is strategic too. Colin and Emily are shortly heading to Brussels to make the case for the importance of Innovation Districts in developing inclusive economies across Europe and globally.

During all of this, Colin has continued to turn his love of endurance events to the benefit of local charities and community organisations, completing some incredible runs, including a double-marathon around the LCR in a single day, with plans for this year’s including a Tour de Ten run from Keswick to KQ Liverpool, following the route of next year’s Tour de France. You can support his charity efforts here.

Back in 2016, Colin would never have imagined moving back to Liverpool would lead to stepping out on stage at Manchester Central to receive this latest accolade. It was almost as unexpected as the kiss he received from host Patrick Kielty - and he’s still coming to terms with what the award means.

It means we are making a difference. But Colin also knows that the job is only half done!

He’s already back to work this week, chairing the Invest Liverpool City Region delegation at UKREiiF in Leeds. For Colin and his vision to make Liverpool the most important innovative and inclusive City Region in Europe, the mission is still very much in progress.

Like his ultra runs, you would bet on him to finish the job!