Knight Dragon

Who we are

We are a team of experienced and creative developers, designers, marketeers, planners, financiers, creatives and salespeople founding new places and leading the charge to new ways of urban living

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Dr Henry Cheng Kar-Shun

Dr. Cheng is Chairman of Knight Dragon and New World Development Company Limited as well as Executive Director of Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Limited.

Sammy LeeFounder and Vice Chairman

Sammy’s enterprises have spanned multiple industries from property and hotels to aviation ventures and film. He develops property globally, using his creative vision to disrupt the traditional property industry and identify opportunities to unlock value. After training as a lawyer in England, Sammy founded his own law firm in Hong Kong. In 2003 Sammy formed an independent film company financing, producing and distributing feature films including Oscar-winner Monster. He has completed projects across the world; in London he developed the Chancery Court Hotel in 2003, paving the way for the five-star Rosewood. This move became a catalyst for the revitalisation of the area of London now known as Midtown. Similarly, working closely with Dr. Henry Cheng, Sammy was the first to introduce to London the lifestyle-led development The Knightsbridge. This service-led concept won Residential Development of the Year in 2006 and took the prime West End lifestyle to another level.

In 2012 he worked with Dr Cheng to acquire Greenwich Peninsula, where their shared entrepreneurial spirit has already enabled the delivery of 1 million sq ft and cemented the future of this major cultural urban transformation.

Watch Sammy Lee and Lorraine Hahn discuss the Tokenisation of Building 4, Upper Riverside

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Matt Hawkins CEO

Matt has 30 years of experience in the real estate industry. He is a chartered surveyor, who after being a partner at a leading consultancy, joined a private equity investor and led landmark central London developments.  

More recently, Matt was Managing Director of Development for one of the UK’s largest property owners. Having known Sammy Lee for two decades, he is entrusted to continue to deliver the ambitious vision for the Greenwich Peninsula. 

 

 

Jenny SmallmanCOO

Jenny has worked with Knight Dragon for 4 years leading on strategic, operational and HR matters.  During this time, she also ran her own consultancy business supporting companies in various sectors.    

Previously, Jenny was Head of HR for Kurt Geiger leading the team to provide HR services to 1000 retail and 80 head office employees in 80 locations.  Her primary function was to improve business performance through people.  

 

 

Jonathan RannFinance Director

Jonathan has worked for Sammy Lee and the Cheng family for more than 20 years, principally as Finance Director for the Greenwich Peninsula regeneration scheme and The Knightsbridge residential development, and also as a non-executive director of other family-owned entities. Prior to this, he worked in senior financial positions with Interpublic Group for their Lowe Howard-Spink advertising agency and Initiative media agency. He is a chartered accountant, qualifying with Dixon Wilson in London, and a graduate of Queen’s University, Belfast. 

 

 

Steven YewmanChief of Staff

Steven joined Knight Dragon in 2020, bringing more than 35 years’ experience across property development, investment, and management to the Greenwich Peninsula project. Prior to this, Steven was Development Director for Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield responsible for the £1.5bn master planning for Croydon town centre and CPO to transform Croydon’s town main shopping centres into a mixed-use retail, leisure and residential destination for South London.   

Our Teams

Sales

An effortlessly personable team with years of experience at all price points, on- and off-plan, our sales people take customers on the journey from very first interest to whole-hearted purchase.

Marketing

Creating the brand, defining the market and communicating to add value; add culture, collaboration and creativity and you see how our team takes property above commodity and building beyond bricks and mortar.

Placemaking

Experts in the art and science of harnessing the right ideas, partners, design and brands in the long term and meantime - to not simply build but to create real places.

Planning

Our planners navigate the complexity of the planning process and associated rules and regulations, negotiating with local authorities and stakeholders.

Development

Working with an expert consultant team, our development managers oversee the entire complex process of urban development: through all stages from design development, planning, construction and post-completion.

Finance

Looking at each deal, each business, each site and each opportunity upside-down and back-to-front, the work of our number-crunching finance team pretty much speaks for itself...

Customer Service

Taking valued customers on the journey from exchange and onwards, quality customer service is essential to quality development and long term cultural regeneration.

Estate Management

Our seasoned team, drawn from all walks of life from hotel concierge to the military, handles all aspects of the smooth running of large estates, from security to maintenance to service.