Paul Blackburne, founder and managing director, Blackburne

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Join us for breakfast to hear how Paul Blackburne has evolved his company from project marketing and development consulting to become one of the state’s leading apartment developers.  

Paul established his namesake development firm in 2003, and while his father was involved in the property sector, his journey to the forefront of Perth’s apartments market has been anything but typical.

After spending several years abroad and working in marketing, recruitment and as a dive instructor, he returned to Perth in the early 2000s, adamant that he wasn’t going to follow his father’s footsteps into property.

But an opportunity arose to buy part of the rent roll from his father’s company Blackburne & Joyce Real Estate, and Blackburne Property Group was born.

In 2008, he started focusing on apartment development, at a time many others exited the market in the wake of the global financial crisis.

The company’s growth since then has been astonishing, with more than $700 million in upcoming or recently completed projects currently on Blackburne’s books, making it one of Australia’s biggest privately-owned apartments players.

As well as being named Business News 40under40 First Amongst Equals in 2016, Paul has received a raft of industry accolades along the way, including being named a REIWA Grand Master in 2007, 2010 and 2015, while two of his projects have been named the best apartment development in WA by the UDIA, in 2015 and 2016.