Sales of Canonmills Garden Continue Apace During Lockdown

Home sales at Artisan Real Estate’s Canonmills Garden development in Edinburgh are continuing apace despite the challenging sales environment imposed by the coronavirus lockdown.

A combination of smart technology and the human touch is helping Canonmills Garden to remain front-of-mind with home buyers, with 82 sales and reservations now confirmed out of the 135 apartments still available for private sale.

Responding to the unparalleled restrictions in the face-to-face selling process following lockdown, Artisan has invested in its digital marketing platforms creating an innovative customer visitor experience that is not only boosting home sales but is also supporting Scotland’s health service.

This month sees the much-anticipated release of the Sophora homes’ phase – a superb collection of one, two and three-bedroom luxury apartments with views towards Edinburgh Castle and into a courtyard garden. 

To reflect the unique challenges of current circumstances, Artisan is using this sales opportunity to launch its ‘Hope and Hold’ scheme. Rather than paying the usual reservation fee of £1000, purchasers are being asked to donate £250 directly to the Scottish NHS to secure their dream home, then paying the £750 balance once lockdown is over.

“Artisan is an independent, niche developer which has given us the freedom to react quickly to current circumstances and
create a unique proposition which reflects the challenges of our times,” explains Charlotte Swanson, Artisan’s Regional Development Manager.

“We had a huge advantage in that, even before lockdown, we were pushing a 60 per-cent success rate despite all sales being
off-plan and all marketing activity up to that point being conducted off-site."

“As soon as lockdown kicked in, we moved quickly to invest in making our website-based visitor experience even more user friendly, introducing chat-boxes directly linked to our sales team as well as cutting-edge interactive graphics including virtual presentations and 3D apartment walk-throughs."

Click here to explore Canonmills Garden via our interactive home selector.

“And with our Hope and Hold scheme, we have created a straightforward yet impactful mechanism which allows buyers to reserve a new apartment by simply donating £250 to the Scottish NHS - allowing us to make a very powerful statement of intent and support for our wonderful health workers here in Scotland.

She added: “It is testament to the confidence we have in our revamped sales proposition that we are still continuing with the release of our latest homes phase, Sophora, despite the restrictions posed by the current sales environment.”

Technological innovation includes an interactive 3D visual tour through of the latest apartment designs with views both inside and out, in advance of the real-life show home and marketing suite, which is still on course to be launched in the summer.

Artisan has also invested heavily in its social media reach, using Facebook and Instagram in particular to reach new audiences and making it easy for them to access the tailored and bespoke sales material.

Critical to the success of the virtual sales process is Artisan’s dedicated sales and marketing team which is supporting its residential offering across Scotland. Christie Turner and Izzy Bastani, both formerly in sales consultant positions at Savills, took up their new roles in 2019 and are now providing the ‘human touch’ behind the technology.

“It’s still as important as ever to provide personal contact with buyers, even if it can’t be face-to-face,” says Christie. “We have developed a suite of personal video presentations tailored to buyer specifications to make that important connection, as well as ensuring instant one-to-one contact using our social media platforms.

She adds: “Buyers will quickly see that Artisan is not your typical house-builder. The specification of Canonmills Garden is amongst the highest in Scotland, with premium Kitchens International kitchens and Victor Paris bathrooms throughout. Generous internal proportions and access to private gardens or balconies mean that savvy buyers are getting tremendous value for money in a much sought-after corner of the city, close to the vibrant Stockbridge area.”

Artisan Real Estate is best known in Scotland for their large-scale city regeneration projects like New Waverley currently transforming Edinburgh’s historic Old Town. 

Remaining true to its urban regeneration credentials, at the heart of all Artisan’s developments is a strong sense of place. Formerly the site of a B&Q retail store, the spectacularly landscaped Canonmills Garden has already been shortlisted for both the Apartment Development of the Year and Large Development of the Year categories at this year’s Scottish Homes Awards.