Colin Lloyd to turn DMA into flats

Former DMA chairman Colin Lloyd is on the verge of buying the DMA’s headquarters and is understood to be planning to turn it into luxury flats.
The deal, which it is believed will be completed by midday today (April 1), will leave the trade body scouring London for a new home, although the Institute of Promotional Marketing – which is also housed in Margaret Street – will take over a penthouse suite once construction is complete.
If the contract is signed it will be seen as a major coup for Lloyd, who, according to sources close to the situation, is still irked by the manner of his departure from the trade body. He remains a board member of the IPM.
Having sold his sales promotion agency KLP in the early Nineties, Lloyd has invested in a number of businesses with both Clive Mishon and David Payne, building up a portfolio of investments. He was voted chairman of the DMA in the late Nineties, and became president a few years later.
The trade body moved into its Margaret Street premises a number of years ago, and bizarrely it is one of the few buildings in the street that does not have a letterbox.
An insider said: “After cashing in a few investments, Colin is now ready to move into the property market. Margaret Street is a prime location and he has already sounded out the possibility of turning it into luxury apartments. As you can imagine, the DMA board is furious.”