Keenwood Construction has appointed Darren Hamill as managing director, with founder Seamus Keenan handing over the role but remaining CEO, a succession that gives the specialist contractor leadership continuity as it approaches its 30th anniversary.

Keenwood Construction, founded in 1997 in Castledawson, is a specialist fit-out and bespoke joinery contractor with offices in Castledawson, Belfast and London, whose projects include the Shangri-La Hotel at The Shard, The Stage in Shoreditch, the National Portrait Gallery and Brighton College.

The business has grown from its Mid Ulster base while keeping local ties, including work at Holy Trinity College in Cookstown, and says nearly three decades of experience underpin its reputation for craftsmanship.

Hamill said he is proud to take the role at an exciting time and will focus on driving growth while maintaining the company’s standards of quality, service and collaboration, while Keenan said Hamill understands the core quality of the business and is the outstanding candidate to lead it.

The handover comes in a market where demand is not the constraint: office new build and refurbishment grew 16% in 2025, with Glenigan forecasting a further 13% for 2026 before the US-Iran conflict began, while skills, subcontractor capacity and compliance demands are described as the main limits on delivery, with paused schemes re-entering the market from 2026.

London fit-out specialists are already benefiting: BW Workplace Experts reported a 132% rise in pre-tax profit to £13.9m (€16.3m) for 2025 on revenue of £326.7m (€382.2m), citing strong demand in its core London market.

The wider interior refurbishment and fit-out market was estimated at £9.85bn (€11.5bn) in 2025, up 4% on 2024, with public sector education and healthcare investment and Grade A office refurbishment underpinning steady, moderate growth to 2029.

For the sector, firms combining craft joinery with a leadership team spanning Northern Ireland and London are positioned to win premium work in a market where specialist capacity, rather than client demand, sets the pace, and orderly succession also supports long-term client relationships.

Source: NorthernIrelandWorld / RICS / Construction Enquirer / Barbour ABI