From carpenter to property investor

A 1999 graduate of the UTS Bachelor of Applied Science (Construction Management), now called the Bachelor of Construction Project Management, Stupar has taken a winding career path to his current role as the co-founder and Head of Projects of Riverside Capital, a London-based property investment company.

At Riverside, Stupar and his team provide direct property investment and property portfolio and investment management services for professional investors and their intermediaries.

“What we do is we go out, we find commercial property deals and we then secure those deals with our own capital and maybe that of some underwriters,” he says.

“Once the property is secured, we go out to our networks, and our registered investors to sell down that investment.”

As Head of Projects, Stupar does – well, “everything, really,” he says, from seeking new investors to managing the company’s property investments and overseeing their refurbishment or further development where necessary. At a global level, he’s responsible for building the company’s brand by building and maintaining relationships with investors.

Stupar’s knowledge of the property industry comes from a hands-on place – he started out as a carpenter and later enrolled in the UTS construction management degree. After finishing his studies, he spent a number of years working in the construction project management sector where he was perfectly at home on a building site.

“My background has always been on the construction side, so I always thought that would be where I’d end up, either running developments or being a senior manager in a development company. I never really envisaged being an investment manager,” he says.

With the construction management degree, you had to learn a little bit about everything. You had to understand the architectural side, the legal side, the construction side, the design side, the structural design side, the management side of things, so naturally I think that led me to think I could do a little bit of everything.

Sasha Stupar
UTS Construction Management Alumnus

All that changed in 2002 when Stupar moved to the UK to work as a consultant; eventually, he says, he was hired by a small development company that delivered modest construction projects across the UK.

One of those projects was backed by a hedge fund called Stenham Property limited, which later acquired Stupar’s employer. After the acquisition, Stupar found himself working for Stenham and getting his first taste of the financial side of property development, including engaging with investors

“I got involved in the finance side, which I found more interesting, and I really enjoyed dealing with investors,” he says. 

It was the start of a new career direction. After nearly five years with Stenham, Stupar and a friend stepped out on their own, launching Riverside Capital in 2010. He says his time at UTS, combined with the financial experience he gained with Stenham, gave him the skills and confidence he needed to take the leap.

“With the construction management degree, you had to learn a little bit about everything. You had to understand the architectural side, the legal side, the construction side, the design side, the structural design side, the management side of things, so naturally I think that led me to think I could do a little bit of everything,” he says.

“Rather than having blinkers on – ‘I do what I do and I just stick to my role’ – you naturally look sideways to see, ‘Where else can I assist?’ or ‘What else can I understand that would perhaps make my job easier or my role easier or make the whole thing flow better?’”

Since its launch, Riverside Capital has gone from strength to strength, completing over $1.7 billion (£1.3 billion) in transactions. For Stupar, it’s a point of pride to have achieved this sort of success, particularly after the company’s launch at a time where many financial organisations were badly impacted by the global financial crisis.

“At a time when I think a lot of people were being made redundant and people were losing their jobs in the UK, I took a huge risk. I had to make a success of the company, rather than just being reliant on being an employee, really, so there was a lot more at stake,” he says.

“Since then, I think I’m most proud of the relationships that we built with some of our investors and some of the returns we’ve achieved for our investors – finding good deals and coming through with the results, and delivering on the promise that we made to them.”