ABOUT
From Verbier to Courchevel to St Anton, I’ve always loved the Alps.
My experience and connections in the mountains are the bedrock of Alpine Specialist and the property buying, project management and consultancy services I offer. These services are not tied to any estate agent or ski resort: I’m 100% independent and completely on your side.
When you enlist my support, I’ll work beside you to ensure your project runs smoothly. You’ll get the value of my varied experience, extensive network and exhaustive local knowledge, as well as the benefit of a fluent French speaker.
– Andrew Maude, founder of Alpine Specialist
The story behind Alpine Specialist
I started building my Alpine network and local knowledge base in my teens when I was determined to spend as much time on the ski slopes as possible. It was a natural choice for me to undertake all of my further education in France.
I went on to do my first ski season in 1984 and found there was no better apprenticeship than interacting with guests and suppliers to see first-hand how to facilitate an exceptional experience in the mountains.
This led to looking for local business opportunities and in 1993 I joined a tour operator as an equity partner. Over the next few years I led the expansion of the company into the Swiss and Austrian Alps. Not only did this teach me valuable business lessons, I also gained a strong understanding of work practices and cultural quirks across the region. I negotiated the sale of the tour operator to a major UK travel PLC, then stayed on with the company to experience a very different business model.
I left the corporate world in 2005 with the idea of doing something different. I wanted to bring together my local knowledge, experience and network, as well as my skills for problem solving and project facilitation. Alpine Specialist was the answer.
In the last fifteen years, I’ve helped hundreds of businesses and individuals to find and acquire their ideal Alpine properties, oversee renovation projects and cultivate Alpine businesses.
However insurmountable a problem seems: I’ll find a solution.