Greg Coxon, Grubb & Ellis' president of transaction services tells GlobeSt.com he was surprised to receive a phone call from BRE Commercial announcing the end of the affiliation. However, he acknowledges that 100% ownership of operations in Phoenix and San Diego has been the company's objective for awhile.
"The ownership relationship of BRE was that of local partners who worked as managers. We had the minority interest," Coxon explains. "We wanted to have ownership in Phoenix and worked diligently with BRE to try to make it work. It just didn't happen."
Now, with BRE Commercial's alliance with St. Louis-headquartered Colliers Turley Martin Tucker a reality, the path is clear for Grubb & Ellis to set up its own operations. And Coxon acknowledges he's looking forward especially to helping set up the Phoenix office, as Phoenix is home base for him. Before joining Grubb & Ellis in 2008, Coxon was managing director of CB Richard Ellis' Greater Phoenix office.
Coxon declined to discuss specific hiring moves. "What I will tell you is we're talking to individuals for leadership management roles in both offices," he says. He adds that "there's been a good list of brokerage professionals who have reached out to me, wondering what our plans are, and how we're planning to model the organization." He adds that the goal is to have fully integrated, fully serviced operations in Phoenix and San Diego up and running within the next two to three months.
Grubb & Ellis is no stranger to either Phoenix or San Diego, as the company had offices in both locations before affiliations with BRE Commercial were formed. BRE Commercial's Phoenix office affiliated with Grubb & Ellis in 2003 after the company-owned office shut down there, and San Diego followed suit a year later.
Coxon explains that a presence in both markets is important. "These are both strategic markets for us," he adds. "We have to have a good presence in those markets to service our clients. Real estate offices are like a distribution network; if you don't have an office where clients want to do business, you've lost the business."
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