1. Competence. Exclusivity. Passion.
Why These Real Estate Innovators Chose
Engel & Völkers to Maximize Their Business
SECURING THE FUTURE
OF HOMEOWNERSHIP
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2. 98 October 2014 RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE
Competence. Exclusivity. Passion.
Why These Real Estate Innovators Chose
Engel & Völkers to Maximize Their Business
CarolSollak
Engel&Völkers
Wellington,PalmBeach
JeffreyHammitt
Engel&Völkers
NorthRaleigh
TediMcKnight-Heikes
Engel&Völkers
WestPortland
CherylDavis
Engel&VölkersLasVegas
LouisCritelli
Engel&Völkers
MonmouthCounty
SandraWilken
Engel&VölkersScottsdale
StuartSiegel
Engel&Völkers
NewYorkCity
RonAmendola
Engel&Völkers
TorontoUptown
BrooksBallard
Engel&Völkers
HoustonIntown

3. RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE October 2014 99
BYMARIAPATTERSON
StevedeGuzman
Engel&Völkers
DenverSouth
ShirleyGary
Engel&Völkers
BuckheadAtlanta
ScottAskew
Engel&Völkers
IntownAtlanta
TatianaHermanns
Engel&VölkersAurora
W
hile every real estate brand has certain assets
that set them apart, Engel & Völkers just might
have cornered the market on differentiation.
For starters, founded in 1977 in Hamburg, Germany, the
premium real estate franchise is still actively led by its
namesake, Christian Völkers, lending an independent,
entrepreneurial vibe to a firm that has expanded to 38
countries around the globe and is comprised of more
than 5,000 real estate professionals in more than 541
brokerages. Add to that background a successful push
into some 45 North American markets, a leadership
team that reads like a ‘Who’s Who’ of real estate, and a
worldwide network that interacts in real-time, and you’ve
got an unparalleled business model that discerning
brokers are quick to recognize.
A REPUTABLE, REACHABLE LEADERSHIP
One of the factors that sets Engel & Völkers apart is the
quality and accessibility of its leadership, beginning with
Christian Völkers himself.
“Christian Völkers is a living namesake of the company
who is also very active in its direction,” says Anthony Hitt,
CEO of Engel & Völkers North America (see sidebar on
page 101). “Because we’re not a public company,
we can do what we want to do on our own timetable.
Christian Völkers told me to take our brand and evolve it
for the U.S. market; to take who we are on a global basis
and create something special in North America. That is ex-
tremely exciting to me.”
Engel & Völkers began their foray into the North American
market in 2006. “For the first five years, we had to come in
and take the time to understand the market, and the last
two years have really been our 2.0,” says Hitt. “There were
a lot of people, however, who understood the brand and had
the foresight to join us years ago, such as Colleen Holmes
of Engel & Völkers Lake Placid. People have a desire for
something that is fresh and different, which is also fun.”
“We couldn’t be prouder of the firms that have joined En-
gel & Völkers over the years, and especially those in the
past year,” says Holmes. “This is a collaborative culture.
Each new brokerage enhances what we can do for our
agents and clients.”
To help create Engel & Völkers’ North American presence,
Hitt assembled some of the best and brightest leaders this
industry has seen, such as: Tom Kunz, former CEO of CEN-
TURY 21 Real Estate; Stuart Siegel, former CEO of Sotheby’s
International Realty; Jim Ramsay, former SVP of sales and
operations for both Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate
and CENTURY 21 Real Estate; and Jacob Stepan, who was
formerly a senior executive at Cendant Corporation.

4. 100 October 2014 RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE
According to Hitt, recruiting this
real estate dream team speaks to
Engel & Völkers’ core values: com-
petency, exclusivity and passion.
“We actually live by those values,
starting with competency,” says Hitt.
“We want to attract smart, compe-
tent people to join our brand who
are at the top of their game. I had no
other choice but to find that level of
competency when it came to creat-
ing the team that would support the
North America franchises and their
agents.”
And these real estate vets were
eager to be part of something so ex-
citing. As Kunz says, “Engel & Völk-
ers is the reason I returned to real
estate, because I believe what they
offer is truly different and will ulti-
mately change our industry.”
This all-star leadership team is
an important selling point to bro-
kers who are signing on with Engel
& Völkers. As Shirley Gary, a license
partner and broker of Engel & Völk-
ers Buckhead Atlanta, says, “Think
about it—my mentor is Tom Kunz!
Nobody else has that type of support
system that I know of, that’s readily
and easily available.”
As Siegel says, “The company has
a North American leadership team
that is experienced and proven. If
one of us hasn’t seen it, it hasn’t
happened.”
Siegel, president of Engel & Völk-
ers New York, watched as Hitt suc-
cessfully redeveloped the brand
and began to open in new markets
across the U.S., and realized some-
thing truly unique was unfolding.
“The marketplace was ripe for the
introduction of a brand like ours and
this was proven by the reception An-
thony was receiving in launching En-
gel & Völkers nationally,” he recalls.
“It proved that the market was very
open to a brand that wasn’t just the
same-old, same-old in the global
luxury business. Over the last 35-
plus years, E&V had successfully
built a credible business in Europe,
Asia and the Middle East. Having
launched one of the first interna-
tional firms in the business, I knew
that this truly represented a unique
opportunity.”
The same degree of selectivity
used in assembling the Engel & Völk-
ers North American leadership team
is used when considering brokerag-
es to join the brand. Only those firms
that fulfill the core values of “com-
petency, exclusivity and passion” are
considered, and thus, stand among
an elite few.
“Culture is very important to us, as
is exclusivity,” says Hitt, “but exclu-
sivity is not necessarily about price
point, but rather about who should
be part of this organization. We have
protected territories, meaning we
cannot put another shop in the same
location. So it’s very important to us
that we have the right partner who
can grow with us and whom we can
grow with. We are adamant that this
brand be something different and be
something special, so we only want
to attract the type of people who be-
long in our brand.”
A PURIST APPROACH TO
PREMIUM REAL ESTATE
The North American firms that have
joined Engel & Völkers’ network of-
ten point to one distinction as the
overriding factor in their decision:
the brand’s true, undiluted represen-
tation of premium real estate.
For Gary, selecting a brand that
would resonate with Buckhead, At-
lanta’s escalating high-end clientele
was critical. Gary’s brokerage is
opening later this year in what she
Engel & Völkers boutique real estate shops are located in “protected territories,” guaranteeing their brokers market exclusivity.

5. RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE October 2014 101
describes as the highest-rent project
currently under construction in Buck-
head, being touted as the Rodeo
Drive of Atlanta.
“Buckhead is steeped in tradition
and is a very strong market for the
wealthy,” she explains. “Today, we’re
not only seeing older money, but also
an influx of affluent consumers from
the movie and music industries, with
the likes of Tyler Perry and Usher
opening studios here. The majority of
retailers in this complex are based
out of Europe, so there will be a lot
of international consumers who rec-
ognize the Engel & Völkers brand.
Most of the real estate companies
here today have a very traditional
look, but Engel & Völkers uses the
shop concept and is very clean-lined
and modern. It’s like the Tiffany’s of
real estate.”
Louis Critelli agrees. “This interna-
tional company is truly international,”
says the president of the soon-to-
open Engel & Völkers in Monmouth
County, N.J.
Some nine years ago, Critelli left
a national real estate brand where
he had been a top-producing agent
to launch his own firm. While several
brands courted him over the years
since, he felt that they all missed the
mark for the type of premium firm he
was intent on developing, and there-
fore, went out under his own ban-
ner as Critelli REALTORS®. However,
when Engel & Völkers came along,
he took a closer look.
“I was really impressed that they
were an independent, international
company specializing in one thing: a
brand promise of providing a consis-
tent, premium-level of service,” says
Critelli. “Engel & Völkers has integ-
rity and experience since 1977, and
it’s a company with one man at the
helm—I liked all of that. Plus, hav-
ing a protected region, I don’t have
to worry about watching another
company open up and take busi-
ness away. We used to say that we
were the Monmouth County address
for luxury. Now we’re the Monmouth
ONE-ON-ONE WITH ANTHONY HITT
How the Engel & Völkers North America
President & CEO Is Steering the Company toward Success
Maria Patterson: Tellusabitabouttheselectionprocessintargetingfirmstojointhe
E&V North America brand?
Anthony Hitt: Christian Völkers has this philosophy that we are where our
clients are, so Engel & Völkers is in the best locations around the word. We
have to look at locations throughout North America that make sense for our
brand, and there are about 300 locations that make a lot of sense. We se-
lect, analyze and perform a lot of due diligence on the markets that interest
us to determine who the players are—who’s doing the business and who are
they doing business with and what agents are representing that brand. Then
we open the communication with those firms. We are not going after the big-
gest in every market—we are going after those we believe are the best and
who fit our brand profile.
MP: What most differentiates Engel & Völkers in the North American marketplace?
AH: We are not the biggest. What separates us is that we know who we
are. We know we’re not for everyone. We are agent—or “advisor,” as we
like to say—driven, and advisor-centric. Supporting top advisors is in our
DNA. Christian Völkers sold real estate very successfully, and a lot of the
leadership in our company has also sold real estate. I sold real estate for
nine years in one of the most competitive West Coast markets in the U.S. So
we know what it means to be a market leader, to earn sellable listings and to
have clients keep coming to you. Every system, tool, method and strategy we
offer is developed around attracting and supporting the best agents—both
current and future market leaders. It goes back to our core values—we
want passionate people. People who love what they do and are great at
doing it.
MP: How are you promoting the brand to real estate consumers?
AH: We’re actually more known than most realize. Anyone who travels or does
business in Europe knows our brand. That said, we have a team of market-
ing and PR experts who support our new franchises when we open in new
markets. We have strategies and tactics developed to strategically introduce
the E&V brand into the local communities we serve. Of course, it all starts
with aligning ourselves with the right partners and agents. By sharing our in-
ternational awareness with a historically strong local presence, we are able to
create something more powerful in the market that consumers and potential
new agents are instantly drawn to.
MP: What are your goals for expansion, both short and long term?
AH: Our goal is to build the brand market by market and to continue to take
the time to research and identify, not just the top players, but those in the
market who share and seek the same values, mindset and culture that we
do. We are a premium brand that has been doing a lot of things right for
37 years. We want to continue that tradition in North America. It’s not just
about expanding our footprint, but about expanding our culture and our
lifestyle—and, of course, selling a lot of real estate.

6. 102 October 2014 RISMedia’s REAL ESTATE
County address for luxury with an ex-
pansive and truly connected interna-
tional network.”
The international opportunities
that Engel & Völkers offers to North
American brokers was also a decid-
ing factor for Ron Amendola—for-
merly of the Sutton Group in Toronto.
A self-proclaimed “slow-moving guy,”
Amendola made the decision to
leave his brand of 24 years to be-
come the first Canadian firm to join
Engel & Völkers. “I analyze things
to death, and sometimes you miss
opportunities when you think too
much,” he explains. “But I didn’t
take a lot of time to figure this one
out and I feel very confident I made
the right choice.”
According to Amendola, Engel &
Völkers is different from anything
he’s seen in Ontario and Toronto.
“Engel & Völkers is definitely a global
company with a referral network that
can be appreciated by agents here
in Toronto as well as agents abroad
who want to work with a Canadian
company.”
Case in point, Amendola is already
receiving inquiries from Engel & Völk-
ers brokers in the U.S. and he hasn’t
even opened his doors as the new
brand yet. “The system for referrals
is already in place,” he explains. “You
don’t have to reinvent the wheel—
it’s all there and planned out; the
blueprints are already there.”
“I was surprised to learn how many
people in my own backyard knew the
Engel & Völkers brand,” says Scott
Askew, who opened his Engel & Völk-
ers Intown Atlanta brokerage in Geor-
gia last April with a grand opening
event. “We unveiled our new Engel
& Völkers sign and people walking
by stopped to tell us that they knew
who we were and were happy we
were here.”
A GLOBAL NETWORK,
RIGHT NEXT DOOR
Engel & Völkers brokers across
the board underscore the unique
and invaluable ability of the brand’s
global network to act as close-knit
colleagues under one roof. Chalk
it up to core values and top-notch
technology.
“We are not about having more
dots on a map,” says Carol Sollak,
a license partner and broker for En-
gel & Völkers Wellington and Palm
Beach in Florida. “It’s about connect-
ing those dots, and our network and
technology is unparalleled in being
able to do that.”
According to Siegel, Engel & Völk-
ers’ truly global network is a critical
competitive differentiator in his New
York marketplace.
“We are the only global brand that
works in a fully integrated platform,”
explains Siegel. “What I see online,
my associates in Hong Kong and
Monaco also see. I have a call every
Wednesday night with my colleagues
in Hong Kong so they’re aware of
the opportunities in New York and
vice versa. This is a borderless,
boundary-less, global company, and
we quickly and pervasively get that
across to our customers, clients and
sales advisors.”
This degree of seamless, global
networking is a huge part of the
value proposition to international
consumers, say Engel & Völkers
brokers. “The consumer is going to
see a much better option from a truly
global brand that is focused on one
thing: selling to the premium mar-
ket consumer,” says Critelli. “I can
now say to customers, ‘tomorrow,
your listing will be on a live feed in
every Engel & Völkers office around
the world, from New York, Miami and
Los Cabos to Rome, Switzerland and
Hong Kong.’”
Complementing its global technol-
ogy platform, Engel & Völkers cre-
ates many opportunities for its bro-
kers around the world to network in
person as well.
“It’s not like old-time networking
at real estate conferences,” says
Sandra Wilken, license partner and
broker at Engel & Völkers Scottsdale
who just returned from the compa-
ny’s annual Polo Cup and White Party
in Mallorca, Spain. “Here, you’re
networking with high-end firms that
are all part of your company, that
have the same standards and ide-
als. People exchange ideas freely
with people who are like-minded, and
this turns into business. I am com-
fortable referring business to other
Engel & Völkers brokers because I
know their level of expertise, and I
believe they will do the same for me.”
A WINNING COMBINATION
FOR THE FUTURE OF REAL
ESTATE
The unique value proposition that En-
gel & Völkers brings to the table prom-
ises to expand the brand’s footing in
key North American markets. Siegel
clearly outlines the opportunity.
“We have a very seasoned man-
agement and leadership team that
is U.S.-trained and based,” says Sie-
gel. “We have brand credibility, but
we’re entrepreneurial and owned by
the man who founded us—we’re a
nimble company. A lot of our compet-
itors have a model where the quar-
terly earnings report can dominate
strategy and decisions. We can bob
and weave as required by the mar-
ket. We think long term and we think
smartly. There couldn’t be a better
time or place for all of these factors
to come together for a global real es-
tate brand like Engel & Völkers.” RE
For more information, please visit www.evusa.com.
Engel & Völkers provides global networking opportunities for
its brokers, such as its annual Polo Cup and White Party.