Chris Stuart, ”You have to be authentic to what you are great at”,President of PLACE shares his story on Global Luxury Real Estate Mastermind with Michael Valdes Podcast #183

Chris Stuart, "You have to be authentic to what you are great at",President of PLACE and former CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services shares his story on Global Luxury Real Estate Mastermind with Michael Valdes Podcast #183

Chris Stuart, President of PLACE and former CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services, has a great passion for agents. He is singularly focused on helping them achieve greater levels of success. He shares some pointed advice in this conversation that will be a great asset to many real estate professionals of all levels.

More About Chris Stuart: 

Stuart joins PLACE from Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices (BHHS), where he served as President and CEO of the 50,000-agent global real estate franchise network. 

Stuart brings to PLACE an impressive track record of rapidly scaling real estate brokerages and franchises while driving our consumer brand and experience.

During his time in the role, BHHS grew from 32,000 to over 50,000 real estate professionals including the expansion of the brand globally into markets throughout Western Europe, the Middle East, Asia, the Caribbean, Canada, and Mexico. 

"Chris is a visionary leader with a deep understanding of scaling large real estate businesses and connecting them to consumer services," said Ben Kinney, PLACE Co-founder. "Stuart joins our organization at the perfect time as we prepare to scale. His track record of rapid growth is in direct alignment with our immediate goal of continued expansion across North America."

PLACE currently employs over 150 individuals in their corporate offices located in Portland, Bellingham, Salt Lake City, Orlando, and Edmonton, Alberta. Stuart will assist in their plans to hire more than 120 additional full-time positions in the next six to nine months across their corporate offices.

"I am incredibly excited to join this impressive group of industry leaders and visionaries. PLACE and its network of operators combine a wealth of experience, diversity, and expertise with a culture of entrepreneurialism, hard work, and results." Stuart said. "This organization is fueled by collaborative partnerships, and I look forward to accelerating the significant momentum that has already been created."  

PLACE ended 2020 with over $85 million in revenue and $19 million in profit, up 93% from the previous year. The platform is on pace to double again in 2021.  

"Our growth has been built through our focus on finding and retaining the best talent for all of our organizations," PLACE Co-founder Chris Suarez added. "Stuart is another great example of our continued ability to attract the best that our industry has to offer. We have watched what he has built from afar and are energized to welcome him into our organization for our next phase of growth."

Stuart believes the real estate industry is at an inflection point. 

"Given the foreseeable trends and evolutionary models that are sure to reshape the industry's future, I'm confident that PLACE will empower top agents to flourish by leveraging best-in-class technology, marketing, and systems." 

PLACE is a proprietary end-to-end technology platform that delivers a complete suite of business services exclusively to top agents, teams, and brokerages across the U.S. and Canada. PLACE currently operates in over 70 locations across North America. For more information, visit www.place.com.

About Michael Valdes: 

Michael Valdes is the President of eXp Global. He is currently the only Latino President of a publicly traded real estate company in the country (Nasdaq: EXPI). In his first year of joining, he has led a team that has opened 12 countries in 12 months without ever getting on a plane which is a feat that has never been done in the industry. This model has successfully touched the lives of thousands of people across the globe and given them an opportunity to change their lives.

Michael was the former Senior Vice President of Global Servicing for Realogy Corporation. In that role he oversaw the international servicing platform for all Realogy brands including Century 21, Coldwell Banker, ERA, Better Homes & Garden, Corcoran, Climb and Sotheby’s International Realty in 113 countries. He had been with Realogy in a variety of roles for 15 years. Prior to that, Mr. Valdes was Director of Private Banking at Deutsche Bank for a decade where he oversaw a book of business of just under $1 billion. He has the distinction of being the first Director in the United States of Latino descent.

Mr. Valdes is the Chair of the AREAA Global Advisory Board and co-host of the 2020 AREAA Global Luxury Summit. He is also a current member of the NAHREP Corporate Board of Governors. Additionally, he is a the Executive Chair of eXp Latino and former member of the Realogy Diversity Board as well as the Executive Chair of the ONE VOZ, Hispanic ERG. He is a former Board Member of Mount Sinai Hospital in Miami Beach as well as the Shanti Organization in San Francisco. Michael was also a Board Member of Pink & Blue for 2, an organization started by Olivia Newton-John to promote breast and prostate cancer awareness.

Michael is also the host of "The Global Luxury Real Estate Mastermind" podcast which focuses on interviewing global leaders in the industry. It is currently distributed in over 90 countries and has over 10 million impressions. He is also a current member of the Forbes Real Estate Advisory Council.

He currently resides in New York City and has a home in Miami.