Creating the Wow Factor

REALTOR® Magazine’s BROKERAGE OFFICE REDESIGN CONTEST

Winner, 20+ Agents Category:
Managing Broker Marie King Levi
Keller Williams Realty
Chattanooga, Tenn.

The Keller Williams office on Premier Drive in Chattanooga, Tenn., was busting at the seams in 2008. There was simply not enough room for the 33 practitioners who rented workspaces in the 4,100-square-foot office—not to mention the other 70 or so who didn’t rent space but used the office occasionally.

The interim solution: leasing some extra space on the building’s second floor and moving eight agents upstairs. It helped for a while, but the arrangement had its inconveniences. Every time those agents needed to use the copy machine, turn in paperwork, pick up their mail, or get a cup of coffee, they had to go downstairs. “It was a very disconnected experience,” says Managing Broker Marie King Levi, CRS, GRI. A leaky roof and spotty air conditioning only made ­matters worse.

The office problems weren’t limited to the second floor, however. Management realized the entire office was suffering from aesthetic discontent. “The décor and design of the ground floor space was in desperate need of an overhaul as well,” Levi says. “The look was frilly and outdated.”

So the brokerage developed a completely new and much larger floor plan in consultation with an architect and interior designer. To accommodate the overhaul, “the landlord relocated a neighboring office to another floor,” Levi said.

Today, the office is unrecognizable from its recent past. “We have a lot of sleek lines and dark wood,” Levi says. “We wanted a modern look.”

What the Judge Said:  Joan Kaufman, CEO of Interior Design and Planning of Naperville, Ill., noted that the changes were drastic from top to bottom. “It looks like you’re walking into a Ritz-Carlton,” she said.

Just Like the Ritz

One striking change is noticeable from the moment you walk in the front door. A wall was added just beyond the reception area to hide the open area where visiting practitioners sit and work. “It was not a welcome sight for customers to see a line of agents working when they walked in. Now what they see is beautiful art,” Levi says.

Read about June's winner: Solo Practioner Category Ron Stumpf of Fresno, Calif. And the July/August winners in the 2-20 Agents Category, Darren Buttram & Cary Baumann.

Levi’s new and improved 7,400-square-foot office is the winner in the “20+ Agents” category of REALTOR® Magazine’s Brokerage Office Redesign Contest. Joan Kaufman, CEO and chief designer at Interior Planning and Design in Naperville, Ill., helped to judge the contest entries based on before and after photos, as well as write-ups about the work that was done.

“The change is drastic,” she says. “Now it looks like you’re walking into a Ritz-Carlton.”

Among the design touches that made the most impact was the brokerage’s replacement of gold letters on the front sign with black. “The letters pop now,” she says. Kaufman commended Keller Williams’ use of lighting to draw attention to the art, as well as the brand new kitchen featuring stainless appliances and granite countertops.

The brokerage also replaced old cubicles with a row of seven computer stations for agents who don’t rent office space. There are four additional spaces for laptop use. This open work space is “very conducive to collaboration,” Kaufman says.

Fostering Pride

The $76,000 job took four months to complete and was broken into three phases, allowing the office to stay open throughout the project. Costs were shared between the brokerage’s principals and the building owner, who contributed $28,000. Keller Williams signed a new five-year lease for the upgraded space.

“Brokerages that lease space should know they don’t have to shoulder the entire cost of the renovations themselves,” Levi says. “The landlord wanted to make us happy and was very accommodating. We have a good working relationship with the building management.”

Levi also looked for value in making decorating decisions and tried to be smart about what was worth compromising on. For example, when the designer offered a choice of ­mirrors in the kitchen, Levi went with the economical $50 model rather than a similar style for $250.

The overall wow factor has been a boon for business, according to Levi. “It’s fun to bring clients and potential recruits here now,” she says. The office has brought in about 10 new agents since the work was completed last October, and Levi has noticed that agents are taking pride in their personal work spaces. “People are bringing in pictures and new chairs,” she says. “There’s a lot more decorating going on. Everyone seems intent on having the place look just right and keeping it that way.”