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Engel & Völkers

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Engel & Völkers AG
TypeAktiengesellschaft
IndustryReal estate, yachting, aviation
Founded1977; 44 years ago (1977)
Founder
  • Dirk Engel
  • Christian Völkers
Headquarters
Hamburg
,
Germany
Number of locations
38 (2020)
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
  • Sven Odia (Chairman and Chief Executive Officer)
  • Christian Völkers (Chairman of the Supervisory Board)
Servicesresidential and commercial real estate, project development and financing
RevenueIncrease €937.4 million (2020)
Number of employees
Increase 510 (2018)
Websiteengelvoelkers.com/en/
Footnotes / references
Welcome to the world of Engel & Völkers[1]

Engel & Völkers AG is a privately owned German company that, via a series of franchised offices, provides services related to real estate transactions.[2][3]

Engel & Völkers was founded under the name Engel & Cie in 1977 in Hamburg, Germany.[4] The company has expanded primarily through a franchise system.

The firm has around 520 residential property offices and 49 commercial offices brokering retail, office and industrial space, investment properties, multi-purpose apartment and office blocks and property portfolios.[4]

History

Villa on the Elbchaussee in Hamburg

Founding and structure

In 1977, Dirk Engel set up his own business as a real estate agent in Hamburg.[5] He took advantage of an exclusive partnership with a U.S. brokerage firm to build up his business. In 1981, Christian Völkers joined the company as a managing partner.[6] Dirk Engel and Christian Völkers had been friends since their youth. After Engel died in 1986, Völkers took over his partner's shares and continued Engel & Cie. under the name Engel & Völkers.[7] He also expanded the portfolio to include commercial properties in addition to residential properties and founded the "Grund Genug Verlag" publishing house, which publishes the GG magazine.[8] Besides, the training and continuing education of real estate agents were professionalized.[9]

Opening the business model

In 1990, Engel & Völkers opened its first location outside Germany in Palma de Mallorca.[10] The opening up of its business model to third parties proved to be decisive for growth. From then on, independent brokers could operate as licensed partners under the Engel & Völkers brand. In the run-up to the introduction of the franchise system in 1998, the entire external appearance of Engel & Völkers' stores was standardized in 1995.[11] The company's own brand was also standardized.[citation needed]

Internationalization and diversification

Engel & Völkers has been operating as a stock corporation since 1999. The company wanted to be "the first German real estate broker" to go public,[12][13] but postponed this plan indefinitely after the dot-com bubble burst.[14] Instead, it focused on internationalizing its business and opened its first office outside Europe in South Africa in 2001.[15] Other countries followed, including the United States with the signing of a master license agreement in 2006. Greater public attention was given to the opening of a dedicated office in New York City in 2014.[16]

At the end of the 2000s, Engel & Völkers expanded from the premium to the luxury segment.[5][17] The new Private Office division targeted above-average wealthy private and business clients. The company also entered the yacht brokerage business.[18] This offering has since been supplemented by other offerings, such as the company's polo school. Engel & Völkers has been operating it together with car manufacturer Land Rover since 2014.[19] Polo courses are held in Hamburg, Frankfurt and Munich, as well as in Mallorca and Argentina.[20]

In 2012, Engel & Völkers surpassed the mark of 500 locations worldwide for the first time. It has set up offices in Madrid, Rome and Paris.[21]

Opening up new business areas

In 2014, Sven Odia was appointed co-chairman of the management board of Engel & Völkers. He had already been a member of the company's management since 2006 and filled the new position jointly with Christian Völkers.[17] In 2020, Völkers moved to the Supervisory Board, so that Odia now heads the Management Board alone.[22][23] Völkers continues to look after strategic issues as chairman of the supervisory board and is a major shareholder. He pushed the development of new business areas, for example by founding new companies, such as for the brokerage of real estate financing. The portfolio is being expanded with offerings such as a crowd investing platform for real estate.[24][25] The company is now also active in the partial sale of real estate ("Liquid Home") through a licensed company.[26]

Engel & Völkers growth trajectory recently led to double-digit revenue growth.[27] During the global COVID-19 pandemic, demand for high-quality real estate continued. The company is meeting this with virtual tours, for example. A renaissance of the suburbs is expected in the coming years.[28]

In 2020, the Engel & Völkers attracted criticism for the failed real estate investments of its franchise firms. These firms, operating under the Engel & Völkers brand, used Engel & Völkers' reputation to attract investors for projects in Dubai and Nova Scotia. The franchisor rejected calls to accept responsibility for the franchisees' investments, describing them as financially and legally independent.[29][30][31][32]

References

  1. ^ Engel & Völkers, Welcome to the World of Engel & Völkers, Engel & Völkers, retrieved 8 February 2021
  2. ^ "Franchisetoown". Franchisetoown.com. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
  3. ^ "Private office – Engel & Völkers". Engel & Völkers.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b "About – Engel & Völkers". Engel & Völkers. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b "Makler im Luxussegment", Hamburger Abendblatt (in German), p. 25, 30 June 2014
  6. ^ Norbert Schwaldt (24 October 2010), "Hamburger Pferdefreund", Welt am Sonntag (in German), p. 42
  7. ^ "Interview: Christian Völkers über seine erste Million", Capital (in German), 9 July 2017, retrieved 1 February 2021
  8. ^ GG Magazin (in German), Grund Genug Verlag, retrieved 1 February 2021
  9. ^ Jens Bergmann (2018), "Engel & Völkers: Halt dich an die Fibel!", Brand Eins (in German), retrieved 1 February 2021
  10. ^ Helen Cummins, "Marktführer für Immobilien: Engel & Völkers", Slow Living Mallorca (in German), retrieved 1 February 2021
  11. ^ "Engel & Völkers: „Shop-Konzept" wird weiter verfolgt. Das Volumen der vermitttelten Immobilien ist deutlich gestiegen.", Handelsblatt (in German), p. 11, 2 February 1996
  12. ^ "Engel & Völkers plant IPO.", Aktiencheck (in German), 20 December 2000, retrieved 1 February 2021
  13. ^ "Engel & Völkers: Schrittweiser Börsengang", Immobilien Zeitung (in German), 13 December 2000, retrieved 1 February 2021
  14. ^ "Der Makler-Börsengang liegt auf Eis.", Immobilien Zeitung, 24.04.2001 (in German), retrieved 1 February 2021
  15. ^ "Engel & Völkers expandiert nach Südafrika.", Immobilien Zeitung, 28.02.2001 (in German), retrieved 1 February 2021
  16. ^ "Engel & Völkers eröffnet Büro in New York.", Cash Online (in German), 14 May 2014, retrieved 1 February 2021
  17. ^ Jump up to: a b Anne Wiktorin, Tanja Kewes (9 October 2014), "Die neue Doppelspitze: Ein Duo führt künftig den Immobilienmakler Engel & Völkers. / Namen des Tages", Handelsblatt (in German), p. 47
  18. ^ Meite Thiede (21 May 2010), "Luxusyachten vom Immobilienmakler", Süddeutsche Zeitung (in German), retrieved 1 February 2021
  19. ^ "Engel & Völkers + Land Rover Polo School", Polo+10 (in German), 25 April 2014, retrieved 1 February 2021
  20. ^ Doris Banuscher (22 July 2012), "Ganz in Weiß – Polo Cup auf Mallorca", Welt am Sonntag / Ausgabe Hamburg (in German), p. 10
  21. ^ Norbert Schwaldt (18 April 2007), "Engel & Völkers baut das Geschäft in den Metropolen aus.", Die Welt (in German), p. 23
  22. ^ "Generationswechsel bei Engel & Völkers", Immobilienmanager (in German), 4 September 2019, retrieved 1 February 2021
  23. ^ Thomas Tuma (12 October 2020), "Sven Odia: Neuer Chef, neue Rekorde / Unternehmer des Tages", Handelsblatt (in German), p. 44
  24. ^ "Engel & Völkers Capital AG und Kapilendo AG starten neue Immobilien Crowdinvesting-Plattform", Crowdfunding Informationsportal (in German), 20 March 2017, retrieved 1 February 2021
  25. ^ "Crowdinvestingplattform Engel & Völkers Capital geht an den Start", Cash Online (in German), 16 June 2017, retrieved 1 February 2021
  26. ^ "Neues Geschäftsfeld bei Engel & Völkers: Liquid Home soll eine innovative Option darstellen Liquidität zu schaffen.", Immobilienmanager (in German), 21 April 2020, retrieved 1 February 2021
  27. ^ "Engel & Völkers verzeichnet zweistelliges Umsatzwachstum in 2020", Business & People Magazin (in German), 23 January 2021, retrieved 1 February 2021
  28. ^ "2020 war für die Makler von Engel & Völkers ein Rekordjahr – nun erwarten sie die Renaissance der Vororte.", Stern (in German), 13 January 2021, retrieved 1 February 2021
  29. ^ Haseborg, Melanie Bergermann, Volker ter. "Engel & Völkers: In den Sand gesetzt". www.wiwo.de (in German). Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  30. ^ "Geplatzte Immobilienträume". www.zdf.de (in German). Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  31. ^ "Flop-Investments in Kanada: Totalverlust statt Megarendite: Millionenschwerer Anlegerskandal belastet Maklerfirma Engel & Völkers". www.handelsblatt.com (in German). Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  32. ^ "Vertrauenskrise: Engel & Völkers in der Franchise-Klemme". www.fondsprofessionell.de (in German). Retrieved 22 August 2021.

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