EVX 2025: Day Two Highlights

EVX 2025, Engel & Völkers Americas’ annual real estate conference, welcomed a special guest Tuesday — Christian Völkers, founder of Engel & Völkers.

In the day’s general session, he joined Jawed Barna, Group CEO of Engel & Völkers, and Engel & Völkers Americas president and CEO Stuart Siegel for a wide-ranging conversation before a rapt audience.

In all industries, Barna said, when you lose line of sight, focus, or traction on your core business, “this would be the end.”

“Thanks to this gentleman,” he said, gesturing to Völkers, “the core of this business since Christian started it 47 years ago has been residential real estate brokerages. This is absolutely key to me, how we protect and grow this part of the business. At the same time, from a strategic angle, how can we diversify our portfolio and how can we make sure that our relationships with your clients are less transactional and become more of a holistic approach.” 

Völkers described one aspect of that diversification – plans to complete the building of a five-star hotel on Majorca on 300 acres. Hospitality provides many touchpoints with clients and you can repeatedly work together with them, he explained. Upon completion and a soft opening in a few months, it will be named the Völkers House, he said to loud applause, and will offer branded residences as well.

The three executives were followed by a series of panel discussions and Red Talks.

David Light, CEO, Land Broker Co-Op, led a panel titled “Leveraging the Land and Ranch Market” that included PollyAnn Snyder, Private Office advisor and license partner Engel & Völkers Bozeman; Jim Hickey, advisor, Engel & Völkers Jackson Hole; Dawn Maddux, Private Office advisor and license partner, Engel & Völkers Western Frontier; and Chris Burns, advisor, Engel & Völkers Vancouver.

“At the co-op we have a couple of thousand members,” Light said. “As of yesterday, our top 225 members including the people on the stage now, in the last 12 months sold 1.25 million acres of land for $9 billion, an average of $2 million per broker or agent. This dusty little corner of the real estate industry is potent and a good thing to be aware of.”

“If you’re ‘all hat, no cattle’,” he added, “in this space, you’re probably not going to sell much because people can see right through it. Authenticity is key.”

The panelists, who suggested that license partners and advisors try to co-list with those in the Land and Ranch division, shared insights about land and ranch properties.

“Just be yourself,” Maddux said. “What you have that nobody else has, including the big ranch brokers in our markets, is a global brand. If you can get just one ranch listing, then the calls start coming in. We do have cowboys and cowgirls on our team, who know about dirt and soil, but it’s just about being yourself and taking advantage of the platform that Engel & Völkers has created for you. It’s the best brand in the world and this whole new division is building a foundation on that.”

Hickey said he sees three types of buyers: lifestyle buyers who like to hunt, fly fish, horseback ride, and have access to public land; someone who wants to continue or expand a going concern like an agricultural business, cattle ranch, or guest ranch; and someone who wants to take a going concern out of production.

“We’re selling land and ranch the way Engel & Völkers sells land and ranch,” Burns said. “We’re not selling a feedlot, not that we can’t do it. We’re selling premium ranch properties, and buyers for those honestly just aren’t ranchers. People want to live the ranch dream. It’s the ‘Yellowstone’ effect. We may not like it, but it’s real. There are very wealthy buyers who want that experience.”

The audience also heard from former professional basketball player Fran Harris. In her Red Talk, entitled “DNA of Ultra Successful Real Estate Agents,” she told the crowd, “If you give people what they want, they will be your customer for life. If you try to give them what you want, they will not.”

“Silence is a powerful sales tool,” said Harris, a member of the University of Texas’ undefeated 1986 NCAA champion women’s basketball team, to murmurs of agreement from the crowd. 

“If you want to go fast,” she said at another point in her presentation, “go alone. If you want to go far, go as part of a team.” 

Julie Thompson, senior vice president, brokerage relations, moderated a panel entitled “Lessons for Shop Leaders.” Panelists included Stephanie Perrault, VP of operations, Engel & Völkers Nova Scotia; Chris Margetts, brokerage manager, Engel & Völkers Vancouver Island; Jean Cohen, advisor, Engel & Völkers Duxbury; and Yady Perez, brokerage manager, Engel & Völkers Gulf Shores.

Among the key takeaways:

“We recommend using Engel & Völkers tools to become market specialists,” Margetts said. “Pick an area you want to focus on, know every property that’s for sale in your market, not just a geographical market. That could be specializing in first-time homebuyers or high-end condos in your area. And use a CRM to help you stay organized.”

“To make our advisors successful, they have to hone using Engel & Völkers tools. That’s what sets us apart from the competition,” Cohen said. “We use GG magazine, a wonderful tool to drop off to your sphere or to hand out at open houses.”

“Business and marketing plans are critical,” Perez said. “You want to start planning in November and hit the ground running in January. Advisors’ biggest mistake is letting fear get in the way of their work or approach with clients. Don’t be afraid. Unlock your authenticity to get to the next level of your business.”

Brian Hoialmen, chief strategy officer, Lofty, delivered a Red Talk entitled “From Leads to Lasting Relationships: How to Leverage the Formula of Success to Build Client Connections.”

Hoialmen’s success formulas: Traffic x lead capture x follow-up = success. And for building client relationships: First introduction x exchange information x consistent communication = lifelong relationships.

“When it comes to the leads life-cycle, think ‘owners and renters,’ not ‘buyers and sellers.’ It’s less transactional,” he said.

In her Red Talk, entitled “Steal These CEO Secrets,” Danielle Wilkier, founder and CEO, The Helm, shared results of the CEO Genome Project, a 10-year study of 27,000 executives.

The real estate industry, she said, “hasn’t ever needed leaders more than it does now.”

She described four “secrets” the study revealed about the likelihood of CEOs’ success. They:

• Decide with speed: the best CEOs are not always right, but they’re always decisive

• Engage for impact: give people a voice on difficult decisions, but not a vote 

• Adapt proactively: the most successful CEOs spend 50% more time than their peers thinking about the future

• Deliver reliably: the number one predictor of CEO success, because people want to work with those they can trust who deliver a consistent experience every single time

Kevin Brown, creator of The HERO Effect, closed out Day 2 with his gripping and inspiring keynote, "Unleashing Your Hero,” built around the story of his autistic son.

Among the key takeaways:

“What does a hero look like? ‘Ordinary people doing extraordinary things’ makes no sense to me. Heroes are extraordinary people who choose not to be ordinary.”

“There are two times when people talk about you the most: when you give them what they want or need, and when you don’t.”

“Leaders rewrite their life’s story line, not accept it.”

“It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks, it matters what you believe.”