Last week, I had the pleasure of welcoming Gloor Realty Company to the Better Homes and Gardens® Real Estate network. Located in Oak Park, Illinois, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Gloor Realty Company is a shining example of everything you hope for in a partner when building a real estate franchise network.

Announcement day is always a mix of anticipation and nervousness. The Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate team waited in a separate room as Rich Gloor Jr. announced to his team that he had made the decision to franchise with our brand. Then he welcomed those of us from the brand to join the group. For me, this moment is always a little unsettling. You can’t help but wonder how the agents at Gloor Realty Company are feeling about the sudden news that they are now a part of a franchise system. You can imagine my relief when I was greeted by a room full of smiling faces.

Rich continued with his presentation explaining why he and his leadership team made the decision to franchise with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate. He discussed the marketing advantages that the relationship offered to the local agents, the tools that would allow them to become even more competitive in their market, and the value of the Better Homes and Gardens brand name.

Then it was my turn to give a brief overview of our tools and systems. For those of you who do public speaking, you know how important it is to measure your audience by their body language. And what a relief it is to look into the eyes of strangers and see excitement and acceptance.

After a brief question and answer session, we all headed to another room for a wonderful lunch. Each agent picked up their personalized welcome goodie bag full of great Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate stuff. What fun it is to watch everyone look through their bags.

After lunch it was back to the office where we found agents checking out our consumer website and brand intranet site called The Greenhouse. We quickly learned that the buzz had started getting around town of the morning’s announcement.

The months of contemplating and weeks of planning for a successful launch were all worth it that day as we witnessed a great family owned and operated real estate company take a new step toward their continued future success.

Thanks to Rich Sr., Rich Jr., Jan, and Cindy for putting your faith in the power of the Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate brand. You won’t be disappointed. And, a big thanks to the entire team at Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Gloor Realty Company for welcoming us with open arms and open hearts.