In an era of increased industry consolidation, independence still matters, Steve Baird, president and CEO of Baird & Warner Real Estate, writes.
As we look forward at what it’ll take to thrive in 2025, Inman is celebrating the mighty Indie Broker. We’ll spend all of December delving into how independent brokers are acclimating in a post-commission settlement landscape, as well as what new tools and platforms have emerged to give indies the competitive advantage.
Recent mergers and acquisitions in the residential brokerage industry prompted me to reflect on what sets independent, family-owned brokerages such as Baird & Warner apart.
As the fifth-generation leader of a local business that has served Chicagoland for nearly 170 years, I take immense pride in our continued independence and unwavering commitment to serving our agents, our customers and our communities. Since we founded our brokerage in 1855, these core values have withstood the test of time.
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As national brands buy up market share through M&A, local expertise and community engagement can take a backseat to the bottom line. Consolidation can often mean compromise, leading to a “sea of sameness,” where agents and clients alike find fewer personal touches and more impersonal structures.
While our industry was founded on the idea of “location, location, location,” the distance between the C-suites of some brokerages and the markets they serve has, ironically, never been further.
Once the recent acquisition of @properties by Compass is finalized, Baird & Warner will once again claim the title of Illinois’ largest locally owned brokerage, something that has never been our primary goal but is a distinction we are proud to hold. Yet, this news also reinforces the contrast between independent brokerages and monolithic corporations.
Firms like ours are able to make decisions based on a long-term vision for their company, not the short-term demands of private equity valuations or the quarterly whims of Wall Street. At Baird & Warner, an example of this vision is our decision to have a noncompeting manager dedicated to individual coaching and the success of their agents’ business in each of our offices.
A focus on relationships, not transactions, is what sets independent brands such as ours apart, creating an autonomy that results in the ability to adapt quickly and effectively to meet the changing needs of clients and agents, in our case, without losing sight of the principles that have defined us for generations. Independence and interpersonal relationships still matter, and I believe they will remain a key differentiator in the marketplace.
I’ll conclude by repeating what I recently told our agents in the wake of this recent acquisition: Baird & Warner means more to my family and me than its market valuation. It represents an idea and legacy we are committed to preserving.
Our goal is not just to succeed in our business; we want to continue being the home for the highest integrity, most productive real estate professionals. I believe this is a home worth fighting for and safeguarding for generations to come.
Steve Baird is the president and CEO of Baird & Warner in Chicago, Illinois. Connect with him on LinkedIn and Instagram.