What it Takes to Dominate the Luxury Market

Is the power of a unified brand enough to take over the luxury market? Howard Lein certainly thinks so.

The luxury market is changing in Scottsdale, Arizona, where Lein is the Owner of RE/MAX Excalibur. He saw a tremendous opportunity for agents to seize their fair share of the luxury business. They just needed the right resources, knowledge and, above all, confidence to sell luxury.

“People dream of selling luxury but have no idea how to get into it,” Lein says. “I knew it wasn’t going to take a lot to increase our luxury market share.”

So he found a way to boost agents’ access to the right tools: the top-tier Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist (CLHMS) course and the elegant, sophisticated luxury branding of The RE/MAX Collection. In late October of last year, RE/MAX Excalibur hosted a two-day CLHMS training. “It’s one of the hardest designations to get,” Lein explains. “In Arizona, over 70 percent of RE/MAX agents list luxury as a specialty, but previously only 38 individuals had the CLHMS designation.”

The comprehensive course covers everything from what luxury clientele look for in an agent to the best terms to use in marketing materials. Sales Associate Gayle Henderson, a local luxury professional with The RE/MAX Collection, helped organize the event and coordinated several networking opportunities for attendees.

“The online course is really excellent, but there are several advantages to attending the course in person — one of the biggest being meeting people outside of your market,” Henderson says. “This provides the opportunity to exchange referrals and ideas.”

Henderson says it’s important to serve luxury clients “in a way that’s spectacular,” so that is exactly the same treatment attendees of the course experienced.

“We were careful to speak the language of luxury clientele throughout the event,” she says. “For example, we hosted a Welcome Reception on the first night, not a casual ‘happy hour.’ When you do everything to a high level of quality, it speaks volumes to the message you’re trying to broadcast in the luxury market.”

“The goal by inviting RE/MAX agents from out of state was to create a long-term networking relationship between the agents,” Lein says. “By opening up the event to agents from across North America, it more than doubled the number of agents in my office who were interested in attending the event.”

Lein added that he is happy to consult with other owners who may be interested in hosting a similar event. “This can be done anywhere, and it’s not that much trouble considering the tremendous outcome,” he says. “The event boosted the already strong impression of RE/MAX locally, plus put a spotlight on the support, resources and collaboration agents can expect when they join.”

Henderson, an Associate with RE/MAX Excalibur for 18 years, called Lein a “visionary” for organizing the event.

“He understands the value of spending time and money on an event like this. For him, it’s always about how he can help agents succeed.”