Montreal-based 360 Vox Corp. is the new parent company of Vancouver-based Sotheby's International Realty Canada and Blueprint Global Marketing Ltd.
The deal is a landmark for the two companies, which founder Ross McCredie began developing with the May 2004 purchase of Premier Canadian Properties Ltd., a Sotheby's affiliate previously owned by Vancouver's Derek Trethewey. McCredie, a former marketing director for Intrawest, and two silent partners landed the master franchise rights for Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates Inc. in Alberta and B.C. in 2005.
Today the company is the fifth-largest Sotheby's franchise and the largest of the Sotheby's International companies, with more than $2 billion in annual sales.
McCredie began exploring options for greater growth a year ago and attracted the interest of Ned Goodman, president and CEO of Dundee Corp. and chairman of 360 Vox, which, as its name suggests, pursues a well-rounded range of real estate interests.
"He sees the Sotheby's brand as an access point," McCredie said of Goodman's interest.
McCredie isn't worried by the cooling of housing markets in either Vancouver or Toronto, where Goodman is building thousands of units. Sotheby's sales are up 64 per cent this year.
"Things are tough," he said. "[Owners] need people to market their properties locally, nationally and internationally."
– Peter Mitham/BIV
from Western Investor January 2013