Norway and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Join RE/MAX Network
RE/MAX is returning to the Kingdom of Norway with the acquisition of the RE/MAX Norway franchise rights from RE/MAX Europe by real estate veteran Silvan Zürcher. Zürcher, with more than six years of experience as a successful RE/MAX associate and broker/owner in Europe, believes there is a tremendous opportunity to grow the RE/MAX brand in the region. Successful entrepreneur and consultant Jon Zürcher, who lives in Norway, has been named Regional Director of RE/MAX Norway.
“I have seen the success of the RE/MAX business model firsthand as a real estate agent and also as a broker/owner in Switzerland,” Silvan Zürcher said. “Knowing that RE/MAX wanted to relaunch in Norway I began conducting market research and believe the RE/MAX model and our strategic plan will be the basis for another future RE/MAX success story in Norway.”
RE/MAX broker/owners Barbara and Michael Eardley brought the RE/MAX brand to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines this year with the opening of RE/MAX Results Realty in Kingstown. The couple has a combined 30-plus years of real estate experience within the RE/MAX network in the United States and Canada. After vacationing on the island country, they purchased a franchise and now play pivotal roles in organizing the local real estate market into a cohesive professional marketplace.
“In 2015, my husband and I fell in love with the natural beauty and lifestyle of the islands,” Barbara Eardley said. “We decided that we had the experience, dedication and drive needed to bring the RE/MAX brand to the country. Our goal is to be the dominant real estate organization on the islands while positively contributing to its socioeconomic framework.”
RE/MAX is in more countries than any other real estate brand. The franchisor’s global expansion beyond Canada began in 1991 with the sale of RE/MAX Cayman Islands and was followed with the opening of RE/MAX Mexico in 1993. In 1995, the RE/MAX Europe region was established. At the end of June 2016, the number of RE/MAX agents outside the United States and Canada reached nearly 28,000, resulting in an annual growth of over 15%. Across Europe, RE/MAX agent count surpassed 17,000.
RE/MAX was recently ranked the leading real estate franchise for the eighth consecutive year in the annual Franchise Times Top 200+® listing. Continued growth and a steady increase in the number of locations also pushed the global franchisor of real estate brokerages into the top 10 franchises included in the survey. RE/MAX ranked No. 8 overall, up from No. 11 in 2015, No. 12 in 2014 and No. 14 in 2013.
