What 36 years will do (in the photos above) . . . I decided to tell a more personal story as it reflects on a lesson in service delivery. While I've been involved in private advisory work for years, two years ago I leveraged my 23 years of involvement in real estate to launch an unparalleled boutique client experience by developing The Horswell Collection.I first met Pluto at age seven and recently celebrated the 70th Anniversary of Disneyland by remembering my unusual history with the brand. A year before that old photo, I had sent a letter to Disney's President E. Cardon Walker that included a sealed "top secret" envelope with a new ride design. The design envelope was returned unopened with a very sincere letter from him noting that due to infringement issues they could not review it, but he invited me to "return as an imagineer in a few years." Over the years, I crisscrossed the Disney constellation to talk with people who knew Walt including my father as well as my friendship with Walt's nephew Ted. Every aspect of this company and its politics from Roy Disney to Michael Eisner to Bob Iger, its unusual board of directors dynamics, and the speculation about my personal pick for the next CEO, Josh D'Amaro, has always fascinated me.
The Horswell Collection is designed in many ways to exemplify the values of a successful studio and media company with its own unusual reach into media, analytics, and rarefied lifestyles . . . and as such, I decided in conjunction with my birthday this year to shake up my world and move my bungalow on the backlot to a real estate company that mirrors the global impact that Disney extends in the experience category - Coldwell Banker Realty.
Walt realized that nostalgia could take the company only so far, and that's why "Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as thee is imagination left in the world. What I didn't know in 1977 was that Card Walker would take a leap of faith when Roy Disney and Stanley Gold crafted a winning combination in Michael and the late (great) Frank Wells to inject new excitement into the brand while standing guard to preserve the rich tradition of storytelling that is at the core of the company's operations.
The courage to explore new opportunities for clients through expanded service is a path not usually taken when sameness is so much more comfortable. I thought the backstory of this brand enhancement was something that both my advisory and real estate clients would enjoy. You're invited into the skysuite of my imagination on a creative and clear path resulting in exceptional client results.
