Business in Vancouver’s “How I Did It” feature asks business leaders to explain in their own words how they achieved a business goal in the face of significant entrepreneurial challenges. In this week’s issue, Clarence Debelle of Royal Pacific Realty talks about how he got into selling real estate just when the housing market was crashing, and how he succeeded by focusing exclusively on selling luxury homes to wealthy Chinese buyers in West Vancouver.
“I was an investment banker in Toronto. I was raised in West Vancouver and wanted to come home. I moved back to Vancouver and worked for a small investment bank. They were bought out by Canaccord [Genuity] and I did not want to be part of a large organization anymore. I wanted to be in a world where I could control my own destiny. I went into venture capital for a number of years.
“I talked to two of the top realtors in West Vancouver and they said, ‘Clarence, if you get in, in a matter of no time you’ll be one of the best realtors. I started off [in 2008] with Re/Max literally two or three weeks before the crash. My very first open house, in my first week of business, I sold the home.
“May 2009 was basically the bottom of the West Vancouver market. In May 2009, my buyer bought 1075 Groveland for $4 million. In July of 2009, I sold another $4-million home. It was the bottom of the market, and I was bringing buyers to the market when no one else was.
“Prices were dropping, so how do I bring value to the market? I started to work with wealthy Chinese buyers. Identifying the shift in the market – that’s the key. Given my education and my knowledge, selling high-end homes was a natural fit for me because they’re really complicated. I believe you have an advantage if you’re professionally trained. I’m trained as a lawyer.
“I met a guy called Ai Mo [Lau Si]. He’s basically the Tony Robbins of China. He met me, he wanted to take me to China and give speeches and presentations about real estate in Vancouver, specifically in West Vancouver. If you go to my website, you’ll see I’m giving speeches in front of hundreds of Chinese CEOs. That is what really locked me into the Chinese community.
“In 2009 I left Re/Max to join Angell Hasman [and Associates] because their focus is higher-end luxury homes. I stayed there till October 2013 [and joined Royal Pacific Realty]. My team includes Chinese assistants. I’ve got four people right now. I put together two websites: An English website and a Chinese website. I was one of the very first to have mobile sites, both in English and Chinese.
“I’ve spent millions of dollars on my business, in advertising and marketing. I’ve advertised in Chinese magazines in China. [Buyers] read the real estate section in the two local Chinese newspapers – the Sing Tao and Ming Pao, so I advertised my listing in both those newspapers. Every Chinese real estate agent reads those listings like the Bible. They see my goofy face every week.”
