Group Dynamics: I.D. Marketing Group

By Stephanie Wilson  Photography by Josh Lehrer

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 “We all have a passion for finding diamonds in the rough and making them beautiful. Our focus is on design-driven projects.”

It has always been said that two heads are better than one. In this same manner, four heads are nearly infinitely better than one. With a group of four comes unique perspectives, thoughts, ideas, and values, which, in business, can add up to a successful entity, as is the case with I.D. Marketing Group, which consists of Wendy Maitland, Wilbur Gonzalez, Erin Aries, and Reid Price. They recently got their fair share of mention in local real estate columns when they made a move from Corcoran to Brown Harris Stevens, where they were welcomed with open arms. The press also found it sensational that the team took 14 brokers with them during the switch.

There is a reason the group has such a loyal following. They have an energy and excitement for what they do, as they manage to collaborate in a way that is so rare in the cutthroat real estate world. It is this group-based philosophy that brought the partnership to Brown Harris Stevens, where the four all enjoy a status of managing directors. Individually, each of the agents has been wildly successful. For example, Gonzalez brought $200 million of sales into Corcoran in 2004 and 2005 alone; Reid is responsible for almost a billion in sales over his decade-long career. Wendy puts their philosophy in eloquent words when she says, “Our whole is so much greater than the sum of our parts.”

The group met and forged friendships that have withstood the test of time, thanks to shared philosophy and values, both in the workplace and beyond. Erin explains, “We all focused on the higher end of the market. We all have a lot of energy and a lot of excitement for what we do. We approach our objectives with a lot of passion and enthusiasm.” They found in each other kindred spirits, and made a move to a company that is cultivating that spirit.

The group is working on is a new development entity for Brown Harris Stevens, with a focus on quality, as opposed to quantity. Erin elaborates, “Our ultimate goal is to allow our work to speak for itself. We want to create a higher standard in quality and design in new development. We aim to create developments that are unique and architecturally significent.”

Reid explains how they will tackle new projects, “We will work with the developer, with one or two of us leading the development. The developer will get a collaboration of the four of us together on the projects, and they will get us from start to finish, while many other companies have one person who manages a lot of different developments and then brings in a separate sales staff. We will be there through and through-and all the way through.”

Wendy says, “We all have a passion for finding diamonds in the rough and making them beautiful. Our focus is on design-driven projects.” Those projects include Vestry33, One Madison Park, and One York. “Each of these developments are very different, each extraordinary in their own way,” Reid says.
Wendy puts it all together beautifully when she says, “We have always shared a vision about the quality and level of care that we want to provide to our clients. We all pay attention to detail, and have a passion for significent projects, as well as offer the highest echelon of service in general. I think we had an affinity for each other because of that. We have always pushed the envelope, and will continue to do so at Brown Harris Stevens.”