BOSTON– Mark E. Rose, Chair and CEO of Avison Young, announced the strategic hiring of real estate industry veteran Thomas Collins.
Effective immediately, Collins becomes a Principal of Avison Young and Managing Director of the company’s New England region. He will manage the day-to-day operations of Avison Young’s Boston and Hartford offices.
Based in the company’s Boston office, he will also have responsibility for all service lines, lead the regional expansion strategy, and recruit top talent for the firm’s existing and future New England locations and service offerings.
Collins was a market leader for 20 years with Cushman & Wakefield (C&W) in New England. He was most recently founder and CEO of Collins Strategies, a consulting firm providing insight and advice, along with coaching and mentoring services, for real estate companies and professionals.
“We are pleased to welcome Tom to the Avison Young family,” said Rose. “Tom is an energetic and highly regarded industry leader who has excelled everywhere he has worked. His considerable talent and experience, along with his deep knowledge of the dynamic New England marketplace, will further strengthen the Avison Young platform as we continue to expand our existing operations in Massachusetts and Connecticut while considering other areas for expansion in the region. We’re confident that he will provide outstanding leadership as he collaborates with like-minded professionals who share his passion for integrity, partnerships and always putting the client first.”
During his expansive real estate career, Collins has successfully negotiated investment property acquisitions and dispositions for a diverse client base of local, regional and global institutional investors and developers. He has served in leadership positions, held responsibility for business development and worked in investment sales as well as debt and equity capital markets, providing strategic advice to clients.
Prior to founding Collins Strategies, Collins was Managing Director for Atlantic Retail Properties, a national real estate brokerage firm representing national and regional retail tenants as well as retail owners in the sale and leasing of retail assets.
Before moving to Atlantic, he was the Executive Managing Director for C&W’s New England area, where he was responsible for leading and growing the firm’s service lines. He was also responsible for recruiting and leading more than 100 employees, including 50 brokerage professionals, in Boston, Hartford and Manchester, NH. During his tenure, C&W became one of the leading real estate services firms in New England with revenues growing from $4 million in 1994 to nearly $90 million in 2014. For his efforts, he received the company’s Manager of the Year award in 1998, 2001 and 2006.
“We are thrilled to have Tom join us to lead our New England operations,” states Earl Webb, Avison Young’s President, U.S. Operations. “His stellar track record of building successful real estate services operations in New England, coupled with his broad experience in the New England real estate market, make him ideal for the role of continuing to leverage Avison Young’s regional platform into a market-leading business.”
Collins is a past president and past board member of the Commercial Brokers Association and a past board member of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board. He is an active member of NAIOP Massachusetts, a past NAIOP State board member, and has been honoured with NAIOP’s President’s Award (2000 and 2006) and Industry Achievement Award (2013). He currently serves as Chair of the Board of Directors for the Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance (MHSA) and has been on the board since 2005. Collins also serves on the Southborough Economic Development Committee. Before commencing his real estate career, Collins served in the U.S. Navy. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Bentley University.
“I am proud of my long association with the commercial real estate industry and look forward to beginning this next chapter of my career with Avison Young,” says Collins. “Over the past couple of years, I have enjoyed my consulting practice and coaching and mentoring client-facing professionals. I’m excited about the opportunity to lead Avison Young’s expansion program across New England through acquisitions of great companies and top talent – and I look forward to helping grow our brand in this highly strategic U.S. market.”
He adds: “I was attracted by the firm’s bold and proven leadership, its emphasis on collaboration and its dedication to community involvement. I was equally impressed with the company’s recognition as a Canada’s Best Managed Company and its status as one of Real Estate Forum’s Best Places to Work in Commercial Real Estate. I recognized quickly that I would be a good fit for Avison Young because the organization’s values are consistent with my own.”
Avison Young opened its first New England office in Boston in 2010 through the acquisition of Essex River Ventures, Inc. before opening a newly formed office in Hartford in September 2015.
