RE/MAX of Southern Africa has been declared the RE/MAX International Region of the Year for 2012 at the awards ceremony held on the 27th February at the RE/MAX International convention in Las Vegas. This means that RE/MAX of Southern Africa is the top performing region in the world. This is also the third time that RE/MAX of Southern Africa has won the coveted Region of the Year Award in the past 18 years, having won previously in 2001 and 2005.
"This is a fantastic achievement for South Africa, especially considering that there are over 90 countries in the running globally. The ability to win this award can be attributed to the passionate network of real estate professionals working under the RE/MAX of Southern Africa banner, who have flouted industry norms despite the challenging economic climate and housing market over the past few years. It is particularly special that we received this award on the 40th anniversary of the RE/MAX brand, making it that much more memorable," says Peter Gilmour, Chairman and co-founder of RE/MAX of Southern Africa.
The RE/MAX International Region of the Year Award is based on a combination of various categories, which include sales performance, agent growth and services such as training, cutting edge technology, business support services and community involvement. RE/MAX in Southern Africa has their Global Learning Centre - the most advanced real-estate training in the country and has just launched the RE/MAX Foundation to improve the lives and opportunities of all Southern Africans worldwide financial support.
"More than 30 new RE/MAX franchises opened in the Southern African region during 2012," says Gilmour. "This brings the RE/MAX of Southern Africa network to over 170 offices and 1800 agents."
With over 20 years experience with RE/MAX, Peter and Val Gilmour, the original founders of RE/MAX of Southern Africa, purchased the Southern African Franchise Operation from RE/MAX International in 1994. The countries that fall within this Master Franchise Agreement include South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Angola, Mauritius and the Seychelles. As the first country franchise sold outside of North America, the South African one is regarded as the pioneer of the RE/MAX International expansion and has consistently remained in the top three performing countries since its inception. RE/MAX of Southern Africa was adjudged South Africa's Franchisor of the year for all categories by FASA in 2003 and was ranked as the largest real estate brand in the country in a Finweek survey feature during 2011. Adrian Goslett, CEO of RE/MAX of Southern Africa, and Vicky Goslett, Senior Marketing Manager at RE/MAX of Southern Africa, joined the Gilmour's as regional owners in 2010.
"We have seen great opportunity in South Africa and the surrounding African countries as we emerge from the recession," says Adrian Goslett. "We intend to continue to be one of the top performing countries in the world and by attracting productive estate agents who offer great customer service to their clients and who want to enjoy the benefits and services of the dominant world-wide real estate brand. RE/MAX is now represented in over 90 countries with more than 6000 offices and a worldwide referral network of 90 000 agents across the globe, giving the RE/MAX brand the largest international presence of any real estate organisation."
Gilmour says that RE/MAX is recognised as one of the leading real estate franchise companies with the most productive sales force in the property industry around the world. "As the saying goes, nobody in the world sells more real estate than RE/MAX, and South Africa is top of the list," he concludes.
