Avison Young secures prominent market leaders for Mississauga operation

Leading Canadian commercial real estate firm adds five new brokers and marketing support, continuing its plan to add top talent and marketshare in Mississauga region

TORONTO, Dec. 9 /CNW/ - Avison Young, Canada's largest independently-owned commercial real estate services company, announced today that it has hired Jeff Flemington, Trevor Ellis, Kurt Love, Ben Sykes, David Binns and Stephanie Stevens to join its Mississauga brokerage operation. All six professionals were formerly with DTZ Barnicke in Mississauga.

Effective immediately, Flemington, one of the most respected and accomplished brokers in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) market, joins as Senior Vice-President and Principal. Ellis joins as Vice-President, Industrial Leasing Group; Love as Associate Vice-President, Office Leasing Group; Sykes as Sales Representative, Industrial Leasing Group; Binns as Sales Representative, Industrial Leasing Group; and Stevens as Business Coordinator.

"We are extremely pleased to have not just one but six talented individuals such as Jeff, Trevor, Kurt, Ben, David and Stephanie join our firm as we continue to increase our capacity to accommodate the expanding Mississauga marketplace," comments Mark E. Rose, Chair and CEO of Avison Young. "We are also excited to have someone with Jeff Flemington's experience join our company as a Principal. He is a highly effective commercial real estate broker and his addition will complement our established presence in the Mississauga marketplace and further our successes in Ontario and internationally."

The announcement comes on the heels of the opening of a new office in North Toronto last week. Fuelled by the success of its solid Canadian operation, Avison Young has been pursuing an active acquisition and expansion strategy over the past year. Earlier in 2009, the company opened its first U.S. office in Chicago, IL, followed by offices in Washington, DC, Lethbridge, Alberta, and North Toronto in Ontario in the past month. In addition, the company has been continually adding key talent in its existing markets across Canada.

"We are pleased to welcome Jeff, Trevor, Kurt, Ben, David and Stephanie to our Mississauga team," adds Martin Dockrill, Senior Vice-President and Managing Director, Mississauga, Ontario. "Their energy, ethics and experience in the market will make them excellent additions to the existing talent in our Mississauga office. Having individuals of this calibre join our organization is a confirmation of our commitment to add top talent and exceed client expectations."

Collectively, these new additions have been active as corporate advisors to many international and domestic companies. Some of the clients represented include Baxter Healthcare, Maple Leaf Foods, General Mills, Chapters/Indigo, Panalpina, Becton Dickinson, Nortel, J.M. Smucker Co., Lindt & Sprungli, Wells Fargo Financial, Spectrum Supply Chain, Medical Mart, The Weather Network, First Canadian Title, Sanofi Aventis, RR Donnelley, Johnson & Johnson Canada, The Collier Group, Bellville Rodair, Canada Cartage, Quik-X Group of Companies and Ontario Realty Corporation.

In addition to working as corporate advisors, they have represented some of Canada's top office and industrial owners, including Menkes Development, Morguard, GE Capital Real Estate, GWL Realty Advisors, Sun Life, Standard Life, Panattoni Developments, Sherriff Corporation, Davpart, Kevric and KingSett Capital.

"I am excited to be a Principal at Avison Young and look forward to being part of the organization at such a pivotal time in its growth," says Flemington. "The company's strong reputation and proven track record in putting the client first, combined with its goals to penetrate the global markets, is something I look forward to being a part of."

Ellis adds: "We look forward to contributing our real estate experience to provide our clients with global solutions in today's economy. The vast experience of the Avison Young management team puts the company in a great position heading into 2010, and we are eager to begin serving our new and existing clients both locally and internationally."

Founded in 1978, Avison Young is Canada's largest independently-owned commercial real estate services company and the only national, Canadian-owned, principal-managed real estate brokerage firm in the country. Headquartered in Toronto, Ontario and ranked among Canada's leading national commercial real estate organizations, Avison Young is a full-service commercial real estate company comprising more than 500 real estate professionals in 15 offices across Canada and in the U.S. The company provides value-added, client-centric investment sales, leasing, advisory, management and financial services to owners and users of commercial, industrial and multi-residential real estate properties.

    
    For further information, comment or photos:
    -------------------------------------------
    -   Sherry Quan, National Director of Communications & Media Relations:
        [phone] or [phone]; [email protected]
    -   Mark Rose, Chair and CEO: [phone]
    -   Martin Dockrill, Managing Director, Mississauga: [phone]
    -   Jeff Flemington, Senior Vice-President and Principal: [phone]
    -   Trevor Ellis, Vice-President, Industrial Leasing Group:
        [phone]
    -   Kurt Love, Associate Vice-President, Office Leasing Group:
        [phone]
    -   Ben Sykes, Sales Representative, Industrial Leasing Group:
        [phone]
    -   David Binns, Sales Representative, Industrial Leasing Group:
        [phone]

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                                 Biographies
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    Jeff Flemington
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Jeff Flemington has more than 15 years of real estate experience, primarily in the GTA West market as well as other Canadian markets, focusing on leasing, transaction management and international corporate real estate. He is Past President of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR) Central Canadian Chapter and has won several industry awards, including the NAIOP Office Lease Deal of the Year award in 2005. At his former firm, Flemington was a member of the Chairman's Circle from 1999 to 2009 and was a "Top 10" Canadian agent for eight consecutive years. Over the past decade, Flemington completed more than 600 transactions totalling over 8 million square feet. In addition to his many successes, he is an active member of the Commercial Investment Real Estate Institute (CCIM), SIOR, and is a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Accredited professional.

    
    Trevor Ellis
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Trevor Ellis focuses on industrial leasing and tenant representation for expansion, renewal and subleasing assignments. He brings a strong business development background to Avison Young. With seven years of experience in the GTA West market, Ellis has brokered leases covering more than one million square feet of industrial and office space over the past three years. At his former firm, Ellis was a member of the Chairman's Circle for the past four years.

    
    Kurt Love
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Kurt Love brings to Avison Young a strong service model based on client satisfaction and comprehensive market intelligence acquired over nine years of suburban office leasing. With a focus on landlord and national tenant representation, he has brokered the lease of over 350 office and industrial properties in the GTA West markets. Love is excited about his future with Avison Young and looks to continue his commitment to the client through sound advice, a hands-on approach and creative real estate solutions.

    
    Ben Sykes
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Ben Sykes brings six years of real estate experience to the Avison Young team, specializing in the logistics, transportation and warehousing sector. Sykes is a member of the Supply Chain and Logistics Association of Canada and The Logistics Institute.

    
    David Binns
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David Binns specializes in suburban tenant representation for expansion, renewal and relocation. Recent assignments include participating on the agency team representing Sheridan College in the purchase of land and design-build of a new building adjacent to Square One Shopping Centre in Mississauga.

    
    Stephanie Stevens
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Stephanie Stevens brings to Avison Young nine years of experience in the residential and commercial real estate industry in a supporting role.

    
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    www.avisonyoung.com
    

Editors/Reporters can now follow Avison Young on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AvisonYoung

    
    -   Photos for Media Use:
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http://www.avisonyoung.com/library/pdf/Media_Releases/Temp/Jeff_Flemington.jpg

http://www.avisonyoung.com/library/pdf/Media_Releases/Temp/Trevor_Ellis.jpg

http://www.avisonyoung.com/library/pdf/Media_Releases/Temp/Kurt_Love.jpg

http://www.avisonyoung.com/library/pdf/Media_Releases/Temp/Ben_Sykes.jpg

http://www.avisonyoung.com/library/pdf/Media_Releases/Temp/David_Binns.jpg

For further information: Media Relations: Sherry Quan, [phone] or [phone], Email: [email protected]