Avison Young appoints Laurent N. Benarrous Managing Director of Quebec
operations

TORONTO, Nov. 17 /CNW/ - Mark E. Rose, Chair and CEO of Avison Young, announced today the appointment of commercial real estate veteran Laurent Benarrous as Managing Director of Avison Young's Quebec operations.

Effective immediately, Benarrous will oversee Avison Young's operations in the province of Quebec, including the company's Montreal and Quebec City offices.

One of Montreal's top tenant and leasing brokers, Benarrous joined the leasing team in Avison Young's Montreal office in July 2010 as Vice-President. Benarrous has 18 years of experience in the commercial real estate industry and, prior to joining Avison Young, specialized in tenant representation services in the Montreal market for Jones Lang LaSalle.

"We are extremely pleased to have Laurent take on the role of Managing Director at this exciting time in the company's and the Quebec region's growth," comments Rose. "Laurent's professional business profile, extensive background with both landlords and tenants, and strong work ethic will be instrumental in the success of the company's real estate activities in the Quebec marketplace. The table is set for success and we couldn't be more thrilled to have someone of Laurent's calibre lead our team in Quebec."

Benarrous has held various positions with several landlords, including Corporation Immobilière Magil Laurentienne, TrizecHahn, TeleReal (a BCE affiliate) and SITQ. His track record includes the execution of more than 500 leasing transactions totalling approximately 3 million square feet. Additionally, he was awarded both the Innovation and the Efficiency and Integrity awards at SITQ's Quality Awards Gala in 2002.

Benarrous holds a B.A.A. and a Certificate in Finance with a specialty in Real Estate from Université de Montréal's H.E.C. He currently sits on the Professional Inspection Committee of the OACIQ (Québec's real estate association), and on the Boards of the Montreal Airports Authority and Montreal Harbourfront Corporation, and serves as Vice-Chairman of the Board of the Héma-Québec Foundation.

He is also a member of the Canadian Delegation on the Joint Public Advisory Committee (JPAC) of the NAFTA Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC); the Montreal Economic Institute; Civitas; and the Banff Forum - a group of approximately 100 young leaders who meet annually to exchange new ideas aimed at improving Canada's standard of living.

An accredited expert on commercial real estate market issues and trends, Benarrous often takes part in electronic and print media interviews and is a frequent speaker at the Montreal Real Estate Forum. He also provides training in real estate finance to various Montreal law firms. In 2009, Benarrous raised funds and launched the construction of a school for 2,500 children in the mountains of Nepal in collaboration with the Dalai Lama's advisor Matthieu Ricard.

"It is with great enthusiasm that I accept the new responsibilities assigned to me. Our Montreal office has an enviable reputation, thanks to a group of highly experienced professionals who are committed to mentoring and developing a growing number of new recruits," says Benarrous. "I firmly believe that a service business like ours needs to provide a work environment that has values such as altruism, respect, ethics, professionalism and enjoyment at the heart of its day-to-day activities. These are important and distinctive features that will allow us not only to serve our customers better than anyone else in our market, but also to attract new talent looking to join a firm in which they can thrive personally and professionally."

In the last 24 months, Avison Young has grown from 11 to 23 offices and from 300 to more than 700 real estate professionals across Canada and in the U.S.

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 700 real estate professionals in 23 offices across Canada and in the U.S. The company provides value-added, client-centric investment sales, leasing, advisory, management, financing and mortgage placement services to owners and occupiers of office, retail, industrial and multi-residential properties.

•Editors/Reporters: please click on link to view and download photo of Laurent Benarrous
http://www.avisonyoung.com/library/pdf/Media_Releases/Laurent_Benarrous.jpg

For further information:

For further information/comment/photos:

• Sherry Quan, National Director of Communications & Media Relations:
[phone]; cell: [phone]

• Mark Rose, Chair and CEO, Avison Young: [phone] 

• Laurent Benarrous,Managing Director, Avison Young, Quebec: [phone]

www.avisonyoung.com

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