Seasoned real estate executive Garrett Colburn has stepped into a new role at SRS Real Estate Partners, where he is working to grow his leadership beyond the brokerage's California offices to build its culture and expand in new and existing markets.
This month, SRS promoted Colburn to president and said he will team with CEO Chris Maguire to drive strategic and operational growth across the national boutique brokerage's platforms, including retail, capital markets and industrial.
The duo plans to identify new markets and business growth opportunities for the Dallas-based company that has 29 offices across the United States.
The elevation of Colburn, who most recently served as a managing principal and co-market leader of the firm's five California offices, to this new role signals a continued commitment by SRS to expand its business, Maguire said. He also serves as the firm's chairman.
To tackle this charge of growth, Colburn told CoStar News he plans to build on what has been a culture-first company with a national team that collaborates on projects spanning multiple U.S. markets. Colburn, who is based in Southern California, said he expects to travel throughout the country to help build existing offices and open new markets for the real estate services firm.
In all, the firm has about 315 employees, including brokers, on its team.
New Business Lines
"I'm really excited to take SRS to the next level," he told CoStar News. "The firm has grown by leaps and bounds over the last decade and I'm excited to see what we will do in the next decade."
The firm's growth over the past 10 years has resulted from SRS adding to its three decades of tenant rep experience by expanding into project leasing and other services. The firm also added capital markets, where there is "a ton of room to grow," Colburn said. Also, in April 2022, the firm launched its industrial division led by Brant Landry.
"We want to build on the strong foundation we already have, with culture being so important and critical," Colburn said. "We want to enhance our existing business and not grow just to add markets."
Colburn joined SRS in 2012 to expand the Southern California office from two executives more than 45 now and making this one of the firm's top performing offices in the country with more than $1.6 billion in completed deals in 2023. He was also a founding partner of the firm's national net-lease team that launched in 2016 and has grown to being one of the nation's largest net lease platforms.
In looking at would-be growth markets, Colburn said he has interest in Chicago, New York, South Florida, as well as Nashville, Tennessee, and the Carolinas, where retailers are expanding. He said he also wants to make sure relationships in one part of the country make it to another part of the country.
A big chunk of the firm's business is in the Western U.S. markets with growth markets being eyed in the eastern part of the country.
"I've been focused on the company's growth for many years, and this is an easy transition into focusing even more on the growth of the company," Colburn added. "There are relationships and conversations in play, with me and other market leaders, and I plan on enhancing these conversations and being helpful at a national level."