Above, with panoramic views of Miami, the Penthouse at The Residences at 1428 Brickell offers nearly 12,000 square feet of bespoke luxury, including soaring 30-foot ceilings and two expansive terraces. This premier listing is part of a marketing partnership between Aperture Global, Cervera Real Estate, and The Residences at 1428 Brickell Avenue.
For those who’ve been watching, there’ve been hints about the emergence of a brand new, stand-alone U.S.-based international luxury firm coming into the real estate space since the beginning of the year, but aside from a few teasers on social media, details about this new company have largely remained secret–until now.
Today cloud-based brokerage LPT Realty announced the launch of its new global luxury real estate brand, Aperture Global Real Estate, the first independent luxury brokerage to have a global launch at its inception, the company says.
Founded by LPT Realty Founder and CEO Robert Palmer, Aperture Global has drawn top-tier industry talent to its leadership team, which includes Michael Valdes, former global vice president of Sotheby’s for 15 years, now serving as global president of Aperture and CEO of LPT International, and Mercedes Saewitz, former principal broker and founding agent at Compass, now senior vice president of Operations at Aperture.
Palmer explains the success of Lake Mary, Florida-based LPT Realty, founded three years ago as a cloud-based brokerage in 19 states and now available in all 50 states and parts of Canada, laid the groundwork and sparked his vision for the new luxury brand, which is launching with operations in 15 states and four international cities including London, Lisbon, Toronto and St. Martin.
“Aperture was born from my firsthand experience of a clear gap in the global luxury market,” stated Palmer. “This is a new vision that delivers exceptional marketing, seamless client experiences and a level of service that discerning buyers and sellers deserve around the world.”
“It’s been a fantastic journey,” Valdes tells RISMedia about the new firm. “We’re so excited–the idea of having a global network that’s truly a single entity until now hasn’t been done in the luxury space.”
Valdes shares that Aperture is launching with commitments from more than 100 top agents, representing over $1 billion in annual sales and coming from leading firms such as Sotheby’s, Brown Harris Stevens, Douglas Elliman, eXp, Compass and Keller Williams.
He adds that through the industry reputations of Palmer, Saewitz and himself, through conversations, connections and word of mouth, the new lifestyle brand is launching with a portfolio of some of the world’s most exquisite homes, estates and penthouses in sought-after locations around the globe. One such location, Valdes shares, is St. Martin, where Aperture has been given the worldwide rights to represent (haut couture designer) Elie Saab’s ‘Infinity Village,’ the first luxury-fashion branded villas in the Caribbean.
“Developers are telling our story,” Palmer tells RISMedia. “We also had a penthouse in Miami in a new development for $17 million and we brought a Brazilian buyer who was living in Lisbon and had the property under contract in 10 days.”
The firm will provide a comprehensive suite of tailored services for luxury buyers and sellers, Valdes says, noting that though the inclusion of cutting-edge technology, addressable CTV technology for precision targeting, elevated marketing campaigns and a network of elite agents, Aperture connects clients to prestigious properties while ensuring maximum visibility on local, national and international levels.
“Aperture represents the future of luxury real estate on the global stage,” stated Valdes. “By blending bespoke marketing strategies and an exclusive media platform with our expansive footprint and innovative technology, we’re delivering something the market has never seen before—a seamless, high-impact solution for luxury real estate clients worldwide.”
All of this provides an unparalleled opportunity for the 100-plus top agents already committed to Aperture, and for those interested in joining the new lifestyle brand. Valdes says the company will open the opportunity to represent Aperture to up to 250 “founding members” across the world, and plans to expand to up to 2,000 agents in the United States and 500 outside the United States in two year’s time.
“Agents are attracted to us because of a bold, global community of elite producers redefining luxury real estate at the highest level,” shares Mercedes Saewitz. “But it’s not just the vision; it’s the unparalleled access, influence and innovation that comes with being part of something this rare.”
Palmer adds that it’s because of the success of and infrastructure built through the business models of LPT Realty that the new opportunities for Aperture Global agents to network and interact with the largest community possible, have been afforded.
“This is going to be an incredible opportunity to bring agents another trajectory, with our two models under LPT and now the brand under the luxury experience; we see it as a circle to service their needs and we’re so excited about being able to serve our agents across the globe,” Palmer adds.
A release noted that the company plans to launch operations in 20 more locations in the U.S. and around the world in the year ahead.
For more information, visit apertureglobal.com.
