Jim
Smith
The art of reinvention
A serial entrepreneur, Jim Smith's career path reads too good
to be true.
He's the New York journalist that grew a wildly successful media
company, that moved to Denver, that became a commercial landlord,
that founded his own real estate company, and - in a measure of
symmetry and marketing - returned to the newspaper pages.
It's
all good and it's all true. And now Smith is serving on the JCAR
Board of Directors, ready to share his skills of reinvention.
"I
don't have an agenda," says Smith. "My contribution
(to the board) is looking at how JCAR can reinvent itself. I'm
a problem solver, an idea person, a brainstormer, and I have reinvented
myself."
A
lively talker, Smith holds just a bit of a Brooklyn accent, proof
he might say that his roots are in Colorado soil, having lived
in Denver as a young child. His family relocated to Brooklyn,
and he grew up to pursue a career in journalism. He trained at
the Washington Post and later started the New York Journal of
Crime & Justice.
When that publication folded, Smith was left with a load of printing
equipment. Utilizing the goods he had, Smith founded Journal Graphics,
a transcription service. With clients such as the Oprah Winfrey
Show, McNeil-Lehrer Report, 60 Minutes, CNN and National Public
Radio, Journal Graphics became the largest producer of television
and radio transcripts.
In 1991, at the company's peak, Smith relocated all 50 employees
to the place he always loved: Denver, Colorado. Six years later,
a competitor toppled the firm.
"In 1997," Smith recalls, "I found myself with
an office building I owned, but no company."
Not one to wallow, Smith forged into real estate, finding his
stride in the residential market. He worked with Coldwell Banker
and ReMax Alliance before opening his own firm one year ago. Golden
Real Estate has three agents, with a forward-thinking broker at
the helm.
"I have never solicited a client," he says. "All
my clients have come to me."
His success, he says, is due in large part to a weekly real estate
column he pens for YourHub.com, a local supplement to the Rocky
Mountain News and Denver Post.
He also advocates utilizing the latest technology to market homes.
For example, his listings are linked with Realtor.com, and his
company website offers live-action narrated tours, along with
downloadable brochures and high-quality photos.
"I like having an influence on the industry, being an innovator,"
says Smith. "It just seems natural to me."
