The idea of ‘Direct Agents’ began as a conversation, an idea, and a strong belief that both my brother Josh and I could start the agency on our own.
We met together to plan and were fortunate to get a lot of insight and mentorship when we were first getting started. We started to see it more clearly – as we met, talked, and collaborated, things developed quickly and the pace has been constant since then to keep growing and learning. We planned in my first East Village 4th-floor walk-up apartment and the first iterations of our logo, website, and business plan were born.
A week after launching the business, we started in a small windowless office, sharing just one phone. It was Josh and myself, along with our friend, Lyle Srebnick who is still with us today. We all worked very hard – the energy was electric and the pace was fast. We made mistakes along the way but always kept learning and evolving. With this ethos as our foundation, we have continued to iterate and grow the agency through monumental shifts in the industry and greater economy.
Today, 15 years later, we’re a talented team of seventy people across New York City and Los Angeles, with clients and partners we respect, and leaders in our field.
It has been a truly special place for us as brothers building the agency together – but even more incredible is the team that is now the company today. Together let’s celebrate what has brought us so far, our collective accomplishments, and envision a future full of opportunity. The playing field is not the same as it was in 2003, but the expectations and demands of today will always have parallels with the past. What remains the same for us 15 years later from that first windowless office is our energy, our creativity, and our curiosity.
We celebrate 15 years with the diversity of our team – our familial atmosphere, and our ability to keep the human element in the DNA of how we do business as Direct Agents.
We thank you for your support along the way and we look forward to paving the way into the future with Direct Agents.