(July 26): The developer of a supertall condo tower in Miami’s Brickell neighbourhood has hired a new sales team after ousting an embattled real estate brokerage from the project.
One Sotheby’s International Realty has taken over marketing at 888 Brickell Dolce & Gabbana Miami, JDS Development’s pre-construction building overlooking Biscayne Bay in the city’s financial centre.
The firm replaces Official, the brokerage co-founded by brothers Tal and Oren Alexander, top-selling luxury agents who face multiple rape and sexual assault allegations that first became public in June.
The brokerage has been fighting for survival since then. The brothers both agreed to step down from the firm, while a remaining group of executives has sought to restructure the firm to continue on without them. Even so, some agents have departed. At the same time, additional allegations have emerged in media reports and at least one lawyer is working with more women who say they were assaulted by Tal, Oren and a third brother, Alon, who is Oren’s twin.
The JDS project was one of a handful of new-development contracts Official had taken on since its 2022 launch. It was also marketing the Raleigh, a Rosewood Hotels & Resorts branded residential project, in Miami Beach. Anna Sherrill, an agent who joined Official in June to lead its work at the building, left the agency but has stayed on as the project’s in-house sales director.
“Our development team is proud of what we accomplished on 888 Brickell, and we wish the team nothing but success ahead,” Nicole Oge, Official co-founder and chief growth officer. “We value our strong relationship with JDS, and look forward to working with them in the future.”
On the Brickell project, One Sotheby’s will be able to tap into its “broad global network” to harness strong international demand in selling the units, according to Michael Stern, the founder and chief executive officer of JDS. The project is scheduled to be completed in 2028.
Prices begin at US$3.5 million (RM16.32 million) for the building’s 259 one-to-four-bedroom condos. Buyers will be able to live in their apartments while sectioning off rooms that could be rented to hotel guests. The fashion brand Dolce & Gabbana is designing the common areas and unit interiors at the project, which also will have six food and beverage outlets.
Branded condo buildings that take inspiration from the hospitality, automotive and fashion industries are plentiful in Miami, in part because they’re attractive to international buyers who may not know much about a city’s real estate but value globally recognised luxury consumer brands. JDS had initially collaborated with Major Food Group — the company behind hot-spot restaurants including Carbone and Sadelle’s — on plans for the site, before parting ways in 2022.
One Sotheby’s development division has also marketed the nearby St Regis Residences and Brickell City Centre.
Stern’s hiring of the firm comes weeks after he brought in the affiliated Sotheby’s International Realty to sell units at 111 W 57th St in New York, a Billionaires’ Row skyscraper where roughly half of the 60 condos remain available after nearly six years on the market. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Inc, a lender with debt tied to the building, has reported losses and lowered expectations for how quickly the rest of the building would sell.
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