The year of 2011 marks a big year for MAC! 2011 not only marks our 10th anniversary…. but as of this week, we are moving offices!
From our humble beginnings in 2001 in a shared office space on the corner of Georgia and Homer, we moved into the heart of Yaletown to our first solo office at 1250 Homer Street (at Davie). We quickly outgrew that first office and in 2006 we moved next door to our second office at 1280 Homer Street. And we just can't seem to leave Yaletown, as our new office is at the other end of Yaletown at 856 Homer Street (at Smithe), which is now MAC’s third office on Homer Street! I am very excited about our new location – it’s still on the edge of the vibrant Yaletown we love, but close enough to walk downtown. I think my car will be parked much more these days!
I am also extremely excited about our new office design! We gave our designer strict guidelines: we wanted a humble office that was bright, contemporary and lively. But rather than investing in expensive finishes, we opted to invest in state-of-the-art systems and technologies to improve our efficiency and enhance our work and our culture. We invested in new remote server and telecom systems which service our numerous project locations plus provide the flexibility to work from home – or abroad. Our commitment to these new systems celebrates and supports the diversity of needs of all our employees.
We also wanted the physical design to reflect what we all know as our “MOJO”. We needed to ensure that our new space maintains the very special infectious MAC energy and spontaneity. MAC MOJO is embedded into all facets of our business. It’s the MAC WAY. So, we are maintaining our very successful open office concept, but we injected smart and effective ways to organize ourselves. For instance, at MAC we enjoy hosting events and including our sales teams and out-of-office staff whenever possible. We've designed several meeting rooms that have large glass sliding doors that can all open to create one large hosting area!
But, this week we will bid farewell to our office at 1280 Homer. It’s been an incredible journey here. We have learned a great deal and have overcome some tough times too. We will be saying good-bye to our 50' green wall, which was painted in 2008 by members of the MAC team. It states “Tis to glory we steer" - our rally cry and an important daily reminder of our incredible tenacity during the market turndown of 2008/09. MAC'ers will never forget how we rallied together during that time and offered some of the most creative and aggressive marketing and sales work of our history.
I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention that my two other beloved companies, MPC and TAC, will also be moving with us! MPC was founded seven years ago and today is the leading provider of multi-family research and intelligence in Western Canada. The MPC team is comprised of five team members who will have their own private area – but definitely add to the fabric of our office environment. TAC Real Estate was recently launched as a boutique traditional "re-sale" brokerage specializing in multi-family sales. The new office at 856 Homer includes a permanent home for TAC – and a second office location is planned for TAC in 2012!
We've worked hard to create a new space that represents our core values and celebrates our vision for the future of MAC. The space captures a few of MAC's core values including fun, teamwork, and sales and marketing excellence. And these values will allow MAC to fulfill our vision: To be the premium provider of Sales and Marketing services, to realize prudent and modest growth with quality clients, and to be the best place to work in real estate!
Cameron McNeill
