Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to another SLG meetup all the way from Madrid. I just wanted to apologize in advance in case I start doing weird things with my eye. I just got off an eye surgery, so that's the reason why. But I'm super excited to have with us today the superstar of the Netflix DB show Selling Tampa, Colony Reefs.
She's not only a very successful real estate broker and a TV celebrity, she's also the owner of the Colony Reefs Group, and we're going to be talking all about luxury real estate, the Tampa real estate market, and how to really build your personal brand. There you go, there she is. Hello. How's it going?
Amazing. Thank you so much for joining us today. Of course. Thank you for having me.
I see. And you're in Tampa, Miami. We are so close. We need to also have an office in Miami.
We definitely work with them. We should have been connected. I don't know why we have it connected yet, but we will soon. Well, it happens.
It happens for a reason and I'm excited about what's coming next, but so excited to have you here today with us because you're one of these real estate brokers that everybody wants to see because your energy, what you do and how you do it. So a lot of people might know you from the real estate TV show, selling Tampa, but you also have your own real estate brokerage where you've been doing amazingly throughout the last years. So tell us a little bit about yourself. Yes.
So I want to correct it because a lot of people get confused. I don't have my own brokerage. I am still with a lower real team within my brokerage. So I don't have my own real estate brokerage yet.
I have my own team, which is the Colony Reefs Group, right? Which is the Colony Reefs Group that I just created, but it's within a lower real team. So that is the correction there. So listen, you are building a tremendous team and you're doing it from the passion of being a real estate.
I know the story on how your dad inspired you to get into real estate and you never look back and what a ride it has been. How are everything happening now after you've been on the show? Everything has been amazing. So yeah, like you said, my dad definitely encouraged me to get into real estate.
I was in a space where I really didn't know what I wanted to do with my life. I had graduated college and I was trying to teach. I thought I wanted to be a teacher at one point and then, you know, I'm like, this is a fulfilling, not making enough money quite frankly. So, you know what?
Like, I have to figure out what I want to do and my dad was like, hey, you know, you're from Tampa, we know everybody, my dad was always dabbled in real estate as an investor. And he's like, you know what, go to real estate school, I'll pay for it. Just focus on that and like, give it up. Don't look back.
Don't look back. And that's exactly what I did. I've been in real estate for about five years and the opportunity for the show really came about so randomly. And that's just, I mean, it's a blessing that I didn't even imagine would have happened.
A brokerage, which is a little real estate. We were kind of, you know, well known in Tampa. We would do these high level glamorous photo shoots, you know, we're all like a female lead brokerage. And we did a lot of good content on social media and it just caught the attention of the right people.
And they wanted to put us on TV. So definitely I believe that what you've done is tremendous because thanks to that, you landed TV show on Netflix. Like a lot of people are dreaming to be on that position. And ever since you've been on TV, how has your career taken off?
Oh my gosh, it's been amazing. It's taken me places that I didn't really imagine that I would go even outside of real estate. Now on the public figure side, I'm getting to meet so many people. I'm getting to travel to different places and speak to people and really get them inspired just by sharing my story.
So I think that's a really good part of body is really, really speaking from where I came from and being able to inspire other women who want to get into the luxury real estate space. So that's the really, that's the part and I'm enjoying the most. And that's very sweet to say because, you know, a lot of people see luxury real estate and all these bad ass kickers, women, you know, making a lot of money. But it's not only about the success story is how you actually go there and how can you inspire and empower in other people to get to that level.
And I think that's what you're doing here and you're utilizing the platform to organize your voice. And I think that's phenomenal. Absolutely. I mean, I feel like that's what success means to me.
It's being able to inspire other people and pull other people up. You know, as I rise and climb upwards in my success, I always want to bring the people around me up as well. So what's next for you? I'm continuing really say obviously, you know, I just started my group, which is a Colleen Reeves group.
So expanding that I always get a lot of questions of if I'm going to be recruiting any other agents under my group, which I am. So I have two agents who are getting their real estate license now. So I'm training them and I'm going to have them come aboard on my team. So just expanding my real estate team.
I do have some other things going on outside of real estate from my personal brand. I'm going to be excited to announce very soon. So we're going to look out for some of these things. So definitely in fashion, people look at me as someone who's considered fashionable, where I got a lot of feedback on the show about the things that I wear.
So I'm definitely going to be doing some things in the fashion space. I just came back from New York Fashion Week, my very first New York Fashion Week. So that was amazing. I saw that.
Look at you. Yes, that was big. I've walked in my first show. So I'm definitely going to be doing some more things in the fashion space.
So everybody's just say to listen girl, you make these houses your own runway and we can all. I love that. I love that. I'm going to make that my next Instagram caption.
I make the house my own runway. There we go. Thank you for that. Listen, we're here for that now.
But honestly, I think the combination of the different passions that you have is what makes you unique. And we always tell people that are getting into real estate on how to really stand out because you are sharing your story and that's inspiring and empowering others. And you know the day people can try to follow your footsteps, but it's about being unique. It's about being yourself.
And the more passions that you can combine, the more unique that you're going to be and the more that you're going to stand out. Absolutely. Authenticity is key. I always say that.
Always be true and authentic to yourself. So let's go back to the content because we're talking about authenticity and all these things. But when we talk about content, what was the content or what was the strategy behind the content to really get noticed by the right person at the right time? Yeah.
So it kind of it goes back. At first, we were just trying to really gain more business in our community. You know, we were in New York, real, even before I was with the Lord, I had been with another brokerage for about a year and a half. So I already had a personal brand before I came to a Lord.
And so my strategy with my own personal brand was always being top of mind. I always wanted to be that real estate agent that people went to. So I would post about the new projects going on in Tampa or I would post about restaurants that I like to frequently because real estate is not just showing homes or buying a house. Real estate to me is a lifestyle.
And so I wanted to be that lifestyle realtor and really bring the Tampa lifestyle to the forefront with my marketing. So I was very intentional about the quality of content that I put out. I was always doing high level photo shoots, making sure I look the part and also being expert. So I was sharing knowledge, you know, letting people know about the current market trends and current loan programs and, you know, just keeping buyers and sellers educated on my platform so that when they were ready to buy or sell, they were coming to me.
Right. And I'll tell you something just to wrap that whole package that you presented. You were wrapping that up with a lot of energy. And as I always say, energy is the current currency for personal and professional success.
And your energy is top notch, which is what makes your content even more appealing. Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate that.
That's very true. Very true. Now I'm going to tell you, I haven't been to Tampa yet. So of course we're not that far away.
So we'll make it happen. And one thing I wanted to talk to you about, obviously, we all hear the successes, the glamour now, even with fashion, but what's been the hardest part so far in the career and what did you learn from it? As far as real estate early on for me, I struggled with consistency with anything in the beginning phases, being consistent, being disciplined is not easy. It takes a lot of sacrifice.
And I had to learn that in order to be successful, you have to sacrifice a lot. So that was the hard part for me is the just being disciplined and saying consistent, but it's like once you get that first deal, you crave more. So it's like I reward at the end of your hard work. And so once that first deal came, I was on it.
I'm like, OK, this feels good. I have to keep going and it charged me up to where it doesn't feel like I'm working. It's just I'm literally living and breathing in my purpose and passion. So that's phenomenal.
Now I got to ask you this. I always ask this to our guests and it comes in all different shapes and forms. But what is luxury to you? Luxury to me is a feeling.
It's not just an aesthetic. I think people, you know, think of luxury as just marble floors or, you know, marble countertops and, you know, all the upgrades in the home. But to me, it's a feeling. It's a scent.
It's a it's a, you know, it's a brand. I feel like you can bring luxury anywhere. I think it's just how you feel luxury is also a lifestyle. So to me, it's not just about luxury is how you feel.
I love that. Well, we're selling luxury. We're selling luxury. We're selling lifestyles.
I like it. I like it. I like it. That's amazing.
Thank you for saying that because a lot of people as you mentioned, they get confused. They think all luxuries like all these material things, but it's deeper than that. So it's a very good answer. Now, biggest takeaway, biggest takeaway of your career that you would like to share with the audience.
My biggest takeaway for me personally is just trust your process. I think that's the best thing that I can tell anybody. Don't look at anyone else's journey as a measurement to your own journey or your success. Everyone has their own race.
Everyone goes at their own pace and everyone gets to their destination at separate times. So I know a lot of times we're on social media and we're looking at the next person and we're seeing what they're doing and their life so great and then you're comparing yourself to that. So never compare your life or your journey or where you're at and a certain point in your life to somebody else because you don't know what that person is going through or what it took for that person to get there. So just give yourself grace and have patience with yourself and stay consistent and dedicated to the destination and task at hand and just focus on you and don't compare yourself to anybody else because your time will come.
Amen. That's amazing. Thank you. I appreciate that.
That's so important. A lot of people, they even quit social media. I think of not being intoxicated with those emotions that they have of jealousy or depression of not reaching certain level. The truth is that most people share all the good stuff.
They don't share what's behind. So people when they look at these things, they should take it as inspiration. If they cannot do it this way, then I agree with you. I look, everybody's working in their own journey.
You've done a tremendous work with yours and it's paying off. Obviously, look at you. Yeah. That's going to look.
I can't complain. Definitely blast in. Like you said, it is a journey every day. And also, like you said, no one posts their failures.
So I go through my own failures, my own disappointments, and I have to go through that with myself and my support team. And I don't always show that, but just know that everyone struggles. Everyone goes through something. So never look at what the next person is doing.
And it's a journey. And everything's not going to be exactly what you want right up front. You have to work for anything that's worth it. It's worth working for it.
Thank you, Colin. And I want to finish this up. I really appreciate all your insights, your time and that energy that you bring, your smiling. Oh, that's that's appreciated.
You know, I think that everybody here felt your energy today felt the great insights and I wanted to make sure that those that are watching or listening this later on to follow Colonia Instagram and also her group. And stay tuned. If you haven't seen what's going on on Netflix, go check selling Tampa and why she's the queen. The queen of Tampa.
I love it. Thank you so much. I'm this was amazing. Thank you so much for having me on your platform.
This was a great conversation. And congrats to everything that you're doing as well. You are killing it. Thank you.
Appreciate it. And I look forward to seeing each other whether it's in Miami or in Tampa, but pretty. Absolutely. I'm going to call you when I'm in Miami.
For sure. I was like a fly. All right. Thank you, Colin.
Good luck. Okay. Have a good day. Bye.
And thanks again for everybody tuning in today. We hope you enjoyed it. And remember embrace it's beautiful success in life. My name is Alvaro and I'll see you next time.