Transwestern Promotes Two to Lead Growth in Southwest, Latin America

By Barbra Murray, Contributing Editor

Kevin Roberts

Transwestern has been making calculated moves to expand its presence in the U.S. and across the globe over the last few years and the process continues with two promotions that are part of its leadership expansion program announced earlier this month. Kevin Roberts and Chip Clarke have been pushed up the ladder to newly created positions that place them at the helm of the commercial real estate services firm’s activities in the Southwest and Latin America, respectively.

Roberts, a 24-year veteran of Transwestern, has moved up from his previous position as president of the company’s Central Texas region, which is now part of Transwestern’s newly formed Southwest territory. “Each of the cities in the Southwest share common characteristics including accelerated growth of the energy and technology industries, low cost of doing business, well-educated workforce and a tremendous quality of life,” Roberts told Commercial Property Executive. “The move to combine the Gulf Coast, Mountain and Central Texas regions to form the Southwest is a client-centric initiative. This alignment allows Transwestern to place an even higher emphasis on leveraging its best-in-class service delivery across the area through our local market experts to the benefit of our clients.”

Chip Clarke

As president of the Southwest, Roberts spearheads brokerage services, property management and development projects in such cities as Austin, Denver, Houston, New Orleans, Salt Lake City and San Antonio. He brings to the table a host of accomplishments that provide him with the foundation to do get the job done. Roberts, who has also taken a seat on the executive committee and board of directors, guided the Central Texas operation from 5 million to 16 million square feet and has closed lease deals accounting for nearly 1.5 million square feet.

Like Roberts, Clarke is well-equipped to perform his new duties. He most recently held the role of president of the Gulf Coast and Mountain regions, and during his 22 years at Transwestern, he directed the opening of the firm’s Denver office, served as executive vice president in the Houston office leasing group and participated in office and healthcare initiatives. Now, Clarke, who has also joined the executive committee and board of directors, has bitten off a bigger slice of the world as president of the Americas region. In addition to overseeing operations in North and South America, he is taking the lead in the facilitation of Transwestern’s recently announced plans for an entrée into Latin America.

The firm believes the timing is just right for a debut in the region. “Given the growing economies and opportunities in many strategic Latin American markets, many of our longstanding, deep-rooted client relationships are expanding their presence,” Clarke shared with CPE. “Consequently, it is a natural extension of the services we provide and the trusted relationships we enjoy in the U.S. Also, given the building economic strength in Latin America, the United States continues to be a preferred market for inbound investment and institutional investors are drawn to the many services Transwestern provides to help them deploy capital and maximize their investment opportunities.”

Transwestern has been quite aggressive in extending its reach domestically and globally over the last two years. In 2011, the company spread into the Northeast region of the U.S. with the opening of an office in New York City. Beyond U.S. borders, the firm kicked off Transwestern MENA in 2011, a joint venture based in Saudi Arabia’s capital city of Riyadh, thereby allowing the company to accommodate clients in the Middle East and North Africa. Additionally, in 2012, Transwestern formed a global alliance with Paris-based BNP Paribas Real Estate, a move that gives the firm the opportunity to serve clients in 150 countries.