The new brokerage opened its doors in September at Towne Center West. (Christian Rumley Photography)
After nine years in Short Pump and two decades in residential real estate, Jan Copeland has taken the plunge and started her own brokerage that focuses on both.
Copeland recently launched Short Pump Luxe Realty, a small brokerage that, as its name makes clear, serves clients buying and selling homes specifically in the Short Pump area of western Henrico.
Previously an agent with national brokerages Re/Max and ERA Real Estate in Winchester, Copeland moved to Short Pump nine years ago to be closer to family, initially affiliating with EXP Realty and buying a house in Wyndham.
Wanting to realize a dream of opening her own firm, Copeland struck a deal with her husband that, fittingly, involved selling a home – theirs.
Jan Copeland (LinkedIn)
“My husband wouldn’t get on board. He was like, ‘It’s too expensive,’” Copeland said. “This was really on my heart, so I said, ‘Honey, can we sell the house and downsize?’ He said, ‘All right, if we downsize, then I’ll let you open the brokerage.’ It’s a sacrifice I made. That’s how important this is to me.”
Now in a smaller home in the Wilde Lake area, Copeland fulfilled her dream last month when she opened her business at Towne Center West.
Short Pump Luxe fills a 1,500-square-foot space at 200 Towne Center W. Blvd., suite 607, across from the Hilton on the other side of the center’s roundabout. Copeland said she put more than $60,000 into the space, which she designed to evoke the “luxe” in the business’s name.
Having previously worked in retail and with a bachelor’s in fashion merchandising and retail management, Copeland said, “When I was in retail, I was taught that it’s all about how you make people feel, and so the way that we built out the office, it doesn’t look like an office. It looks like a luxury hotel.”
Copeland with Short Pump Luxe agent Emily Roeglin.
Joining Copeland at Short Pump Luxe are agents Emily Roeglin, who was on Copeland’s Vibe Realty Group team under EXP, and Judy Weber, who buys and sells under her Privé Real Estate Group brand. Copeland said she’s keeping the three-agent brokerage small by design.
“Other brokers want numbers, they want a team of 80 and a brokerage of 100, but I believe lean is better, because we’re like-minded,” Copeland said. “We are so obsessed with giving the client an exceptional experience, we’re crème de la crème in the way that our clients feel from start to finish.”
The brokerage’s focus on Short Pump – specifically a five-ZIP code area within and around it – is also a calculated choice bucking industry trends, Copeland said.
“While most brokerages are trying to cover more territory … this one is intentionally shrinking the footprint,” she said. “I just believe that when you go deeper, it is better for the consumer.
“I study Short Pump so much that I see that we continue to be strong. I think that is because the lifestyle here is very friendly to anyone, no matter what your beliefs are, no matter what lifestyle you want to live.”
Copeland’s own religious beliefs play into Short Pump Luxe, as well. The brokerage’s website includes a quote from the Bible, reflecting her Christian faith.
Asked if the brokerage’s restricted service area and ties to her faith could limit her client pool, Copeland said no.
“I feel like this is the calling that God put on my life. I don’t fear having a Bible verse and talking about my faith, because I respect everybody’s faith,” Copeland said. “Me being me and putting what I believe out there doesn’t preclude me from helping an atheist or a Buddhist or whoever else. In Winchester, I would say 50% of my clients were Christian, 50% either were atheist or didn’t care about God. I did lose some clients, I’m not going to lie, but for the most part, I just believe that we should just be who we are without fear.”
Copeland, right, joins others in a toast at the office’s opening.
Copeland said Short Pump Luxe will focus on home listings and sales over $500,000. She said her own listings and transactions, which during her career have totaled more than 1,000, are typically above the $1 million mark.
Copeland, 60, said she also plans to continue her real estate coaching business, Jan Copeland Coaching, which focuses on helping women in the industry. She also recently launched a YouTube channel called Living in Short Pump, highlighting preferred businesses in the area.
Short Pump Luxe joins other real estate groups making moves in and around Richmond over the past year. Late last year, longtime brokerage Small & Associates rebranded as Park27. This spring, homegrown brokerage Icon Realty Group joined up with ERA.
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