Real estate franchise Keller Williams announced on Wednesday it’s expanding in Europe with a new master franchise in Switzerland.
The Keller Williams franchise in Switzerland will be led by Christian Fabre, KW’s regional operating principal. The franchise is initializing operations at the moment and is due to open its first market in the first quarter of 2023.
Faber’s professional career in real estate spans two decades. His role in KW Switzerland will comprise overseeing the expansion and functioning of Keller Williams’ systems, models and “agent-centric” culture there.
William E. Soteroff, president of the international division of KW, known as Keller Williams Worldwide (KWW), said in a statement the company’s multinational growth including international entrepreneurs is a journey that began with Gary Keller, executive chairman at kwx, 40 years ago.
Fabre has a “strong, proven track record of continued growth within our master franchises in France and Monaco,” Soteroff added.
“It’s a bonafide acknowledgement of our work in KW France and KW Monaco — setting up 55 market centers housing more than 2,800 agents over five years,” said Fabre about being given the Switzerland branch, in the statement.
Faber also said through KW’s combination of systems, training and technology, he aims to “replicate” KW Switzerland’s success and expand further into Europe’s market share.
KW’s expansion in Europe is an addition to its 300+ market centers in over 50 regions outside the U.S. and Canada. The latest data provided by the company dates to Aug. 31 when KW had 16,613 international agents, a 22.7% percent increase from August 2021.
The Switzerland franchise marks KW’s 16th master franchise on the continent. The other 15 countries include the United Kingdom, Portugal, France, Monaco, Poland, Greece, Italy, Albania, Czech Republic, Romania, Belgium, Luxembourg, Slovenia, Serbia and Cyprus, a statement from the company lists.
The company’s international division has also expressed plans to expand across regions in Africa, Central and South America, Central and Eastern Europe and Asia.
Other regions where KWW has established its presence include Belize, Bermuda, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Japan, Mexico, Southern Africa, Turks and Caicos and Vietnam.
Earlier in the year, Keller Williams and RE/MAX led the 2022 RealTrends 500 list of the top 50 one-year movers by percentage transaction sides, with California-based Keller Williams — Cunningham Group, witnessing an increase of 136% by sides between 2020 and 2021.