By Susan Doran

Want to hear something that may convince you that gazillionaire business tycoons aren’t so different than the rest of us?

How about this: Miles Nadal, one of the highest-paid CEOs in advertising, views himself as an underdog.

“I come from humble beginnings. The first people I ever hired were my parents,” says Nadal.  That was back when he was a teenager, running a photography company taking pictures of kids at summer camp. He went on to found various hugely successful ventures, among them MDC Partners, which is among the top advertising and marketing companies in the world.

“I have always been one to challenge the status quo and do things differently. That’s why I feel I behave as an underdog,” says Nadal.

He pauses.

“The difference is now I’m a more affluent underdog.”

How affluent, you ask? Some sources peg Nadal’s salary from MDC at close to $25 million yearly and his net worth at over $100 million.

Lately, this formidable “underdog” has been steering one of his innovative operations, Toronto-based Peerage Realty Partners (PRP), into growth mode. A true entrepreneur, he’s looking for the next deal.

“We’ve been growing organically. Now it’s a good time to grow acquisitively as well,” says Nadal.

This acceleration was presumably spurred by Nadal’s recent buyout of his former PRP silent partners, as well as by the acquisition of a couple of fierce new hires on the management team – CEO Gavin Swartzman (most recently a managing director of MDC) and executive vice-president of corporate development Don Kottick, formerly president of Right at Home Realty and also former vice-president of Royal LePage.

Nadal founded PRP in 2007. A partner-driven real estate brokerage network, PRP’s current ties are with two powerhouses (or “crown jewels,” as Kottick describes them),  Chestnut Park Real Estate (the Christie’s International Real Estate affiliate for Toronto and one of Canada’s top luxury firms) and Baker Real Estate, a leader in new development and condominium sales and marketing.

It is additional innovative, professional, full-service, residential real estate “thought leaders” like these that Nadal says he is currently seeking for PRP’s expansion bid.

“We’re looking for industry leaders that have carved a niche and are dedicated to providing high-value services to clients,” he says.

Included are broker/owners and industry innovators who are looking for succession or transition planning. PRP’s new management team says that both Chestnut Park and Baker Real Estate have transitioned their day-to-day management from their founders to the next generation, although the founders still provide strategic input.

“We want generational real estate with families, not just with the parents but with their children. We want firms who offer value-added services and have developed long-term relationships with clients,” says Nadal.

“We have ample capital – upwards of $200 million – that we can invest in the business over time if we find the right partners,” he says. “We’re looking at this on a long-term basis.”

If all goes according to plan, once a good fit is found PRP buys a majority stake.  Acquisition with the purchased firm being folded into one of PRP’s larger platforms is also an option in some circumstances.

Besides the marketing expertise PRP clearly brings to the table, the main advantages for the partnering companies include significantly increased capital for expansion as well as access to an array of first-rate legal, financial, technological and training resources (which Nadal refers to as “back office plumbing”) without loss of independence.

“We want people to have a vested interest in their business,” Nadal says. He stresses that the point is for PRP partners to retain the entrepreneurial freedom – “the magic” – that has made their brand a stand out, while also getting the help they need to expand.

A key point is that PRP is neither looking to dissolve or assimilate brands or to leave partnering firms on their own without management support.

“We empower people to preserve their brand but give them financial and other resource support to accelerate their growth,” Nadal says.

“It’s really where our core strength lies,” says PRP CEO Swartzman. “I do believe our cultural approach to partnership makes us special. We are talent friendly.”

Nadal has a history of establishing these types of global entrepreneurial partnerships with talented and highly committed people and fostering the resultant culture. It’s a business model he is familiar with via MDC for example, which differentiates itself in the marketplace by conducting business as a partner rather than a parent company.

Peerage’s approach is similar. Its principals note that this is a fresh approach for the Canadian real estate industry.

Kottick, hired for his expertise in real estate, says, “The strategic direction at PRP is so unique….and not many companies are as well-funded. The principals understand marketing and advertising and know that you have to spend money to make money. Other companies squeeze every dime. There is no bureaucracy and things move at lightning speed here – we have the funding! I love working here. It’s so refreshing and empowering.”

Nevertheless, clinching a deal can be an uphill struggle.

“Getting people to make a change is challenging,” Nadal says. “And identifying great firms is difficult. But getting them to partner is more so. We have to find the right time in the cycle. So we have to be patient.”

The right time in the cycle depends on circumstances and involves the winning combination of the potential partner company’s desirability, availability and affordability, Nadal says.

Plotting ahead as is his custom, Nadal has said that with PRP he expects to re-define the real estate industry, which he describes as currently “large and fragmented.”

Make that large, fragmented…. and potentially extremely lucrative.

“Real estate is very strong in Canada,” he says. “I am confident in the market. The trend is upward.”