Terrasses et Jardins, a pioneering agency
A bright idea that saw the light of day at the dead of night ! Such is the genesis of the Terrasses et Jardins agency, launched on May 1st, 1999. Its founder, the visionary Benoit Vitu, set his bets on this very specific speciality in the real-estate market. Seventeen years later, he can lay claim to resounding success, with three agencies and an ever-growing list of mandates.
At a time when estate agencies were categorized by arrondissement, Benoit Vitu innovated by abandoning this exclusively geographic approach in order to focus on one type of property : homes with terraces, gardens or private courtyards. The concept met with instant success. “My approach was innovative, even with regard to the agency’s name,” says Benoit Vitu. “It worked immediately and very successfully : in less than eight days, I sold my first property ! Today, we handle 400 mandates on average per year. And even though we have been copied by others, we have a head start, we were precursors in the field.” Which involves a special taste for outdoor areas, shared by Benoit Vitu with his teams and clients. Paris and its surrounding communes channel such properties into two agencies, one in the 16th arrondissement, the other in the 12th arrondissement. In 2010, success led Terrasses et Jardins to the provinces, resulting in the launch of a first agency in Lyon. Quite clearly, the idea is a winner. A niche market whose specific features are described by Benoit Vitu : “It is not a luxury market, more upper-middle of the range, though we treat each property as if it were the ultimate in luxury, with dedicated tools. Our price bracket ranges from 300,000 to 3 million euros, with an average of around 1.5 million euros. Our clients intend to use their properties, they live in them year-round and benefit from their outdoor areas on a daily basis. 2015 was a good year for us, and 2016 looks to be very promising”. The final word ? “Take to the great outdoors !”... n
Terrasses et Jardins, 63 avenue de la Grande Armée, Paris 16 (01 47 27 10 50) et 98 bis cours de Vincennes, Paris 12 (01 53 44 66 00). www.terrasses-jardins.com
