Found in translation: Japanese realtor steps in to salvage deal

The Wesley Chapel commercial real estate transaction seemed lost in cultural confusion until a diligent agent overcame the differences.

  • By Brian Hartz
  • | 6:00 a.m. June 28, 2019
  • | 0 Free Articles Remaining!
Mark Wemple. Sumiko Kuboi, left, and her husband and fellow Pierce Florida Realty agent Marco Lerra helped a Japanese client sell a large commercial property in Wesley Chapel.
Mark Wemple. Sumiko Kuboi, left, and her husband and fellow Pierce Florida Realty agent Marco Lerra helped a Japanese client sell a large commercial property in Wesley Chapel.
  • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
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From formal tea ceremonies to wild nights of drinking and karaoke, business gets done a little differently in Japan.

Orlando-based Pierce Florida Realty LLC found that out the hard way when one of its commercial property listings in the Tampa Bay area languished on the market for nearly two years before it sold. The buyer? A group of investors led by Tampa strip club and craft brewery icon Joe Redner.

 

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