Glendora real estate is getting redefined. JohnHart Real Estate proudly opened its much-anticipated Glendora office with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, April 25, inviting the community to get a first look at an office that visually matches our unconventional real estate ethos. Innovation has always been second nature at JohnHart. But our Glendora office created a unique opportunity and learning experience for us collectively. The challenge: introducing something new to an established, tight-knit community while adhering to time-tested values, tradition, and history.
Creating an Office That Feels Like Home
We were enchanted by the insular closeness of Glendora long before we decided to open a JohnHart location there. But how would we capture that in a forward-thinking real estate office? The flood of feelings we associated to Glendora kept the solution elusive for longer than we liked. But in the end, we felt the answer was worth the wait.
Though it feels like an oversimplification to us, JohnHart at its most basic level helps people to buy and sell property. And there was one word that stood out to us above all the lovely descriptors of Glendora that came to our minds: home. The point in which a house becomes a home is in the very essence of Glendora. So we knew that the JohnHart Glendora office needed to feel like home.
We decided to take that literally, constructing a window display triptych that represented the sanctuary where our dreams lift us up and our memories embrace us. One window showcases a living room with plush chairs and warm lamplight casting shadows from verdant houseplants. Another insinuates a sun room with quaint pato furniture and tastefully placed succulents. Tying them together is a bathtub saturated with perpetually spilling bubbles, achieving the one dream that will always elude us. Freezing time. Yet, in a community like Glendora, even that seems possible… if only for a moment.
A Suitably Enchanting Evening
The uplifting yet placid sounds of an acoustic guitar floated above smiling faces as guests from the Glendora Village filtered in beneath the red awning emblazoned with the JohnHart Real Estate logo on Thursday night. They were immediately greeted by grinning JohnHart agents and a bountiful charcuterie board practically spilling forth from its strained table.
Lush greenery hung from the ceiling, punctuated by colossal ceiling fans for a presentation that transcended time. Conversation never came close to running dry, but the open bar still wet the beaks of revelers taking in the local flavor. JohnHart Real Estate’s Glendora Grand Opening was open to all, keeping in pace with the community’s generous spirit.
The History of the Venberg Building
While JohnHart has a reputation for shaking up the established real estate industry, we also recognized the weight of moving into the historic Venberg Building, colloquially referred to as the Andrew’s Building. Constructed in 1925 from the designs of L.E. Richardson, the vernacular brick building was the site of Glendora’s very first department store.
In 1985, the building underwent extensive renovation when the family-owned Andrew’s, Inc. purchased it. But it wasn’t simply the presence of Andrews’s Inc. as a long-term commercial fixture in the Glendora Village that endeared the family to Glendorans. It was how they integrated into the community.
Today, the building remains sacred in the hearts and memories of countless people who have grown up in Glendora. This isn’t just a piece of commercial Glendora real estate. The JohnHart family recognizes this emotional gravity. Haven’t we all had our own version of an Andrew’s building in some corner sanctuary of our memories? So, when we moved into this hallowed ground, we made sure to keep Glendora’s memories of the past at the forefront, even as we admittedly contemplated the future.
Renovating with Respect
It was important for us to preserve the integrity of the Andrew’s building while renovating it to the standards of an avant-garde real estate brokerage. When possible, we preserved the original flooring, windows, railings, and the general structure of the space. But we also upgraded the office to the modernism so intrinsic to the JohnHart experience.
As we prepared to open our Glendora office, JohnHart members reached out to community luminaries of the Glendora Village in search of fragments of the area’s rich history. In so doing, we also recognized that today is tomorrow’s memory, so we contacted current local businesses in hopes of photographing them for community posterity.
Preserving Tomorrow’s Memories
When Glendorans arrived on Thursday night, many instantly recognized the framed photos of Kara Larsen, owner of the beloved deli Kara’s Korner, alongside snapshots of several other local businesses and their staff. There was Top Billing Entertainment’s Kristina Keener Ivy turning to smile from her director’s chair. Cathy Jarvis of Cathy’s Wishing Well proudly standing beside her son, Ray, outside of the family-owned Neon Dragon. Her husband, Larry Brewer, taking a moment to look up from the monitor at TPC Tech Powered Computers. Angie Navarro putting the finishing touches on another haircut at Casey’s Barber Shop. And, among the radiant faces, the stenciled logo of Andrews, Inc. preserved in perpetuity in tasteful black-and-white.
We hoped that the pictures captured the spirit that made us fall in love with the village; the spark that seemed to light up each face we greeted. Some of the photos depicted businesses that had already been featured in JohnHart’s Community Spotlight videos. Others were businesses we’d just met but with which we hope to get further acquainted as we settle into our new space colored so beautifully with old memories.
Serving Your Glendora Real Estate Needs
But this wasn’t just a single enchanting evening. Our new JohnHart office is open to the public, ready to serve your Glendora real estate goals with a full roster of talented agents, many born and raised in the Glendora community. Come grab a complimentary cup of coffee and say hello to our resident agents.
You can also search our additional Glendora real estate agents by simply perusing the JohnHart website. Just make sure to click on the Glendora filter in the “View Realtors By Home Base” section.
