On Wednesday, Vancouver-based real estate services firm rennie announced that it was launching a new commercial real estate brokerage called rennie Commercial, its latest effort to diversify its offerings and expand its horizons.
"This new division represents a natural extension of the company’s 50-year legacy of guiding developers, financial institutions, and real estate clients through complex decisions with trusted advice and local insight," the company said in a press release. "With rennie Commercial, the firm brings its thoughtful approach to a broader range of clients and projects across Metro Vancouver and beyond."
"Backed by rennie's in-house intelligence team, which includes economists, demographers, and market analysts, rennie Commercial offers advisors and clients access to real-time data, emerging trends, and strategic guidance," the company added. "The commercial team also benefits from the firm's integrated network across residential, presale, leasing and institutional real estate, creating new opportunities for collaboration and service."
Rennie has dabbled in commercial real estate before, as the company has had commercial real estate brokers in its stable, but the launch of a dedicated brokerage signals that commercial real estate is going to become a bigger part of its business.
In its press release, rennie — which made some high-profile layoffs earlier this year that affected its marketing team — also made an appeal to brokers at other brokerages, saying that rennie Commercial is "designed to attract experienced advisors who are looking for more autonomy" and that their model "provides the tools and flexibility professionals need to grow their business while staying connected to the strength of the rennie brand."
"Launching rennie Commercial is an exciting and important step for us," said rennie President Greg Zayadi. "We have built long-standing relationships across the industry by focusing on insight, integrity, and people-first service. Expanding into commercial real estate builds on that foundation. It is an organically opportunistic next chapter in the story we have been telling for decades."
Rennie is launching a new commercial real estate brokerage called rennie Commercial. / Rennie
"Over the last decade since returning to rennie, Kris [Rennie] and I have often talked about growth," Zayadi added in a LinkedIn post. "Not growth for the sake of it, but growth that happens organically when the right opportunities align with our people, our culture, and our platform. That is how we have approached every step forward, from rental and lease-up to expanding into the US. Launching rennie Commercial follows that same path. It is not about adding another line of business. It is about broadening what we already do and deepening the relationships we already have."
In his post, Zayadi also pointed to the example of Marine Landing, a stacked industrial project by Wesbild that rennie (and Colliers) handled sales for, as a sign of "how much opportunity there is in strata-titled commercial work." However, Marine Landing may not be the best example, as many presale purchasers of the strata units have been caught in a washroom requirement dispute that the developer says could have been avoided with better due diligence by the buyers and their representatives.
Although Zayadi did not mention the dispute, he said that "The lesson was clear: we need more resources and more advisors to support this kind of project in the years ahead," adding that "We know we are new here, and that is a good thing. It keeps us listening, collaborating across teams, and staying focused on where we can add real value."
The brokerage's website currently lists two brokers: Jason Lai, who has been with rennie for over a decade, and Andrew Hutson, who joined rennie in May 2025 and has spent time with commercial real estate brokerages Marcus & Millichap and Cushman & Wakefield.
Current listings include retail space and industrial space for lease and for sale, but most of the listings are development sites, including large land assemblies in Surrey and Vancouver. The brokerage's website also indicates that it has completed several sales already, including 1010, 1016 West 48th Avenue and 6409, 6429 Oak Street, a land assembly near W 49th Avenue that spans 16,310 sq. ft and is expected to accommodate a rental building.
