Alexander Meskouris is a dedicated family man and a recognized name in the real estate industry. Growing up in New York, Alexander developed a passion for people, culture, and learning.
After completing his post-secondary education, he took on various opportunities in the business sector. His interests and skill sets eventually took him to real estate, where he initially worked as a property manager and thrived in the fast-paced professional environment. With a sophisticated understanding of the industry, Alexander now takes on both commercial and residential development projects and works diligently to ensure positive results for his investors.
As the company continues to thrive, Alexander enjoys spending his free time with friends and family. He travels often, visiting many new locations a year. Each trip becomes a source of inspiration for one of his projects and he looks forward to the continued expansion of his business.
What do you currently do at your company?
I am the CEO and founder. I’m looking forward to every morning being spent either in meetings or connecting with my team. After meeting with my team, I take the time to connect with sites that require additional support or to assess the larger projects. It’s important to know what is actually going on in your company and who the people are.
What was the inspiration behind your business?
I really wanted to provide higher quality locations in my area. There are so many options in New York that you simply get too overwhelmed by the choices. On my end, I have found that integrating new green options and leaning towards automated interfaces, such as the ones you get from Alexa or Siri, can make new home updates much nicer. This has been one draw to the homes we manage and develop.
What defines your way of doing business?
It is my intention to create the most comfortable living experience for anyone and everyone living in my home. It’s been important to create a tenant first approach for my team. I want my team to be happy, because they’ll make my clients happy. It’s a blessing for everyone to be able to feel good about the place they work and live.
What keys to being productive can you share?
It’s important to adhere to a routine. Routine is what makes it possible to complete each task with full focus. I get up daily and meditate, have a healthy breakfast, get in exercise, sometimes in reverse order. From there it’s into the office to get through the usual miscellaneous items that tend to get in the way of work. After that everyone who knows my routine, knows I’m in meetings and going out to sites after that. The routine keeps things in check. That’s even giving for the fact I don’t always know where I’ll end up during the day. The time already being dedicated to visiting the locations or touching base with on-site supervisors means that I could end up anywhere in our development and management network during the already specified block of time. This really has a lasting impact.
Tell us one long-term goal in your career.
Long term I’m hoping to further expand. We’ve got an incredible base of clients and exclusively designed projects already. Opening the doors to a new luxury building or home feels like an accomplishment worth celebrating every time.
How do you measure success?
Success is measured through many things. For me it’s through my family. They are always the most important people to me. After that the money to know you can take on any project combined with the time to actually enjoy your friends and family fits my idea of success. I have gotten there.
What’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learned through the course of your career?
I learned that taking care of those who take care of you and your business goes a long way. You build relationships and they become invested in your vision. It might be a vision of getting a promotion or the vision of turning a start up into a multibillion dollar rags to riches success story. Nothing is possible without the right relationships to support you along the way.
What advice would you give to others aspiring to succeed in your field?
Be dedicated to what you are doing. Hopefully you love it, but even if you don’t, build it into a success. It’s a lesson in discipline, which you will need to make anything a success.
What are some of your favorite things to do outside of work?
I spend time with family and friends as often as possible. They are my support and my joy. We travel, visit new countries, and enjoy new experiences together. I really enjoy the opportunity to get into a new boat in Venice. My family and I have this lovely restaurant we enjoy when we visit Paris. Really, any nice restaurant is something I’m glad to visit. We’ve made it a point to find something we can come back to in every city we visit.
How do you maintain a solid work life balance?
This has been a tough learning curve for me. Many who work for themselves are passionate about what they are doing. It’s so hard for us to separate and focus on something else. Thankfully, I can honestly say that because of the routine I mentioned earlier, keeping some balance is easier. I know I’ll leave most days from a site by 6 so I can get home for dinner and activities. I guess that routine really keeps things on track more than I really gave thought to.
What has been the hardest obstacle you’ve overcome?
Getting used to the different regulations in Manhattan and Connecticut. Really, each town, city, or area has a whole new set of standards and paperwork and authorizations you have to get. When it’s just property management in that area, much of it doesn’t apply to us. When the project is acquisition and development there are new approaches to everything. We hired someone who really knew their stuff and how to research the requirements on our behalf. There is plenty I can acknowledge I’m not an expert in. Thankfully, there are smart people who are and are happy to work for us to get that information together.
What is one piece of advice that you have never forgotten?
Bad advice is expensive. Taking it pays out in spades, dark ones. Vet all the advice you’re given, no matter who you’re getting it from. You really don’t know what you might be dealing with when you see the advice in the context of your big picture. Keep that in mind because if you take all the ‘good’ advice you’re given adhoc you may encounter some costly mistakes.
