A NEW CHALLENGE FOR ME, A NEW ERA FOR FLORIDA HOMEBUYER JACKSONVILLE

A decade ago, Randy Noles called me and asked if I would like to start a new-home publication in Jacksonville. Randy and I had worked together at Jacksonville Magazine in the mid-’90s, and enjoyed helping to make that magazine a success (and it still is).

Randy had since joined forces with Dan Denton, president of Gulfshore Media, a highly respected magazine publishing company best known for its flagship titles, Sarasota magazine and Gulfshore Life in Naples.

But Gulfshore Media also produced an annual new-home publication covering the southwest coast. They thought the formula — a real estate magazine with city magazine quality — could be replicated in other markets. I agreed, and the rest, as they say, is history.

The one and only Arnold Tritt, then executive director of the Northeast Florida Builders Association (NEFBA), agreed that there was a need for a quality new-home publication locally, and helped us get started by providing gratis office space for the first year.

I totally immersed myself in building, development and remodeling. And I became an active member of NEFBA, forming many friendships that endure to this day. Together, we’ve enjoyed the good times and supported one another, personally and professionally, through the bad times.

Why the wistful history lesson? Because this is my last issue as publisher of Florida Homebuyer Jacksonville.

By the time you read this, I’ll be at my new job — about six steps from my old job — as director of NEFBA’s Apprenticeship Training Program. So I’ll still be very much involved in the industry we all love, and working hard to make a difference in the lives of young people by helping them launch new careers.

I hope you’ll soon get the chance to meet our new associate publisher, Katie Magee. She’s smart and customer-focused, so I know she’ll take good care of our advertising clients and ensure that the magazine remains a terrific resource for readers.

So, thank you to everyone who has made this past 10 years such an unforgettable experience — ultimately rewarding, sometimes frustrating, but always interesting. And the goal has remained the same — to get out the good word about the best builders and remodelers in the business.

Some things change, but as far as Florida Homebuyer Jacksonville is concerned, that will always remain true.  

Penelope Geismar
Publisher
penelopeg@thefloridahomebuyer.com