Barbara Armendariz launches DTLA brokerage

In the white, male-dominated commercial brokerage business, Barbara Armendariz is an outlier: a female Hispanic broker with a resume that includes clients such as Starbucks and Rite Aid.

Now, Armendariz, who left CBRE six months ago, is starting her own shop, and has brought another colleague from her old firm on board.

The firm, called SharpLine Commercial Partners, will focus on retail properties, launched Wednesday. It is based out of a 1,200-square-foot space in the Paul Hastings tower at 515 S. Flower Street. 

Joining her is Kevin Herron, who was at CBRE for 13 years, with clients such as Northrop Grumman, LASplash Cosmetics, Avery Dennison and Rexford Industrial.

Armendariz plans to hire another six brokers this year, she said.

She told The Real Deal she plans to differentiate her brokerage by making it “the single point of contact” in transactions. That includes remaining the lead on  clients’ expansion into other geographic regions, partnering with a local broker rather than fully turning over the reins.

“There are many mid- to large-sized commercial brokerage firms that only allow their agents to focus on one particular geographic market or niche,” she said. “In my experience, there are many owners, users, and investors who value their successful working relationship with one advisor or team that understands their goals, business strategy, requirements, and long- and short-term needs. They don’t want to be referred to another advisor.”