by Miranda G. McLeod
Staff Writer
Doriana Atkinson smiles, lowers her chin and raises her brow. She speaks slowly with a thick Italian accent and says, “We are the sum of every minute we have lived.”
She doesn’t plan on counting up her minutes and cashing out any time soon. She said she’ll keep going, not retiring till she’s 85, maybe 95. Either way, her Atkinson Realty Group, with offices in Ortega and Riverside, is staying steady as a “quality” boutique real estate firm. It’s the exclusive affiliate of Christie’s Great Estates, selling some of Jacksonville’s premier properties.
She’s been a Realtor since 1978, but that’s not how her career really started.
Atkinson is originally from Rome. (Her maiden name is d’Aragona.) She quips she can speak French, Italian and a little bit of English.
She came to Jacksonville in 1965 to work as fashion director and high fashion buyer for the May Company, which ran the May-Cohen department store in what now is Jacksonville’s city hall.
She married in 1967 and worked in his medical office as a surgical assistant while raising their three children. After a spat with her husband in 1978, Atkinson was determined to do something on her own and began classes toward her real estate license.
“I never though I’d go into real estate, but I had to prove my point,” she said.
The first five months of her first year were trying. The phones never rang. But Atkinson stuck it out and after those five months she made a “huge listing and sale in 24 hours. That got me addicted,” she said.
She founded her company in 1989 and partnered with Finley Knight through 2005 as Atkinson-Knight. When he left to emphasize his construction company, she renamed the company.
Along the way, she picked up a famous marque and Atkinson Realty Group has been the exclusive affiliate of Christie’s Great Estates for 12 years.
“Being with Christie’s provides national and global exposure through magazines and the Web site. It gives us the capability of referring properties,” said Atkinson, noting she’s made substantial international transactions, including in South Africa and Switzerland.
“We can work with our colleagues anywhere in the world,” she said.
But out of all of her travels, Atkinson loves Jacksonville.
“The Jacksonville market is going to boom again,” said Atkinson. “Its geographic location, the asset of the water, the proximity to the mountains of Georgia, all make Jacksonville a great location.
“I’ve traveled all over the world and the St. Johns River is still the most beautiful. We have such jewels in this city. We have beautiful architecture and we need to capitalize on what we have.”
Atkinson said Jacksonville went through three years of over-inflated prices, but now the city is in the process of stabilization.
“I hope the mid-term election helps the market, but I don’t know if we’re ready. We have a great use for condos, but we may be overbuilding a bit,” said Atkinson, who lives in a condo on the river. “Jacksonville needs better infrastructure.”
She takes a moment to reminisce about brick walkways and wish they would make a return to the streets of Jacksonville.
“I wish they would bring back the brick streets, like in Winter Park. They add value charm and history,” she said.
One area of town Atkinson sees the most progress is Springfield.
“We’re working in Springfield more than we ever have and it’s like watching history come alive,” she said. “We’ve never seen such revitalization of our area anywhere. The quality is unparelled and it’s interesting to see the area coming back. I hope they do that for this area (Ortega) and Riverside. “
Atkinson has seen many changes in the industry since she got into real estate and she offers some inspiring words to others in the industry.
“This is the largest investment of someone’s life,” she said. “If you do it, do it with passion and knowledge. You have to figure out how to get business like an executive. After all, agents are running mini-companies under big companies because they’re smart enough to carry it and they have a good broker.
“It’s a great opportunity to be a Realtor, but you have to take it seriously. It takes imagination, perseverance, dedication, education and flexibility, because one transaction is different from another.”
Atkinson said one of the things that has made her firm so successful, is the cooperation of all of her nearly 35 agents.
“We work as a team here,” she said. “Anybody’s problems become my problems.”