By Michele Newbern Gillis
Staff Writer
After more than 25 years in the building business, Beverly Smith knows about change. She’s made a big one recently, leaving an executive position at Toll Brothers to become vice president of The Vintage Group.
Smith’s history in the building business is rich with Jacksonville soil. She started with Richard R. Dostie at New Home Collection (now Toll Brothers) and has gained 25 years of invaluable experience in building and selling homes while managing an entire company.
She brought that experience with her to The Vintage Group, a custom home building company she joined in March.
In her new position, she oversees the operations of the company.
“Jerry (Linder, president of the Vintage Group) started in the custom home business about 13 years ago,” said Smith. “Just last year, he decided to go into the luxury living line, which was what I did with Dostie for years. So, when he started doing that, he felt he needed some help.
“I had resigned from Toll Brothers about that time and I thought this would be right up my alley,” she added.” He asked me to come and help him. What I like to do is to train a leadership team and be available for support. I train them to be leaders within the company and I’m here if they need me.”
She’s not the marketing director.
“When I came here, I told Jerry I didn’t want to be a marketing manager or sales manager,” she said. “I said, I would rather help you on your leadership, setting up your systems and helping things run smoothly from contract all the way through to closing.”
Smith started as Dostie’s assistant and became vice president of the company in 1991.
When Toll Brothers bought the company in 2003, both Smith and Dostie soon figured out that the corporate building industry really didn’t suit either of them.
“A national building company was not for me,” said the grandmother of four. “I do like that hometown feeling. I’m from Jacksonville and I grew up here. I know a lot of local people. I love to be hands-on. One day I’ll be in here doing paperwork. The next I’ll be out in the field walking houses and making suggestions on framing.”
Smith said Dostie showed her the building process on four homes and then told her she was in charge of scheduling on the next four.
“I would show up at the job site at 6 a.m. and schedule everyone,” she said. “I would pay the bills in the afternoon from 3 p.m. On the weekends, I would sit in homes and sell them. I did that on eight houses and it was the best thing that could have happened to me. He taught me a lot.”
Not only did she learn a lot about building, she learned how to succeed as a woman in the construction industry, which was not easy in the 1980s.
“When I was out in the field building houses, I would have to kind of prove that I knew what I was talking about. It was tough,” she said. “They were like ‘She’s a woman.’ But, you just need to be fair and honest. You can earn their trust and show that you do know what you are talking about. We are not equal yet, but we’ve come a long way.”
Dostie left Toll Brothers first and Smith followed soon after. She took some time off and traveled before joining The Vintage Group, which had just built a new office on CR 210. The company builds mainly in St. Johns County.
Joining the Vintage Group was like coming home to Smith. Small family-like companies are really all she knows and feels the most comfortable with, she said.
“The custom market is strong,” she said. “It’s really nice because Linder is a local builder. He is one-on-one with the customers. They like that. He is very hands-on. I like that part of it because I wasn’t into the custom end of it before. It’s nice to see how Jerry operates and how he handles everyone. It’s phenomenal what Jerry does so I see why he’s been so successful.”
Smith grew up in Mandarin and said she has seen a lot of changes over the years.
“The drive out to Mandarin was on a two-lane road with no street lights,” she said. “I could never drive home after dark because if I broke down, no one would see me. Things have changed since then. It’s all for the good. I wouldn’t live anywhere else.”
Before getting into construction, Smith was in the mortgage business.
“I really thought that was what I wanted to do,” she said. “I got my mortgage broker’s license and did that for a while until the company I was working for closed their doors here in Jacksonville. When that happened, I was just going to take some time off. Through different contacts, someone told me that Richard needed someone and they were going to give him my name. He called me and I went in for an interview.
“He told me he didn’t need someone to do mortgages. He needed someone to help in his office and to help him with his contracts,” she added. “It just kind of went from there.
“I soon realized that I had a passion for new home construction. I loved it. I think you either love it or you don’t. Richard told me once that I was like a sponge. He said that he couldn’t give me enough knowledge. I love learning and in this industry, you learn something new every day.”