BOONE—Bobby Ginn had been a successful builder and land developer for years when he decided to see if there was a better way to do business.

For years, developers had been going about the process wrong, he said. They would buy land then borrow against the value of the land to finance construction costs. But if the money ran out, they usually had no where to turn for additional financing.

“Early in the ’90s I took two years off to write out a business plan,” he told those attending the Harlan E. Boyles Distinguished CEO Lecture Series Oct. 4 at Appalachian State University. He said he spent that time talking with friends, bankers and contractors about land development. “It was one of the most interesting things I have ever done,” he said.

Since then, Ginn has changed the way his investors look at development projects. “We now start (projects) by asking where do we want to be, what do we want to be, what is our vision, what is our product. The last thing we worry about is where the piece of land is that we are going to build on,” he said.

The change in focus has resulted in a quality brand associated with The Ginn Company and their resort and private club communities in Colorado, South Carolina, Florida the Caribbean, and the company’s latest project, Laurelmor located in Watauga and Wilkes counties.

“Today our capital comes from Wall Street. Our investors are the college endowments at Harvard, Yale, William and Mary, and the blue chip companies that would never, ever have been in the land development business 10 years ago,” Ginn said.

“Our company is building icons,” Ginn said. As a result, he has developed a loyal following of customers by focusing on quality construction and customer service. “I think we have the most loyal customers of any of the companies like us in the country. They (customers) follow us from community to community.”

Developing consumer loyalty is the best marketing plan, Ginn said. “If you want a real marketing plan, get someone who buys from you and wants to buy from you again. They’ll tell you what you are doing wrong and what you are doing right. You can only do that if you are really in touch with the customer,” he said.

Ginn said he spent hundreds of hours looking for property in North Carolina for the Laurelmor project. The company plans to construct about 1,500 homes and about 450 condominiums on the 6,000-acre property. In addition, the resort community will have a golf course, equestrian center, hiking and biking trails, and a lodge that will include a restaurant, fitness center and spa, and movie theatre.

Planners have created buffers to protect the property’s streams from erosion and construction, and will incorporate lighting that will minimize light pollution. The development also will have its own central water and wastewater systems.

The company also plans to place at least 2,000 acres of the property in a conservation easement with the Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust, with the first phase of the easement dedication to occur in 2007.

###