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B U S I N E S S P RO F I L E S 56 B U S I N E S S P R O F I L E S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G S E C T I O N I n 2 0 1 5 , C a r d e n t e R e a l E s t a t e c e l e b r a t e d its 10-year anniversary. A full-service real estate & investment brokerage out of Portland, the company specializes in all aspects of the sale and leasing of commercial real estate throughout Maine and New Hampshire. Starting out as a "small shop" brokerage, the company grew into a leader in the industry, with six commercial brokers, an "in-house" Architectural Designer & Sales Agent, and support staff. e company's full-service commercial management division, Cardente Property Management, was founded in 2007. In the summer of 2005, Cardente Real Estate was created by Matthew Cardente to provide clients with a better alternative to their commercial real estate needs. For five years prior, Cardente worked at CBRE|e Boulos Company, starting as an intern and departing as a commercial broker. "I learned a lot from Joe Boulos and his team," Cardente re- flects. "But with time comes change." Cardente Real Estate opened in 800 square feet of open office space next to World Gym at 34 Diamond St. in Portland. Owned by Cardente's father, Douglas, the warehouse/office building was once occupied by Portland Transmission, established by Douglas and his father, omas. "My brother Michael acted as the initial General Manager and my father shared office space with us," says Cardente. "I was in my 20s and thoroughly enjoyed starting what was supposed to be a very small business." Cardente received a call from Joe Malone of Malone Commercial Brokers shortly after opening. "Joe called to congratulate me on my new endeavor, and said to call him if I ever needed help. at meant a lot to me, coming from somebody so well-established." e initial vision was to be a one- to two-broker company. But the "small shop" concept quickly changed. Greg Perry became the first broker to join, six months after the company's creation. Shortly after, Karen Rich, a leading commercial broker in Maine since the 1990s, came onboard. "I was in absolute shock, at the time, that Karen Rich came on- board," says Cardente. "She was a big name in Maine commercial brokerage. One second, I'm hustling to get a couple of listings. e next, we have three brokers, a general manager, an administrative assistant, and my father, all in 800 square feet of cubicles." To accommodate expansion, in 2006, Cardente moved to a 2,200-square-foot retail unit, primarily funded by an equity line Matthew took out on personal property. Located at 299 Forest Ave., Portland, the new location provided onsite parking, space for future growth and, most importantly, highly visible signage to market the name. "We always talk about the importance of having signage on properties we market for lease and sale," says Perry, now Partner and Senior Broker. "It seemed like a good idea to have a big sign on Route 302 to promote our name." Cardente Real Estate P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F C A R D E N T E R E A L E S T A T E Through the Years… A Decade and Counting Cardente Real Estate 322 Fore St., Portland, ME Commercial Real Estate/ Investment Brokerage Matthew Cardente, President/ Designated Broker Founded 2005 8 employees www.cardente.com The Cardente Real Estate office today.

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