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LJ Hooker has committed $100 million to establish a real estate startup incubator, the LJX-Lab.
The digital research and development vehicle will foster innovation through identifying, incubating and commercialising home-grown 'proptech'.
It will also introduce new global best practices and technology to local markets to enrich new products, services and training.
Company Chairman L Janusz Hooker said Real Edge is a first for an Australian real estate network and currently in beta with LJ Hooker's 8,000 real estate professionals.
"It's the first of many innovations LJX-Lab will release leading up to 2020 to continue LJ Hooker's rich pioneering heritage," he says.
To provide global insights into products and services being created in LJX-Lab, Hooker has assembled an advisory board of business leaders, including:
- Freelancer.com CEO, Matt Barrie (Sydney);
- MD CSIRO Innovation Fund and & Founder of Black Bird Ventures, Bill Bartee (Sydney);
- Co-Founder and Principal of RFR Holding, Michael Fuchs (New York);
- Director of Zoopla.com and former CEO of Countrywide Real Estate Group, Grenville Turner (London).
Hooker says the group's digital leadership has also attracted executive talent from global tech challengers that have redefined their industries including Uber, Atlassian and Freelancer.
"These specialists had no prior professional interest in real estate but are inspired by our digital strategy which enables them to apply their experiences working in global tech players to the real-estate industry," he says.
"The digital revolution is enabling us to merge the property knowledge accumulated over our 88-year history and the expertise of our current 8,000 real estate professionals across 600 offices with the latest technology to better serve our customers. No single real estate network has set a digital path that equally empowers its people, its customers and its industry professionals."Business News Australia
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