Bond, Stephens & Johnson: commercial real estate company moves to the top.

• Author: Bohi, Heidi
• Position: ALASKA BUSINESS MONTHLY'S 2009 CORPORATE 100

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

When it comes to mission statements and business philosophies, core values and quality standards, Bond, Stephens & Johnson (BSJ), Alaska's largest and most successful commercial real estate firm, likes to keep theirs simple: work hard.

And, as is the case with everything they do, they've got the walk behind the talk. Start with their client roster: statewide they have represented more than 100 businesses, representing some of the largest companies in the state's top industries, such as oil, air cargo, seafood, education, government, tourism, retail and the military. Some of their top clients are Alaska USA Federal Credit Union, Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., BP Exploration (Alaska), Home Depot, First National Bank of Alaska, Safeway, McDonalds, Wal-Mart, the University of Alaska, Arctic Slope Regional Corp. and several other large Alaska Native corporations.

They would rather deliver numbers than talk about them, yet they have produced the highest volume of all commercial brokerage companies statewide, averaging about $150 million a year in real estate transactions. Besides hard work, the partners attribute their staggering success to being the only exclusive brokerage company in Alaska--an edge they purposely maintain because, and the three partners agree, "We have learned that we have to keep our focus and do what we are best at doing. We purposely do not expand out of our area of specialization because it would dilute our effectiveness. We do one thing and we do it really well."

A SOLID REPUTATION

Headquartered in the heart of the Anchorage midtown business district, though BSJ does not have offices in other locations, the firm has a very marked presence in communities statewide, including Juneau, Ketchikan, Kodiak, Fairbanks, Kenai and Wasilla. Most of its business is in the Southcentral Region, simply because the greatest number of commercial real estate needs are in the Anchorage area. Some of the firm's biggest clients across the state include Wal-Mart and Lowe's that hired the company when they first entered the Alaska market and they continue to rely on BSJ for their site acquisitions in various communities.

Recently, BSJ also sold the large Factory Trawlers Supply (FTS) complex in Dutch Harbor, representing the seller in the transaction.

Stuart Bond, Chris Stephens and Greg Johnson formed the partnership in 1992 when the three saw the need for a company that focused exclusively on commercial real estate...