Two of the largest commercial real estate firms in Arkansas are merging to create Dickson Flake Partners.
The venture represents the union of two Little Rock concerns, Barnes Quinn Flake & Anderson and IBR Real Estate.
The deal will join the largest commercial property management firm in the state with the seventh-largest, according to a list compiled by Arkansas Business. BQFA manages more than 5.5 million SF of commercial property. IBR manages more than 1 million SF.
“We’ve never had our focus on how big we can be or how fast we can grow,” said Dickson Flake. “This gives us a lot more depth to take on more assignments that would’ve stretched us before.”
Financial details were undisclosed in the
stock-swap merger of the corporations. The effective date of the merger is Jan. 1, 2003.
Joining the new firm as partners are Mark Bentley and Tom Rystrom of IBR. Partners from BQFA are Dickson Flake, Kevin Huchingson, Phyllis Glaze, Gary Jones and Nolan Rushing.
“We all agreed that the result of combining our two organizations deserved a new name because this is a significant real estate merger in Arkansas,” said Rystrom in a prepared statement. “The number of partners prohibits us from listing each one in the name of the firm.
“We believe Dickson Flake embodies the professionalism which everyone in our new firm is committed to providing to our clients.”
IBR was founded in 1990 by Jim Irwin, Bentley and Rystrom. Irwin formed Irwin & Saviers in 1998.
BQFA was established in 1971 by the late C.V. “Cotton” Barnes, who retired in 1982; Luke W. Quinn, who withdrew as a partner in 1980; Samuel Anderson, who retired in 1997; and Flake.
Talks about a possible merger between the firms predate this year’s discussions, Flake said.
“We had had some conversations several years ago, and they didn’t lead to anything, so it just came back to life [during the second quarter of this year],” he said. “Our only [comparable] experience was when we acquired Farris & Co., and that was probably over 20 years ago. And this deal is a merger.”
The combination will create a staff of 38, working out of BQFA space in the Regions Center in downtown Little Rock. IBR’s office was in the Winrock Place office building in the Riverdale area.
“It is no accident that our two companies have come together, considering that our cultures are so compatible,” Flake said in a prepared statement. “There is mutual respect and good chemistry among us.
“We have a common commitment to client service and regard for the standards of practice in this industry. This means that what is in the best interest of the client is more important than the transaction.”
The combined client base of BQFA and IBR will present no client conflicts, said Kevin Huchingson.
A sampling of Little Rock properties managed by the firms include: Regions Center, Donaghey Plaza, USAble Corporate Center and Lyon Building, BQFA; and Kirkpatrick Plaza, Morgan Keegan Building and The Village at Pleasant Valley, IBR.
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