I see it everyday. Sales reps and brokers coming in and out of the office, running from meeting to meeting, showing to showing… they’re always on the go.

I get it.

We’re all busy beavers but at the same time we should be making time to nourish and hydrate our bodies. The foods that we eat affect us more than we realize, impacting our productivity and performance!

Here are a few snack suggestions from yours truly:

Nuts or a home-made trail mix – Good things come in small packages! Nuts are packed with unsaturated fatty acids and other nutrients that are great for your body. Although often given a bad reputation because they’re high in calories, these bite-sized powerhouses are packed with protein, vitamins and minerals.

Personal favourites: Almonds and cashews (unsalted).

Fruit – In general, fresh fruits are nutritious foods that are great sources of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Keep them on hand!

Personal favourites: All berries, green apples and red grapes (great when frozen too)!
*Caution: Some fruits are higher in sugar than others, so don’t go overboard!

Chia seed pudding – I absolutely love this creamy (and dreamy) snack. Packed with nutrients and naturally sweetened, chia seed puddings provide a great alternative for anyone on the go.

Personal favourites: Overnight chocolate chia seed pudding | Basic chia seed pudding

Granola bars (home-made) – Looking to include more fiber in your workday? Granola bars are the way to go.

Personal favourite: 5 ingredient granola bars

Hummus & vegetables – There’s nothing that tastes better than home-made hummus. And it’s easy! Chickpeas are packed with protein to keep you going throughout the day too.

Personal favourites: Sundried tomato hummus | Quick olive hummus  | . I enjoy these hummus recipes with cucumber, carrots and red pepper.

And finally, don’t forget to stay hydrated! Because we all get busy, we tend to forget to drink water. My suggestion would be to purchase a reusable water bottle… and to use it! Like your cell phone and wallet, keep your water bottle with you all the time. Why not bring it to meetings? You don’t have to purchase a fancy S’well bottle (guilty, I did) because there are so many reusable options out there.

Helpful hint:

• Prep as much as you can on the weekend and the night before your work-day! It’ll give you more than just peace of mind.

Do you have any go-to snacks? Let us know by commenting down below!

As we celebrate our 25th anniversary this May, we will be sharing our top 25 monumental deals that have shaped the city of Toronto.

Haven’t seen what’s on our #25in25 list yet?

39 Roehampton, Toronto

The Burger’s Priest

7 Eleven

(3 minute read)

Do you wake up in the morning excited for work? Or do you prefer to snooze your alarm clock five or six times?

We know that every job comes with it’s challenges, but hope that for the most part you are passionate about what you are doing on a daily basis. Various studies have shown that happy people tend to earn higher salaries — and it stands to reason that these high-earners are happy — at least in part — because they have jobs they love.

So, since today is all about the holiday of love, we asked a few of our agents about their love for real estate!

What do you love about CRE (commercial real estate)?

“I love the opportunity to travel to and explore different parts of the city, and to learn about the different cultures, businesses and dynamics that thrive in each area.” – Rami Kozman, Sales Representative

“I love the process of deal negotiation, starting out by determining what is most important to my clients and working hard to get what’s best for them.” – Matthew Brown, Sales Representative

“I don’t have to show homes at 8pm on friday/saturday nights!” – Kapil Rana, Sales Representative

“I love having the chance to explore diverse situations and to be challenged by every unique opportunity with the goal of creating a win-win scenario.” – Daniel Gangbar, Sales Representative

“I love helping people secure the right location to fufill their business dreams and having an influence on what our city will look like and how it will function in the future. I also enjoy being relied upon by clients and coworkers to provide sound advice on a variety of issues.” – Greg Evans, Executive Vice President

What do you love about working in the real estate world?

Let us know by commenting down below! And remember… “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.” — Steve Jobs

In February, Halsted Hospitality, the exclusive franchisee for Potbelly in Ontario, opened their second Potbelly Sandwich Shop location in Toronto at Bloor & Avenue, just across from the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM).

This opening follows the opening of the first flagship Toronto location at King and Yonge last fall.

Potbelly’s Canadian rollout rep, our own Rami Kozman, said that in keeping with the chain’s philosophy of being a “neighbourhood” sandwich shop, the décor for the new store took inspiration from the local community and history, including the ROM and U of T.

The chain has an extensive mouth-watering menu for any point in your day, including sandwiches, meal-sized salads, chili, soups, desserts as well as breakfasts sandwiches, yogurt parfaits, steel-cur oatmeal and Balzac’s coffee.

Is your belly ready for what’s next?

Halsted Hospitality plans to open 15-20 stores in the GTA over the next five years with the first food court location opening in the spring in RioCan’s Yonge-Sheppard Centre.

Rami is currently seeking high-profile urban locations in Toronto that have a strong lunch traffic, particularly downtown and PATH locations. For more information, you can get in touch with him at rkozman@thebehargroup.com.

Big news! Renovations are almost complete at 481 Bloor St. West, the former Brunswick House.

Our agent, Attila Schwarze played a large part in this deal which started in the summer of 2013. He was walking by the building and noticed the landlord outside and asked why the large space was closed mid-afternoon during the week. After a brief conversation, the landlord told Attila that the existing tenants term was ending at the end of 2016. From that point on, Attila worked with Michael Calderone from NorthWest Atlantic to bring forward a suitable replacement tenant which we now know is Rexall.

Under heritage designation, Rexall’s new flagship store will be opening on February 27th with a Grand Opening scheduled for April 28th.

According to Derek Tupling, a spokesperson for Rexall, the retailer has worked closely with the city’s heritage division, Annex BIA and the Harbord Residents Association throughout the renovation process.

The new design of the space will be a complimentary mix of old and new and will celebrate the rich history of what many Torontonians know as ‘The Brunny’. For example, Rexall will be re-purposing the old keg barrel bar and turning it into their main checkout as well as keeping the original ‘Ye Olde Brunswick House’ sign and adding it onto a feature wall. They have also kept all interior chandeliers and tin ceilings.

The exterior brick and limestone have also been completely restored.

Also included in the building will be a well established Medical Group of family physicians who will be opening a 2,600 square foot medical clinic (on the second floor) with a walk-in and other medical services. The clinic will be accepting new patients to join their comprehensive family medicine team within the next month.

Stay tuned for more photos coming within the next few weeks!

Media mentions:

Retail Insider

Toronto Star