Today we’d like to introduce you to Kevin Hipes.
Hi Kevin, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Wow, this will be a long answer. I’m a street kid from Queens, NY, who never went to College. I was a hippie who worked in a factory, then went on the road with an original Rock Band that did a Beatlemania show and toured the northeast US to make money to record our songs. I didn’t make it, so I landed an interview with a millionaire developer who hired me on the spot. He said you don’t need a college degree to be good in real estate; you must be good with people and numbers. Well, that’s me! So, I became a real estate broker, moved to Florida (1991), and became a director for one of the largest REITs in the nation, Kimco Realty. I oversaw the leasing for their 13M sf Florida portfolio and then went on my own in 2007 and founded HCB Real Estate. I specialize in turning around broker retail assets and am currently doing some ground-up retail, apartments, and redevelopment of the Oviedo Mall! However, more importantly, I’ve been married for 36 years and have 3 beautiful kids. I am an Elder at my church and preach at a retirement center on Sundays. This is the most encouraging hour of my week! I have also served as a Commissioner for the City of Sanford and ran for Mayor of Oviedo. I have started and owned many businesses. I have made and lost millions, but I’m a hard-working middle-class guy living in a modest home in a typical Oviedo Subdivision. Oh, and I’m almost done writing a book about my life Story! Yeah, I call myself the New York Forrest Gump. That’s right because I can’t sit still; I videoed my story in 55 episodes. You can see them on my YouTube channel, “Planet Hipes.” Forrest owned a Shrimp boat, but I owned an Oil Tanker in the Caribbean, and all my stories are True! There is lots more, but this is enough for now!
Would it have been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Lots of ups and downs. I lost my best friend, who fell off a cliff camping at 16 and struggled with depression on and off for 30 years. B’s k this: in the ’70s, you didn’t talk about stuff like depression. You just toughed it out. Finally diagnosed as Bipolar and got on the proper medication At the age of 50 and have been loving life ever since! I made much money in real estate and lost everything in the 2007 downturn. I started over again, got into many businesses that often failed, learned from every mistake, and got up and back in the game every time, now doing very well. I have many positive, challenging, and funny stories about my life.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
There are many facets to my life. It was challenging to pick just one, but at this point in my life, I’d like to focus on my life story, encompassing all I have done. But for now, I’ll tell you more about some things I do. I gave you a detailed overview of the first question of my life in my opening paragraphs. Here’s what I think. At the risk of sounding narcissistic (which my wife tells me I am, but that doesn’t make me a bad person), the most exciting thing I have to offer is my life story because of the various things I’ve been through. I’ve done, failed at, gotten up again, and conquered in many cases. My YouTube channel points all this out in the series of interviews with myself, but my book, which is almost done, should be a screenplay. The screenplay should be a movie, and if made, it will encourage many people to work hard and be the best they can be for the right reasons. So, I guess if I have to tell you what I specialize in at this point in my life, other than being a successful real estate developer and a positive and encouraging person in general, I believe I’m trying to specialize in being a best-selling author, who threw his funny yet enlightening life stories, will encourage many and challenge most you try new things every day with no fear of failure! The blessing is in the character you build in the journey, not in making much money.
I have two policies in life:
- People must understand that you can choose to be offended or not offended. When someone says something to you you don’t like, it’s a choice. No one can offend you with what they say unless you choose to be offended. I decide not to be offended 99% of the time.
- A scripture talks about God, opposing the proud and giving grace to the humble. What pride stops most people from working hard, trying new things, and being their best? We are inherently afraid of failure and afraid to be embarrassed in front of our peers. I’ve learned from the scriptures that it’s impossible to be humiliated if you are truly humble! Once I realized this, I tried everything and started with what I feared. I’m going to heaven. I shouldn’t fear anything. We learn from failure. That’s the way I look at it.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
I was kissing my first girlfriend. Her name was Judy. She was a cousin of my neighbors. Her family only came to visit every few months. But when they did, I was there! Blond hair, blue eyes, and even smelled pretty! I kissed her on the cheek in a game of Spin the Bottle. Yeah, I was 10, so I wouldn’t kiss her on the lips. I didn’t want to get the cooties.
Contact Info:
- Website: Hcbrealestate.com
- Facebook: Planet Hipes
- Youtube: Planet Hipes
