Michael Grunberg
Title: Principal and Managing Member
Company: Grunberg Realty; Somerset Energy Refining LLC
Location: 280 Trumbull St., Hartford, Conn. 06103 and 928 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10010; 600 Monticello St., Somerset, KY 42501
Birthplace: Caracas, Venezuela
Family: Proud father of four beautiful children: Skyler, 13; Allegra, 19; Tatiana, 19; Zachary, 19; and a dog, Hero, 8.
College: Vassar College
First job unrelated to current field: At the age of 16 I was a freelance photographer for several politicians in Manhattan.
First job in real estate or allied field: I worked one summer for Douglas Elliman Gibbons and Ives in NYC in their Collections Dept.
What your firm does now its plans for the future: We own and manage a variety of real estate investments from Scottsdale to Hartford and NYC in between. I hope to expand in the near future when more buying opportunities become available due to the downturn in the markets.
Hobbies: Collecting watches, cars, boating, travel
Favorite book: "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck - Short and sweet!
Person you most emulate (outside of family): A humble but polished man I worked for at Merrill Lynch named Larry Bidermann, who although I was a 21 year old nobody at the time, treated me like a "prince amongst men."
Keys to success: Consistency, tenacity and the tenant is almost always right..
If you had to choose another vocation what would it be? Architect