Bud and Bryan
When things get hectic and patience is hard to come by, Ohly and Kornblau hash things out on a golf course, the place where their partnership was forged.
Bud and Bryan are both 52, and both still secretly dream of becoming professional golfers. But it’s their differences that make the company work.
“We kind of came from different sides of the river,” Bud said.
Bud went to Midlothian High School. Bryan went to J.R. Tucker High School. They were rival golfers in high school, each the top player on his team.
Bryan grew up in the construction business. His father, Sam Kornblau, ran Realty Industries Inc., a company that went public in 1984 and ultimately became part of United Dominion Realty Trust, one of the largest apartment developers in the country.
Bryan majored in construction at the University of Florida. He’s a fan of his alma mater to say the least. His office is covered with Gator gear, most noticeably a giant orange UF couch.
Bud took a bit of a different path. He went to James Madison University and was set to be a CPA after college. But he hated it.
Bud talks a lot about timing and luck. And how he and his rival from high school ended up being partners is a bit of both.
As the story goes, Bud was walking through a Chicago airport in November 1984 on his way to a conference when he spotted Bryan.
“I saw him in a drinking establishment,” Bud recalls. “Imagine that.”
It was the first time they’d seen each other since high school. They found out they were going to the same place.
Bud was running his own homebuilding business at the time, but it was failing.
So with the chance airport meeting fresh in their minds, Bud soon after met Bryan for lunch to ask for help.
“I told him, ‘I’m getting my truck repossessed tomorrow, and I need a job and I need a car,” he recalled.
Bud says Bryan made him an offer and told him it was good until the end of lunch.
Bryan puts a more rosy spin on it: “I convinced him to come work with me.”
When Bud came on the scene, he says Eagle didn’t exactly use a formalized business plan. That’s where his business and accounting studies came in handy. He did things like budgeting and forecasting: “I’d be keeping track of pennies, and he’d be rounding up.”
Bud, at least when a reporter is around, is the more subdued of the two.
Bryan relishes the role of private fund manager, always wearing a big smile and going in for a warm handshake.
“He’s a social creature, without a doubt,” Bud says of Bryan. “I’m not nearly as social as he is.”
Their personalities are what many say keeps the company going.
“They’re Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside,” says Stan Manoogian, who helped start the E|Class fund. “Bryan is Mr. Outside, out looking for new opportunities. Bud is the guy who executes the operational part of the business.”
Bud and Bryan
When things get hectic and patience is hard to come by, Ohly and Kornblau hash things out on a golf course, the place where their partnership was forged.
Bud and Bryan are both 52, and both still secretly dream of becoming professional golfers. But it’s their differences that make the company work.
“We kind of came from different sides of the river,” Bud said.
Bud went to Midlothian High School. Bryan went to J.R. Tucker High School. They were rival golfers in high school, each the top player on his team.
Bryan grew up in the construction business. His father, Sam Kornblau, ran Realty Industries Inc., a company that went public in 1984 and ultimately became part of United Dominion Realty Trust, one of the largest apartment developers in the country.
Bryan majored in construction at the University of Florida. He’s a fan of his alma mater to say the least. His office is covered with Gator gear, most noticeably a giant orange UF couch.
Bud took a bit of a different path. He went to James Madison University and was set to be a CPA after college. But he hated it.
Bud talks a lot about timing and luck. And how he and his rival from high school ended up being partners is a bit of both.
As the story goes, Bud was walking through a Chicago airport in November 1984 on his way to a conference when he spotted Bryan.
“I saw him in a drinking establishment,” Bud recalls. “Imagine that.”
It was the first time they’d seen each other since high school. They found out they were going to the same place.
Bud was running his own homebuilding business at the time, but it was failing.
So with the chance airport meeting fresh in their minds, Bud soon after met Bryan for lunch to ask for help.
“I told him, ‘I’m getting my truck repossessed tomorrow, and I need a job and I need a car,” he recalled.
Bud says Bryan made him an offer and told him it was good until the end of lunch.
Bryan puts a more rosy spin on it: “I convinced him to come work with me.”
When Bud came on the scene, he says Eagle didn’t exactly use a formalized business plan. That’s where his business and accounting studies came in handy. He did things like budgeting and forecasting: “I’d be keeping track of pennies, and he’d be rounding up.”
Bud, at least when a reporter is around, is the more subdued of the two.
Bryan relishes the role of private fund manager, always wearing a big smile and going in for a warm handshake.
“He’s a social creature, without a doubt,” Bud says of Bryan. “I’m not nearly as social as he is.”
Their personalities are what many say keeps the company going.
“They’re Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside,” says Stan Manoogian, who helped start the E|Class fund. “Bryan is Mr. Outside, out looking for new opportunities. Bud is the guy who executes the operational part of the business.”
Great to read this much-deserved praise for Eagle’s accomplishments. American exceptionalism is alive and well.
I couldn’t agree more with Phil. Eagle played the contrarian when it chose to sell its lot inventory to several builders who are no longer in the business. Eagle is now in position for the long haul and diversifying their business. Two good guys have done well together.
Could it be Bryan has the experience and foundation from Sam Kornblau and Realty Industries? Sam was always on top of the
real estate market. Good people make good decisions.
Go Gators!
Interesting story — nice to see an article of this length in BizSense. Congrats to Bryan and Bud for making some very smart moves along the way.
Can you believe a Buckeye actually worked for these guys? I too found myself at a drinking establishment and was never late in the morning. Some of the best homes built in America!
Risk and patience deserve the highest rewards–Yes they had the infinite wisdom of the”Chief” but also the many years of real estate hard knocks they each have endured–don’t think there have not been a lot of sacrifices-much like Florida football Bryan and Bud went for the extra 2 points to win instead of a tie-Congradulations to the biggest risk takers possibly on the East Coast much less Virginia
Great article. Should be required reading for MBA programs. What a perfect partnership for two different personalities and recognizing the strengthes of both. So glad Eagle is the “Eagle” in the Eagle Classic at RCC!