One of Los Angeles’ most famous brokerages isn’t run by a person with a real estate background at all, but rather by an artist who decided to take the reins after her late husband’s death.

Lori Hyland is the current owner and chair of Beverly Hills-based luxury firm Hilton & Hyland, which was founded by her late husband Jeffrey Hyland and his former business partner Richard Hilton.

After Jeffrey Hyland’s passing in February 2022, the company underwent a series of structural changes – as witnessed by many high-profile agent departures and, in return, a significant dip in sales volume.

One of the company’s top sellers, Drew Fenton, left to start his own boutique brokerage firm, Carolwood Estates. Other notable personnel followed including top agent Linda May and Hilton & Hyland’s longtime director of marketing Ed Leyson.

In December 2022, it was announced that Lori Hyland was buying out Richard Hilton’s stake in the firm and that he would be leaving to venture out on his own. Since then, Hilton & Hyland has struggled to regain its dominance.

Now, a year and a half into leadership, Lori Hyland sat down with the Business Journal to discuss legacy and the changes at Hilton & Hyland.

Tell me about your life as an artist before becoming chair of Hilton & Hyland.

I’m a painter. I mostly do large scale abstract paintings. I’m also a writer. I write historical fiction, but I want to mostly be considered as a painter. I’m coming here to Hilton & Hyland from the visual arts.

What made you want to take over the company?

My husband. To make sure that my husband’s legacy endures forever. To make sure that the company stays here as he would want it to be here. To continue what he wanted and had a passion for. Hilton & Hyland meant everything to him, and I didn’t want it broken up. I wanted it to remain just as I knew he would want it.

Tell me about the transition process. Was it difficult not coming from a real estate background yourself?

It was very challenging, and it continues to be challenging. However, I feel very confident that I’ve done the right thing. The role, I feel, is perfect for me. I don’t think there’s many other women that come from the arts that head a real estate company. I have a very special distinction that way. I need to respect that, and I need to do the very best job that I can.

It’s also very important for me to show that, in any field, the arts are very important. People who are artists have a great deal to say about how life should be led and how businesses should be led. It’s a slightly different approach, but the standards have to remain the same. I’m very aware of the legal parameters of doing business. I sit at Jeff’s desk, but it’s impossible for me to fill his shoes.

Since you took over, how has Hilton & Hyland changed? Are there any new initiatives you’ve launched or practices you’ve instilled?

We have a (speaker) series now called ‘Legends,’ and we bring in artists in different disciplines from the area. Our first legend series was architecture, we brought in three prominent architects. I myself was very surprised how well received it was. Our next one is going to be (interior) designers. I’m (also) starting a three-month curated art exhibition in the Hilton & Hyland (office). I have a curator – it’s not going to be me because I want it to be completely objective – and she will select the artists and they will be able to exhibit their work here for three months.

There have been a number of high-profile agent moves as of late. How has this affected Hilton & Hyland and how do you plan to attract and retain new talent?

Just by our name and our presence and what we are known for, we have agents coming to us all the time – wanting to be a part of Hilton & Hyland. It’s not only our name for luxury real estate, but our name for respectability and honesty and our ability to serve both the buyer and the seller. We really have no problem attracting agents. They’re coming to us, and far more are coming to us that we can even accept right now.

For the first part of your question, you’re quite right. When Jeffrey was the leader of the company – and it’s known throughout the community that it was Jeffrey – he had a partner he had known since childhood (Richard Hilton), but it was really Jeff that was running the company – so when he died, the place was very different.

I was not (yet) on the scene. It took me a year of negotiations to get 100% control of the company. So yes, it’s known throughout the community, we lost a lot of agents. But this was not so atypical. Almost every luxury real estate company in Beverly Hills was founded by somebody Jeff mentored. And many of them, even though you may consider them competitive, Jeff was the one who started their career. It’s very natural for agents to (jump around). They’re independent contractors. It’s very natural for them to transition from one agency to another. However, it was far more extreme when Jeff was gone.

How have you witnessed the landscape of Los Angeles change over time?

I remember Los Angeles when it had a small-town kind of feel. Beverly Hills had a very small-town kind of feel. We used to walk on Rodeo (Drive). There were small shops there, Rodeo was not an international street (like it is now). It was more like just the kind of shops that you would have in any kind of affluent area. Beverly Hills, I think, changed the most. In some ways it changed for the better. We have far more really good restaurants now. Before, it had a much more hometown feel and, as far as the surrounding areas, it was not nearly as intense. Beverly Hills used to be equestrian. It used to be country and Rodeo was a riding trail. It’s changed dramatically.

What do you think spurred that change?

Because it’s the best place in the world to live. We have the beach, we have the mountains, we have Hollywood. Hollywood really was the genesis founder for Beverly Hills. The people who came here, many of them immigrants, weren’t able to get any jobs anywhere else. The prejudice was extreme. For example, Paul Williams – the great Black architect who designed many of the houses around here – learned to write upside down because he couldn’t sit next to his white clients. There were restrictive covenants. People of Asian (descent) and other cultures could not buy a house here. I feel there was a huge improvement because we don’t have that anymore.

What do you do in your free time?
Do you still find time to paint?

I haven’t, but I’m going back to it. I had to give up my painting career. One of the reasons is because my studio was destroyed (in a house flood) and I really need to give everything to Hilton & Hyland now. I have every intention to go back to my painting career. However, by that time, Hilton & Hyland will have new life and will not need my day-to-day leadership. Obviously, we’re going through a big transition now. We have been for the last two years with Jeff’s passing. Most of the complications of the transition have passed – of course it’s going to always be a work in progress – but I will have more time (to paint later).

How have you implemented your passion for art into Hilton & Hyland?

The same passion that goes into my arts goes into Hilton & Hyland. I lived with Jeffrey for 40 years. So even though I’m not part of the real estate business, there is a way of operating (that I’m familiar with). There’s a template – it doesn’t matter what you use it for. I brought hopefully the same set of ethics and somewhat knowledge because I listened to him all the time and a lot of it just sunk in. And most of all, I have a passion for the company. I have a passion for the people who are here and who have stayed through the transition. I work with them on a daily basis. Roles have shifted and I greatly rely on my team, (but) I would say everyone without exception has come to me with support and help. There has not been one moment where I have felt that my authority has been questioned.

Looking forward, what direction do you see for the company?

To be here forever. To continue to have a legacy. To transition as we need. People ask about the succession plan. A lot of companies die from this kind of thing because they think they have to stay exactly the way they were. And I don’t want a museum. I want a living, changing, vital company that will modernize and change with the times as necessary. You have to bring in new people, young people, all the time – people with different ideas and different concepts. I’m very aware of that. I have an executive committee who advises me. The company is a family company. And I want it kept in the family.