Born in Queens, Michael fell in love with the changing face of NYC. He saw the city’s architecture and design as a bookmark of the times, and was determined to make his own mark on the city.
Having graduated from FIT, Michael worked in his uncle’s fashion production company, where he became passionate about the possibilities arising from the intersection of business and purposeful design. After spending some time in Fashion, he found graphic design and communications to be a better fit. A role at a graphic design firm handling real estate clients followed – the city had come calling. Unable to ignore Manhattan’s siren song, Michael launched REA, shaking up the real estate world by delivering singularly beautiful marketing keepsakes vastly at odds with the plodding institutional fare that was the industry standard at the time.
Supported by a team of design professionals with backgrounds in branding and design, and deftly responding to new shifts and disruptions in real estate, the studio has since evolved its focus towards strategic place-making.
Michael remains fascinated by the question of what it takes to make a place that people gravitate towards. This has become a central theme at REA. Under Michael’s leadership, the studio’s unrivaled ability to help clients express the essence of a place through considered, engaging brand identities has positioned it as a conversation leader.