Meet Joel & Orly Ripmaster | Owners, Colorado Landmark, Realtors

We had the good fortune of connecting with Joel & Orly Ripmaster and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Joel & Orly, what principle do you value most?
Thanks for connecting with us, and for your mission of amplifying the exposure for small, local businesses. We consider ourselves lucky to be in business together as a father / daughter duo. In 1977, well before I was even born, Joel, my dad, founded Colorado Landmark, Realtors, Boulder’s leading luxury boutique brokerage. He has led the brokerage for 45 years independently until recently, when I came home to join him. After a career as a top private equity executive and working on a broad, global scale, returning back to Boulder to live local and honor both my family and my community felt right. My husband and I wanted to raise our boys (my dad’s grandsons) here in Boulder. Given our clear family ties, perhaps the most obvious principle we value is family; family is paramount, and we wouldn’t be in business together without that strong foundation. But there’s more to our partnership than family; together my dad and I have had a long-standing principle that we’ve shared since my freshman year in college: kindness. As a freshman at Harvard University in the early 2000’s one of my first emails home was a simple quote from Jean-Jacques Rousseau:

“What wisdom can you find that is greater than kindness?”

In and amongst the brightest and most accomplished minds in the world at Harvard, the principle and core ethos that stuck and continues to resonate today was that of kindness. That email still sits framed in my dad’s office as a totem to kindness above all else. It matters now more than ever when the pace of life is so fast and transactional that valuing and practicing kindness holds an important and intrinsic humanity that will hopefully spark a butterfly effect. Pairing family and kindness are the backbone of our relationship and that of our business.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Colorado Landmark, Realtors is Boulder Valley’s leading luxury boutique real estate brokerage.

Our story started in 1968, when Joel Ripmaster graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder, where he played football for the Buffaloes and would spend his time hiking from campus to Chautauqua Park with his college sweetheart and later to be wife. The two young Midwestern students would walk and daydream about one day owning a home in Boulder, starting a family and a business, and spending a life here. Joel fell in love with Boulder, his wife, and residential real estate and what it represented to his young family.

In 1977, Joel opened the Colorado Landmark doors for the first time with a clear mission:

Provide the most personalized support, flawless guidance and unrivaled knowledge of the real estate market to local and global Boulder County homebuyers and sellers.

This mission is living proof and rings as true today as it did decades ago. While the world changes, the economy and trends change, and the real estate markets change, one thing remains steadfast. People need a trusted advisor, a local expert, and a partner in the home buying and selling process. Colorado Landmark agents are amongst the top agents in the country. Our cohort of real estate executives are consummate professionals who together have helped build, shape and create the market that boulder is today.

“Every home is a Landmark to our clients and buying or selling a home is a Landmark occasion in their lives.”

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Start with breakfast at either of the best little spots in Colorado, the Village Coffee Shop or The Buff. Both are Boulder staples that offer fuel your body and your smiles. From there, head to Pearl Street and walk the pedestrian mall. The eclectic mix of stores, people, and flowers will help you truly understand what Boulder living is all about. Make sure you stop into Peppercorn, a landmark in Boulder retail and the go-to place for any impossible to find kitchen goods. The other staple is The Boulder Bookstore. It’s an incredible selection throughout a windy, whimsical layout where you can find any book you need. If you’re on Pearl on a Friday evening before a home football game, you’ll see the Buffalo Stampede and pep rally, and make sure you get a high five from Chip the Buffalo, you can grab a streamer from “Into the Wind” so you have something to cheer on the Buffs. Don’t miss Chautauqua Park and Mt. Sanitas for the full Boulder experience of living on the foothills. And if you need to rent a bike, head over to University Bikes and hit the road. You may be pedaling against Olympians and world class cyclists! Don’t miss a tour of the University of Colorado campus, one of the most beautiful campuses in the nation. And when you’re exhausted after all of that, head over to the St. Julien Spa for a massage. Restaurants (and breweries) in Boulder are bountiful, and you can’t go wrong and you can’t have a hankering for something that you can’t find. And don’t miss Boulder on Memorial Day, running the Bolder Boulder is a quintessential local tradition that cannot be beat!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
As a father / daughter team it’s natural for the child to thank and recognize the parent. Every Superbowl winning moment incorporates a shoutout to parents for their love, support and belief. It is no different in our case, of course, because one doesn’t join a parent on a business venture unless love, support and belief are well established. But for us, we flip the script… it’s the parent who recognizes and thanks the child. Shoutout to the kids out there recognizing the importance of legacy in building on their parent’s dreams!

Despite only working together officially since early 2022, Joel’s desk’s nameplate for the past 15 years has read “Orly’s Dad”. Joel’s welcoming of Orly to the business allowed him to further elongate his career and not be forced into an unnatural, early exit/sale of a business he’s curated for 45 years. Partnering with parents honors their achievements and provides merit to their life’s work, a work that has helped raise us up.

Website: https://www.coloradolandmark.com/

Instagram: @Coloradolandmarkrealtors

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/colorado-landmark-realtors

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/COlandmark