

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christel Renaud
Hi Christel, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Originally from the South of France, I studied Hospitality Management in Paris. I moved to the US in 2004 after living (4) years in Cancun, Mexico. I spent much of my career in the luxury hotel sector in the luxury hotel sector with the Starwood brands of Sheraton, Westin, W, and SLS as well as the ultra-exclusive London West Hollywood at Beverly Hills. I organized high-profile events and conferences globally. An incredible experience was working as a translator at the G8 Summit in Mexico, which highlighted the significance of multilingual skills.
After 17 years in hospitality focusing on customer service and business development, I relocated to Miami. I joined my husband’s business, JVM Kitchen Designs, as a designer. This year, I finally accomplished a lifelong dream of mine and got my Real Estate license, leveraging my knowledge of trends, architecture, and interior design to assess luxury residences.
I am absolutely in love with Miami. It is definitely the place to be, especially with what is coming in the Real Estate world. The market is going to be taken by storm, and I will be there for it.
I am fluent in French, English, and Spanish and I enjoy assisting international families settling in Miami. In addition to my career, my other passions are my three children interior design, gardening, cooking, skiing, traveling, French cinema, and mystery podcasts.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Being an expat is always going to be bittersweet for me. I have and always will miss my home country tremendously, our culture, traditions and the food obviously. However, the US has given me so many incredible opportunities that I could not have dreamt of, if I had stayed behind. But I am lucky to live in a micro community of Miami that is very francophone and surround myself with French speaking expats just like me.
On the professional side, my Hospitality career, which I enjoyed so much, required monthly business trips lasting 5 days at a time as well as a hefty amount of evening entertainments with clients. When my first child was born, I had to make the very difficult but necessary decision to quit the industry and instead, focus on my new family. Fast forward years later, I am so glad I took these steps. But in the moment, I felt like I was losing everything I had worked so hard for. Being a working mom can be challenging and/or rewarding based on the industry you choose to go in.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about JVM Kitchen Design & Christel Miami Luxury Living?
JVM Kitchen Design is a family-owned business my husband and his family started many years ago. We design high-end kitchens and bathrooms. We specialize in custom high-end projects and work with the finest materials. The company is very well established in the Miami market and has a wonderful customer following. When I joined them, I added an extra layer of design knowledge, a luxury touch and a 3rd language to conduct business in.
Throughout the years, we uncovered many real estate needs for our existing clients and decided it was the right move to add that service to the company. That is when we created Christel Miami Luxury Living.
Not too many Kitchen designs companies can handle your real estate needs in Miami. We do!
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Education is everything. Educate yourself in the areas of finance, marketing, and my personal favorite…. languages.
Do not wait to invest in Real Estate. It is only going to get more expensive, and you are losing equity by not owning a property. Miami is going to become insane in the next few years and not everyone will be able to afford living here if you are not smart with your investments, personal and financial.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://christelmiamiluxuryliving.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christel_mia_lux_living/ and https://www.instagram.com/jvm_kitchens/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564010847570