Crown Realty & Development Chairman, Jaime Sohacheski, founded Crown Management in 1978. He, along with a handful of investors, purchased old abandoned buildings in the downtown area of Los Angeles. Mr. Sohacheski then converted the buildings into small retail centers. This strategy proved to be profitable, and soon the Crown Management portfolio grew to include prominent Class A and B buildings. Timing the market almost perfectly, Mr. Sohacheski sold his downtown portfolio in 1987, just before a serious recession hit the area. He then began purchasing retail development sites. In 1988, he met Robert Flaxman, and the two expanded the company into Crown Realty & Development, Inc. Today, Crown controls a portfolio in excess of $350 million in value. Mr. Sohacheski was born and raised in Mexico City, Mexico.