CHRISTINE GUSTAFSON | Vice president of marketing and public relations, The Breeden Co.

In 2020, Christine Gustafson joined Breeden as the first female on the real estate development company’s executive team.
“That milestone wasn’t just symbolic — it marked a shift in how we approached leadership, communication and visibility as an organization,” she says.

Gustafson was also the company’s first executive-level marketing expert.

“The company’s philosophy had long been to ‘work and stay humble,’ which unfortunately led to a persistent misconception that we were a small, ‘mom-and-pop’ operation,” she says.

Gustafson promptly launched a national marketing campaign across digital, social and print platforms. The results were dramatic: Website traffic surged about 59% and overall engagement skyrocketed by about 66% between 2021 and 2022. Her marketing mastery helped secure spots for Breeden on the Inc. 5000 list of the country’s fastest-growing private companies and Multi-Housing News’ list of top multifamily property owners.

“Today, people no longer ask, ‘Who’s Breeden?’— they recognize the ‘B’ and associate it with quality, innovation and integrity,” she says.

Previously, Gustafson worked as marketing director and print project manager at Chesapeake-based Jones Printing Service.

She was also director of marketing for Pilot Media Solutions.

Gustafson is secretary of the Virginia Apartment Management Association’s board. She also sits on the boards of the Virginia Beach SPCA and Eggleston Services, a nonprofit dedicated to the education, training and employment of people with disabilities.

Along with an undergraduate degree, Gustafson has a master’s in human development from Virginia Tech.

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