GERALD S. DIVARIS

A native of South Africa, Gerald Divaris co-founded his real estate firm, Divaris Real Estate, more than five decades ago in his home country, where he earned degrees in accounting and real estate marketing from the University of Cape Town. In 1981, he brought the business to Virginia.

The real estate company is now under the Divaris Group umbrella, of which Divaris is also the founder and CEO, along with Divaris Property Management, Creative Development Partners, The McGarey Group, S.T. Burke Retail Partners, Ingenuity Development and KLNB Asset Services.

Headquartered in Virginia Beach, Divaris Group has offices in Newport News, Norfolk, Richmond and Roanoke, as well as North Carolina, California and Washington, D.C. The firm manages or leases more than 40 million square feet of office, retail and industrial space nationwide, and it’s continued to grow. Last year, the company purchased S.T. Burke in Philadelphia, and in March, the Virginia Beach Town Center, a property Divaris and Armada Hoffler started building in 2000, was officially 99% occupied.

Gerald Divaris has long been considered one of the Hampton Roads region’s most influential people, reflected by his inclusion on regional business lists and other honors. In 2024, Divaris was inducted into the Hampton Roads Business Hall of Fame.