Land Article Fall 2019

P R O F I L E
Following the lead of founder Mike Swan, the team at
Swan Land Company with its headquarters in Bozeman,
Montana, serves its clients from “the kitchen table to the
closing table.”
“For us, the kitchen table is symbolic of the personal,
high-touch way we do business,” said Swan, who ran
the office of Bates Sanders Swan Land Company in
Bozeman for 12 years before establishing his own
brand. “Whether we’re sitting down with a titan of
industry in a New York penthouse office or a ranching
family from central Montana, the kitchen table—where
we sit and look into one another’s eyes and really
establish a personal connection—is where each and
every relationship begins.”
In 2012, riding on a wave of success that included
representing Montana’s 124,000-acre Broken O Ranch in
a sale to Stan Kroenke, Swan opened Swan Land Company.
“I had great momentum, but I realized I needed help if the
company was going to continue to move forward,” Swan
said, noting that early sales also included Montana’s
25,323-acre Historic Horse Ranch and Montana’s Lazy
J Ranch, the largest contiguous privately-held block
remaining in Bridger Canyon.
He began adding team members in 2013. Today, his list
of all-star brokers includes: Tim Anderson, David Lowry,
Stephen Leibinger, Sam Sanders and Scott Williams. The
company now has offices in Bozeman, Salt Lake City and
Buffalo, Wyoming, and is licensed in Montana, Wyoming,
Utah, Idaho, New Mexico, Colorado and Nebraska.
“We haven’t taken our foot off the gas since the beginning—
and we’re not letting up anytime soon,” Swan said.
While growth and success tempt some companies to
abandon principle for profit, Swan refuses to fall into that
trap and remains true to the values he learned around
his family’s kitchen table on their cow-calf operation in
Montana’s Ruby Valley: personal integrity, hard work,
respect and putting others’ needs before your own.
“It all comes back to who you are and what you stand for
as an individual—and as a company,” said Swan, a selfdescribed
servant leader. “I’m a simple guy. I know how
to work hard and treat people right, and I’ve surrounded
myself with people who live their lives the same way.”
The seemingly simple formula delivers results including
signature sales such as Jane Fonda’s 2,300-acre Forked
Lightning Ranch near Santa Fe, New Mexico, and the
42,215-acre LF Ranch near Augusta, Montana.
“Despite our relatively small size, we continue to gain market
share at a rate that has me asking, ‘What is Swan Land
Company going to do next?’” Swan said. “While I don’t know
the exact answer to that question yet, I can guarantee we
will remain true to who we are—and to our clients.”
FOR US, THE KITCHEN TABLE IS SYMBOLIC OF
THE PERSONAL, HIGH-TOUCH WAY WE DO BUSINESS.”
—Mike Swan
FALL 2019 І
LAND
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