Larry Fortune, left, chats with an associate in this 2019 file photo from the Fortune Associates office in Fresno. File photo

After more than 50 years in the industry, a local business leader is stepping back from the commercial real estate brokerage he built up with his father.

A group of associates has teamed up to purchase Fortune Associates, with industry veteran Larry Fortune deciding to retire to spend more time with family in Southern California.

Larry Fortune, 75, was born and raised in Fresno in a family known for its volunteer work and service. A 1970 graduate of Stanford University, Fortune majored in political science and launched his post-college life in the Bay Area. He worked for the Bank of California in San Francisco for several years. Then came President Richard Nixon’s move in 1971 to combat an overvalued dollar by ending the U.S. gold standard. The so-called “Nixon shock” forced many banks to close, presenting Fortune an opportunity to return home.

Larry’s father, Don Fortune, started the Fortune Realty residential firm in 1965. After seeing the success of his brother in the family business, Larry came on board in 1974

When Don Fortune was ready to retire, Larry bought him out. In 1995, he shifted the business from residential to commercial, becoming Fortune Associates.

He took his business acumen into the boardrooms of some of the Valley’s most impactful organizations, including the Center for Advanced Research and Technology in Clovis, the Fresno County Economic Development Corp., the Better Business Bureau, Big Fresno Fair, California Association of Realtors and dozens more.

Service has also come with accolades, including “Honorary Director for Life” from the California Association of Realtors. Fortune said, most importantly, board service has expanded his network, making connections that strengthen the organizations he supports.

“It’s opening doors — not because who you know or if I didn’t win those awards — but because I sat on the committees and we got a reputation to get things done,” Larry said. “It’s what we try to do.”

For more information about the future of Fortune of Associates and who will be running the brokerage, see the Friday, Oct. 13 print edition of The Business Journal.