'Million Dollar Listing' star shares his secrets to success in Bethlehem

When Fredrik Eklund walked into the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks on Thursday, he was immediately taken by the property's industrial feel and the views of the nearby blast furnaces.

"I'm obsessed," he said, as he walked along the balcony of the Musikfest Cafe. "I want to sell it."

A celebrity real estate broker who stars on Bravo's reality show "Million Dollar Listing New York," Eklund is always selling something -- and, he told an eager audience of a few hundred people at SteelStacks, so are you.

After high-kicking and busting moves on his way to the stage, the energetic Swede began his speech Thursday at the Greater Lehigh Valley Realtors' 5th Annual Signature Event by asking who in the room was a salesperson. He chided those who didn't raise their hands.

"No, everyone is a salesperson," he said, whether you're on a blind date or a job interview.

Eklund isn't the first "Million Dollar Listing" figure to headline the realtors' annual meeting in Bethlehem. His co-star Ryan Serhant was the featured speaker for the event's first year. He was followed by HGTV host Egypt Sherrod, HGTV's "Property Brothers," and NFL Hall of Famer-turned-real estate developer Emmitt Smith.

Dressed in black trousers and a gray sport coat with a thin square-end tie, Eklund reached back to his youth to share his success story. Eklund, now 40 years old and 6-feet-5-inches tall, projected childhood photos onto screens, allowing a glimpse into a misbegotten period when he sported bright red sunglasses and a green streak through his hair.

Hairdo aside, Eklund's photos meant to show his journey from "a little lad from Sweden" to a New York City real estate broker who has closed billions in sales and sold to celebrities including Jennifer Lopez and John Legend. His book, released in 2015, is entitled "The Sell: The Secrets of Selling Anything to Anyone."

Eklund -- whose eccentricity is in full display on "Million Dollar Listing New York" -- encouraged realtors to be themselves. Early on in his career, he worried that his personality would put off people. But he found that opening up was an important part of gaining a client's trust.

"You have to share who you are to be remembered," he said.

He told the crowd members to identify what drives them. While he is driven by his competitive nature, his business partner John Gomes, he said, is largely motivated by money.

"I think he gets sexually aroused when we make a sale," Eklund said to laughs.

As he talked about defining one's goals, Eklund revealed where his focus has been lately. He and his husband Derek Kaplan have been trying to start a family through a surrogate, with setbacks along the way.

He closed his prepared remarks by extolling the virtues of meditation and a good night's sleep.

The mood got a little tense during the Q&A that followed, when an audience member confronted him about a letter -- and Scandinavian candies -- she had hand-delivered to his office years ago, never receiving a "thank you" in return.

Eklund couldn't glean how serious her irritation was, and rambled his way through an explanation of the amount of mail he receives.

He was more prepared for other questions -- his response seemed automatic when asked whether the sensational moments on "Million Dollar Listing New York" are manufactured.

"No one's telling us what to do," he said. Rather, he said, it's often the television producers who question whether Eklund really wants to go through with some of his antics.

But he did admit that the editing process heightens the drama of certain sequences. The show, he said, has been a fun experience, but it has at times brought drama and pain to his life.

Another questioner demanded to know why former "Million Dollar Listing" broker Luis D. Ortiz had left the show.

Eklund said Ortiz simply decided real estate wasn't for him. Ortiz moved to Paris "to make love to women and drink wine," Eklund said. "To do what he does best."

Andrew Doerfler may be reached at adoerfler@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @adoerfler or on Facebook.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.