Energetic, driven, sharp, and resolutely honest – these are the traits that characterized young Melvin Berman when he left his home of Defuniac Springs Florida at age 17 during the Great Depression.

Hitchhiking to Baltimore to work for an Uncle that owned a local dairy store, Melvin quickly learned the business and then ventured out to start his own regional dairy company, partnering with a local distributor, Arthur Robinson, and calling for his younger brother Wolford to join him. Wolford’s kind, patient, and warm personality complemented Melvin’s aggressiveness and together they built a large successful dairy manufacture and distribution company servicing the Baltimore Washington Corridor and owning a large plant and significant land holdings in the Laurel, MD area.

In the early 1950’s, as a result of their experiences in both land ownership and sales, the brothers became interested in retail development and in 1954 they built their first shopping center in Columbia, MD. Several others soon followed and having found their passion, by 1962, they divested themselves of their dairy business and focused entirely on development.

Their real estate achievements include several of the first major shopping centers in the region including Ingleside Shopping Center, the Laurel Shopping Center, Laurel Mall, and Melvin in 1958 becoming a founding board member of the Rouse Company, for which he served 27 years - during which time he is credited for one of the most successful planned communities in the United States – Columbia, MD which sits on 15,000 acres of prime real estate outside of Washington, DC.

Throughout business and personal lives, the qualities that defined the Berman’s were uncompromising honesty, under promising and over delivering, and a strong work ethic. Whatever needed to be done they did - be it sales or lease negotiations to physically attending to manufacturing, delivery or maintenance. Every customer and tenant received their personal attention and they became advisors to many of them in growing their businesses. Through their diligent management and unprecedented marketing efforts, their shopping centers became major successes, the spawning grounds for several regional retail chains and the lifelong homes for many upstart tenants, some of whom remain with the company today. Melvin and Wolford are remembered by their communities for their active support and participation in community, civic and charitable causes throughout their lives.