Sara Becnel

President, Sandestin Investments

Hospitality, retail, and development may run through Sara Becnel’s veins, but she got to the top by earning her stripes. She was a restaurant hostess at 14, and her first post-college job was with Silver Shells Beach Resort & Spa, where she worked in housekeeping, engineering, the front desk, and the reservations call center. She worked retail at Banana Republic, then Bloomingdales after a move to Orlando, where she then became owner of a Verizon phone store.

In 2012, the director of retail position opened at Sandestin—Becnel’s dream job—and she wrapped up business in Orlando and moved home. In time, Becnel became the executive director of Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort and got involved with real estate development in addition to the retail operations. Her career continued to climb, and she now serves as president for Sandestin Investments. Under her leadership, Hotel Effie and Osprey Pointe were built and renovations were made at the Linkside and Baytowne conference centers as well as the Beach Club and Burnt Pine Club. Recently she became the majority shareholder of Sandestin Real Estate, Sandestin Investments’ in-house brokerage. Becnel also serves as co-trustee for the Sandestin Foundation for Kids.

Describe a defining moment in your career.

Designing and building Hotel Effie was a major defining achievement. It was my first hotel development, and I learned a ton, working on that project for five years.

How do you define success?

I believe if you learn something or can grow from something, then it is a successful endeavor.

When were you met with a crossroads decision, and how did you face it? Gosh, I make hundreds of decisions a week and usually am not at a crossroads. When it happens, I listen to my intuition, take time to digest, and reach out to trusted advisors and coaches if I cannot find the answer on my own.

Do you have a mentor, and how did they impact your career path?

My father has served as a mentor and inspiration in my journey. My whole life, I followed him around on job sites in my little pink hard hat. I recently found a paper from kindergarten that asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, and I answered “real estate developer” so I guess you can say it has always been my dream and in my blood.

What changes do you hope to see in your community over the coming years? The community has grown so much since I started coming here in the ’80s and moved here in the late ’90s. It has been incredible to see the growth, and I appreciate that we have more culture, industry, restaurants, and young professionals and would like to see more cultural growth and luxury shopping.

Videography by Boo Media.