Lori Capullo | 12/1/2010

Change of Lifestyle

John Turchin, 54 Turchin Co. / CEO / Miami Beach Family business: Turchin is a third-generation family member of developer Turchin Co. Favorite mountain activity: Watching the leaves, playing in the snow, hiking, riding his motorcycle Business attire: Cowboy hat, jeans, boots and an arrowhead he found in the mountains that his brother, a jeweler, turned into a necklace

John Turchin's first vacation to North Carolina was with his family in 1970. He fell in love with the mountains and the relaxed environment and vowed to one day make it his home.

So, after making his mark at the family business, developer Turchin Co. in Miami, and playing an integral role in the rise of South Beach — he and his brother started Club Nu, Miami Beach's first super hot club in the late '80s — he set out to create a

relaxed, environmentally sensitive community where families would want to spend time.

In 2003, he started The Lodges at Eagles Nest in the North Carolina mountains. The 1,350-acre development comprises a wildlife preserve, waterfalls, mountain trails, a "toy barn" full of sporting equipment and a Tee Pee Village and Wellness Spa.

Turchin keeps a home in Miami as well as the Turchin Properties headquarters. "I enjoy the best of both worlds," he says. "My dad always told me, ‘Don't work for others; work for yourself. Enjoy your life. Do one thing at a time and do it well.' "