When Tami Door, the former head of the Downtown Denver Partnership, was named CEO of Q Factor earlier this month, many people likely wondered, “What is Q Factor?”

But many Denverites are familiar with Jason and Ellen Winkler, who co-founded the Denver-based development company.

The couple have been a driving force behind the transformation of Denver’s trendy River North neighborhood. In the last 20 years, RiNo has gone from a gritty collection of abandoned industrial warehouses to a thriving arts district with a slew of new restaurants, breweries, apartment buildings and co-working and event spaces.

In 2010, the Winklers partnered with other developers in transforming the Battery 621 building into a co-working office and event space. The 30,000-square-foot building at Sixth Avenue and Kalamath Street had been vacant for years.

In 2014, the company now known as Q Factor redeveloped a large industrial building at 3001 Brighton Blvd. into INDUSTRY. The business complex has become an anchor of co-working, event, restaurants and creative space since opening in 2017.

“We saw what RiNo could become. … We knew it would look different, and a lot of things we thought would happen did. But we had no idea it would happen in five to six years,” Jason Winkler said. “Even our most aggressive time frames didn’t cover that speed. It’s just been amazing.”

The couple took what they learned about curating business communities with Battery 621 and INDUSTRY and formed Q Factor to accomplish similar developments in other cities and states. The first of those was INDUSTRY Salt Lake City.

“We looked at all the markets we found interesting and cool cities and asked, is this where we would want to be?” Jason Winkler said. “We looked at the demographics, what sectors of the workforce and what types of companies were growing. We quickly saw that Salt Lake City was underrated and underappreciated, kind of the best-kept secret. So many of the forces that made Denver grow like it has are building in Salt Lake City.”

The 330,000-square-foot INDUSTRY Salt Lake City opened in March 2020.

Company officials also learned the benefits of bringing all aspects of development under one roof. They created what they call the “Team of Teams” with independent companies working together on projects.

The teams include Drumbeat, which focuses on architecture, interiors and branding; Makers Line, a general contractor; Forge, a “comprehensive metal shop”; BHS Rockers, which specializes in metal, stud, drywall and acoustical ceiling installation; and Mode, a commercial furniture dealership.

“We’ve turned into an integrated suite of companies,” Jason Winkler said. “It gives us the ability for all teams to work together in an integrated way. … For internal projects, it’s super helpful to control the schedule and budget and the end quality. For external projects, or for third parties, we still use that shared knowledge. … It creates a value proposition for us and all our clients.”

Q Factor handles master planning, project management, owners’ representation and leasing.

The company has construction underway in Detroit, a 120,000-square-foot former school building that will be transformed into working space for nonprofits at a discounted rent rate, and will move dirt soon in Bozeman, Montana. It also has multifamily projects underway, including a 200-unit complex called Snowden Woods in Ossining, New York.

Door, the company’s new chief executive, will help with Q Factor’s community placemaking vision, Jason Winkler said.

“Few people know as much about growing cities as Tami does. I don’t know anyone on the planet who has more superpowers,” he said. “She’s got creativity, business savvy and the ability to move mountains. … She’s always been a thoughtful partner to us, and helped us in a great way.”

Jason Winkler, the company’s current CEO, will become chairman when Door takes over in January.