From Tina Turner to Christie's International Real Estate: Ivona Brnelić's journey

In an interview with Gloria, she reflects on her years working with Tina Turner, her new professional chapter, her partnership with Ivan Kovačić, and the growth of Remington Real Estate, the exclusive affiliate of Christie's International Real Estate in Croatia.

Ivona Brnelić's life was once defined by rehearsals, world tours, flights, and performances in front of tens of thousands of people. Today, the Rijeka native fills her calendar with business meetings and creative projects in the world of luxury real estate. At the age of 55, following an impressive international dance career, she embarked on an entirely new chapter in her life.

In her current role, Brnelić focuses on the creative side of the business, including leadership, marketing, and interior design. She collaborates with investors from the earliest stages of a project, helping to shape concepts, position properties in the market, and create spaces designed around the needs of future homeowners.

Looking back, she describes her dance years as an intensely lived chapter that fulfilled dreams she'd had since childhood-but at some point she felt life pulling her in a different direction, a signal that it was time to grow again. She's long believed that change shouldn't be feared, and that every new phase of life has taught her to trust that inner instinct telling her when a new chapter is beginning.

Dance shaped her for nearly two decades. She lived in London for seventeen years, spent close to ten of those years working with Tina Turner, and also danced for Cher and Beyoncé. Those collaborations taught her far more than choreography-they shaped the professional standards she still applies today.

The biggest lesson, she says, is that excellence is never the product of one big moment, but of hundreds of small details most people never notice. Working alongside artists like Turner, Cher, and Beyoncé taught her that top-tier results come from discipline, preparation, and total commitment-there's no room for "good enough." She carries that same mindset into real estate now, whether developing a project, designing an interior, or presenting a property to the market, convinced that details are what separate good from exceptional.

Tina Turner, in particular, taught her that circumstances can't define you unless you let them. Despite a difficult life, Turner never performed from a place of victimhood, and she never walked on stage giving anything less than everything.

Ivona Brnelić and Tina Turner

Even while building her new career, Brnelić stays creatively involved with her dance and recreation center RiS in Rijeka. She admits her body isn't thrilled about spending so much more time behind a desk now, but creativity is simply her natural state-which is why the new work brings her the same kind of excitement the stage once did.

She attributes much of her stability to her partnership with Ivan Kovačić. She believes they complement each other so well because they are both creators, each bringing a different perspective. Ivona leads with emotion and intuition, while Ivan focuses on strategy and business development. Their differing viewpoints often lead them to better solutions than either would have reached alone.

They had known each other for years before their lives truly came together around a decade ago. She describes their relationship as quiet and deeply rooted, built on a sense of security, mutual trust, and understanding-as though they share a world that only the two of them fully understand.

When it comes to self-care, Brnelić centers everything around inner balance rather than strict rules. She watches her diet and health without obsessing over discipline, and considers caring for her thoughts the most important form of self-care-choosing gratitude and a positive outlook rather than dwelling on negativity. Her morning workout is non-negotiable, functioning almost like a daily meditation.

And her fifties? She speaks about them in nothing but superlatives, describing a sense of having become a new version of herself-as if everything has finally clicked into place with age, bringing real clarity. For the first time, she feels she truly understands what balance means and why it matters. Decisions, she says, have always come from intuition, but age has brought deeper trust in that inner voice.

These days, she values how she lives far more than what she still has left to achieve. After several major life and career turns, she feels exactly where she's meant to be-convinced that true success isn't measured in titles or business results, but in staying true to yourself through the ups and downs, and turning every new beginning into a chance for personal transformation.

Asked whether she and Kovačić ever dance together just for the joy of it, she says they're always dancing-mainly the dance of life itself. But sometimes, especially at home when the right song catches them off guard, they do dance literally too. Nothing like professional choreography, she notes-and that's exactly the charm of it.

If you'd like to read the full interview, click the following link: Gloria.