Learn from Industry Leaders

Ralph Conti, principal and managing member of Atlanta, Georgia-based RaCo Real Estate, and Svein Dyrkolbotn, a principal of Gainesville, Florida-based Viking Companies, are co-developing Celebration Pointe, a 1 million-plus-square-foot, mixed-use development in Gainesville, Florida. The unique 160-acre project will feature Class A office space, boutique hotels, several types of residential offerings and many first-to-market retail, restaurant and entertainment offerings. Bass Pro Shops, a first to market state-of-the-art Regal Cinemas RPX Theater, a new concept Tommy Hilfiger, Kilwins and a Nike Factory store recently opened, with many more tenants under construction …

Technology can be one of the best tools shopping center owners have at their disposal, says Sandy Sigal, president and CEO of NewMark Merrill Companies. From combating long checkout lines to helping customers locate stores and parking spaces, technology has a huge convenience factor for patrons. It also has a huge convenience factor for owners, as they’re able to collect data from shoppers and event attendees. This data can be harnessed to determine when people shop, where people shop and even to increase tenant success by improving elements of the …

Adding an air of international appeal is one way shopping center owners can diversify their tenant mixes while providing shoppers with a new experience. Barriers with culture, language and differences in laws, however, can make doing business in the U.S. tricky for foreign retailers. David Rabinowitz, partner at Goulston & Storrs and Co-Chair of the firm’s Retail Group, and other attorneys in Goulston’s Retail Industry Group know how to navigate issues based on their years of experience representing international retailers entering the U.S. In fact, today’s experience-driven retail climate has …

Ivan L. Friedman, president and CEO of RCS Real Estate Advisors, has seen his share of real estate cycles. Working on about 40 million square feet of retail per year, Friedman and his firm believe we are in the midst of a long-lasting cycle — but one that is far from the “retail apocalypse” we continue to hear about. This is also a time, Friedman, contends, when retailers are looking at their footprints, determining whether they need less space and whether they’re happy with their rents as compared to their …

Scott M. Holmes is no stranger to RECon. With more than 25 years of experience on the client side of the commercial real estate investment business, Holmes is a veteran of the conference. However, his role has shifted this year, and it was his first RECon as Senior VP and National Director of Retail with Marcus & Millichap. While he saw a lot of familiar faces at this year’s conference, Holmes’ role found him supporting his brokerage teams and reintroducing himself in a different capacity. He spent this conference engaging …

Hernan Martinez, CEO of Cuestamoras Urbanismo, takes a different approach to today’s retail environment. Rather than design centers around shopping, he creates places people want to be – then weaves an element of retail into these destinations. By focusing on the targeted community, their culture and their desires, Martinez can outline a project that fulfills what that neighborhood is lacking, what makes those residents happy and what retailers can add to that experience. Case in point is Oxigeno, a mixed-use project in Costa Rica that features four uniquely themed zones …

The Southern California Inland Empire submarket of Moreno Valley is experiencing an explosive population growth rate of more than 5 percent annually. This growth is about to be amplified as the city anticipates the development of the World Logistics Center, a 40.6-million-square-foot industrial corporate business center that will bring an additional 20,000 new jobs to the area. With that in mind, the city is looking at its recent successes to capitalize on future growth. This includes everything from retailers and quick-service restaurant concepts to food halls and entertainment destinations that …

Madison Marquette is in destination mode, as in destination-planning mode. Amer Hammour, the company’s chairman, and Peter Cole, managing director and head of East Coast development, are working on two signature mixed-use projects that will add not just retail, but entertainment to notable corners of Washington, D.C., and New Jersey. Asbury Park is rebuilding one of the state’s most historic beachfront communities into a 400,000-square-foot retail and entertainment development along New Jersey’s oceanfront. Meanwhile, the Wharf in D.C. will create a waterfront destination similar to New York’s Battery Park City …

Carmen Spinoso, chairman and CEO of Spinoso Real Estate Group, has followed the chatter about malls alongside the rest of us. While he knows the traditional way of doing things no longer works, Spinoso is confident many malls are still viable shopping destinations as long as their owners know how to pivot. While individual asset analysis is essential, demographics, location and surrounding competition (or lack thereof) can really dictate a center’s future success. Repurposing old anchor spaces, adding entertainment and services, reshaping co-tenancy provisions, and cultivating the appropriate mix of …