Real Estate's 10 Under 40
Ten years ago, demographic experts predicted a looming talent shortage: When the massive baby boom generation retired, the small Generation X would not have enough experienced leaders and managers to fill the positions that boomers would vacate.
Today, that prediction is coming true. The solution? The under-40 millennial generation will have to pick up the slack. In the retail real estate world, at least, millennials are stepping up. Based on a nationwide search and nominations from their peers, Chain Store Age has selected 10 of these rising stars to watch and to emulate.
Brian Strickland, age 39
Division VP – Portfolio Management
Family Dollar
Matthews, N.C.
Brian Strickland and his Family Dollar team will touch 2,375 stores — plus or minus — during this fiscal year. They will open 525 new stores; relocate, renovate or expand 750 to 800 stores; and renew leases on 1,100 stores.
That seems impossible.
“The most challenging part of our work is the volume of deals we evaluate and decide on each week,” said Strickland, division VP – portfolio management. “What makes it possible is excellent team members and excellent technology.”
Strickland had a hand in developing the technology used by his 60-member internal real estate team and approximately 15 external developers.
He pushed to develop an enterprise real estate solution that enabled users to acquire, display and map demographics. It facilitates data editing, captures notes and photos and attaches them to specific stores on the map retrieval system.
Designed by Attleboro, Mass.-based Trade Area Systems, the enterprise application went operational about two years ago. Since then, Family Dollar has reduced site evaluation times by 67%.
When reviewing stores, a user can click on a store in, say, the Charlotte, N.C., market. Within seconds, the system pulls up real estate characteristics, lease terms, financials P&Ls and more.
“Combine that with the really good team we have here, and life is good,” smiled Strickland. “As an analyst, you want to make solid, fact-based decisions. My vision here is to provide our decision-makers with access to data and analytics that will help them answer questions fast and make the right decisions.”
In addition to analyzing and making decisions about thousands of Family Dollar stores every year, Strickland is an instructor in the graduate level course on real estate market analytics at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
Makes you wonder what he does in his spare time.
Larry Sajdak, age 34
President
Inland National Real Estate Services
Oak Brook, Ill.
Larry Sajdak first joined The Inland Real Estate Group of Companies as a college intern in 1998. He was 18 and considering careers in chemistry and business.
Business won. After college, Sajdak returned to Inland and blasted off. After two years, in 2004, he moved into retail real estate, earned three promotions in two years and ended up as VP asset management for Retail Properties of America in 2006.
Today, as president of Inland National Real Estate Services since 2011, he directs property management for the retail real estate portfolio owned by Inland Real Estate Income Trust. The relatively new IREIT is still raising money to invest. Current holdings include 16 necessity-based grocery-anchored centers and big-box centers.
Sajdak emphasizes due diligence to make sure the trust acquires properties that fit today’s environment — limited new shopping center development and lots of online competition.
“We buy centers leased to retailers that can compete with online,” he said.
On the operations side, Sajdak is proactive without micromanaging. He wants his team to run the assets. He asks for national credit tenants and promising local tenants. He retains consultants to provide local tenants with the marketing and operational tools central to retail success.
Sajdak also helps local tenants with mobile marketing. IREIT centers have websites with mobile apps that can push out promotional notices to mobile phones.
Success came quickly to Sajdak perhaps because he doesn’t take all the credit. “One reason I’m sitting here at 34 is the quality of the IREIT team,” he said. “Our director of leasing, for instance, spent most of her career working for large national retailers. Now she has five years on the landlord side. There are other similar examples. I’m lucky to have that level of experience around me.”
Chris Littrell, age 39
Director of Real Estate
Nike Factory Stores
Beaverton, Ore.
Chris Littrell is a consensus builder. “I don’t bring ego or agendas into the workplace,” he said. “I listen and look for common ground and solutions.” That’s Nike’s style, too.
As director of real estate for Nike Factory Stores, Littrell manages 185 stores and plans to add another 15 or so stores this year.
Nike Factory Stores sell closeout merchandise taken from the shelves of full-priced retail partners’ stores. Littrell locates the stores in top-tier centers and in communities where there isn’t any retail. “In those cases, we hire within the community with the goal of helping to spur community development — it’s a way of giving back,” he said.
Littrell comes from Coos Bay, Ore., the home of Steve Prefontaine, a track legend who inspired a generation of runners. “Growing up, I wanted to run like Steve and work for Nike,” Littrell said. He didn’t reach Steve Prefontaine’s level. As for his ambition to work for Nike, though: He’s just doing it.
Jason Plummer, age 31
VP
R.P. Lumber Co.
Edwardsville, Ill.
Jason Plummer enjoys the variety of his family’s businesses, which include 51 lumber company/ home center locations in the Midwest, 16 shopping centers — some with an R.P. Lumber location — as well as truss plants, office buildings and hotels.
“What I like the most is that I wear a lot of different hats,” he said. “On any given day I could work on R.P. Lumber projects, as well as retail, office, residential, hotel, self storage or a variety of other kinds of projects.”
As VP with real estate responsibilities, Plummer watches for quality assets to purchase. The company also develops shopping centers, and Plummer is always on the lookout for leasing opportunities.
“It’s a family business, and everyone is involved,” he said. “My mom and dad were both high school teachers, and my dad started the company in January 1977. My two sisters, Julie and Jennifer, are active in the company as well.”
Brian L. Harper, age 38
Executive VP Leasing
Rouse Properties
New York City
Brian L. Harper is having the time of his life as executive VP leasing with New York City-based Rouse Properties. &l