Retail real estate deal making in full swing at New York show

ICSC’s 2015 New York National Conference & Deal Making show is on track to set an attendance record, with approximately 10,000 dealmakers estimated at the event, outstripping the previous peak of 9,600 attendees set in 2014 and spurring the event’s planners to explore options for adding space in future years.



The New York meeting is already ICSC’s second-largest conference, after RECon in Las Vegas, and has grown from a regional event to one that attracts a national and even international following, according to Tim McGuinness, ICSC’s staff VP of global trade expositions.



“We have been tracking anywhere from 11% to 14% ahead of registration at this time last year,” McGuinness said. “This year we’re going to easily get to 10,000, and I think you’re going to see that number continually increase as this event becomes more national and more global.”



Over the years, pressure to accommodate more and more exhibitors led to a cumbersome twin-venue arrangement at two convention hotels, and ultimately to the move in 2014 to the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. The venue change nearly 500 exhibitors last year under one roof, the same roof that this year is housing some 168,000 square feet of exhibits.



ICSC staffers are excited to have this year’s New York conference at Javits. The new subway station on the 7 Line recently opened next to the convention center, offering convenient access from other parts of the city.



Given the advantages of the Javits Center, ICSC is talking with the conference center’s managers about moving the event from the ground floor to the third level, which could increase the exhibition space available at future conferences by as much as 50%, McGuinness said. He expects that move to take effect in 2017.



“It’s a Class A exhibit space, with higher ceilings and fewer columns on the show floor,” he added “The general look and feel of the show floor is much more attractive from an exhibit standard.”