CSC’s RECon: Preparation Equals Results
By Natalie Dolce
Original article published on Globest.com
LAS VEGAS—The “Super Bowl of the industry,” as one expert put it, is coming up this weekend. Attendees tell GlobeSt.com that carefully plan a highly structured series of meetings are key and add that some of the best contacts and relationships are established on cab lines, at bars or in hotel lobbies off of the convention floor.
LAS VEGAS—“We carefully plan a highly structured series of meetings. Some of the best contacts and relationships are established on cab lines, at bars or in hotel lobbies off of the convention floor.” That was according to Chris Conlon, EVP and COO of Acadia Realty Trust.
For Acadia Realty, RECon is a giant networking opportunity. “We are looking for more acquisition opportunities, insight on development trends and retailer intelligence—retailers are facing increasing headwinds. Who are the winners and losers?”
Mike Conway, VP of national accounts and retention at Phillips Edison, called the event the Super Bowl of our industry and for his company, which sends more than 65 associates from a cross section of departments.
Conway notes that preparation equals results. “We spend a lot of time preparing to ensure that we have productive meetings with the end goal of forming new relationships and ultimately executing on new deals,” he says. As for the firm’s booth? “As always we have a few tricks up our sleeve at our booth including the return of the flip flop giveaway.”
When we spoke with Paul Travis, managing partner at Washington Square Partners, as he prepares for the event, he said that he is seeing significant shifts in retail such as internet tenants getting into brick and mortar, food and entertainment taking a bigger share of consumer dollars and the continuing shift to urban retailing. “These have reached critical mass and it will be interesting to see how that impacts ICSC this year,” he tells GlobeSt.com.
Ami Ziff, director of national retail at Time Equities Inc., says that “with Q2 2017 in full swing, brands and consumers alike should anticipate a surge in omni-channel retail locations, off-price discounters maintaining a viable share of the market and a continued focus on experiential shopping, among other industry trends.”
With an international real estate presence, “we here at Time Equities Inc. always look forward to the valuable industry dialogue and networking at ICSC – I’m personally looking forward to connecting with so many like-minded professionals and unique retailers under one roof.”
