Robert Gould (VP US Operations, IAM Properties) and Chris Speciale (National Leasing Advisor, Open Realty Advisors) join Brett to pull back the curtain on the decade-long journey behind the Corners of Brookfield, Wisconsin's number one destination for specialty retail.

Robert brought his vision for a European-style market square to suburban Milwaukee after a successful run funding nine Mariano's grocery stores across Chicagoland, opening in 2018 with just eight storefronts and Von Maur as their anchor. Chris, a 30-plus year leasing veteran, was the matchmaker behind the brands, pitching Brookfield, Wisconsin to national retailers who couldn't place it on a map, drawing on comparable ground-up markets like Columbus, Ohio and Fort Wayne, Indiana to make the case that Milwaukee's time had come.

Hear how they navigated a $25 million movie theater mistake, survived COVID without closing, and built landlord-tenant relationships that have brands like Alo, Madewell, and Kendra Scott choosing the Corners as their Milwaukee home.

We also discuss the $150 million West End expansion bringing new retail, a national restaurant, a freestanding hard goods anchor, and 278 additional apartments to the project, and why Robert and Chris believe the Corners is just getting started.

Many teams assume strong demographics and visible locations are enough.

In practice, what matters just as much is how a market actually functions day to day—how people move, how infrastructure holds up, and how local patterns shape demand.

In this episode of Behind the Lease, Brett sits down with Sarah Williams of Council Real Estate in Atlanta to talk about what retail strategy looks like at ground level.

Sarah’s path into brokerage wasn’t typical. She studied political science and spent time working in government before returning to real estate. That background shows up in how she approaches deals—measured, relationship-driven, and aware that timing and context matter as much as the site itself.

What we get into

1. What most site selection models miss Population growth is only part of the story.

What often gets overlooked is access—not just visibility or traffic counts, but whether customers can realistically reach a site as areas grow and infrastructure lags.

2. Why Atlanta is frequently misunderstood Many national brands approach Atlanta like a dense, walkable city.

In reality, it’s a driving market where parking, access, and regional movement patterns matter more than foot traffic in most cases.

3. Starting and scaling a focused brokerage Council Real Estate was built with a narrow focus on tenant representation before expanding.

That constraint helped ensure the team could actually deliver before taking on more.

4. Training younger brokers in a relationship-driven business Early habits matter.

Sarah emphasizes things that are easy to skip today—but still drive results:

• Phone calls over email
• In-person meetings over passive outreach
• Consistent presence in the market

5. How deal flow really works Pipelines don’t come from a single source.

They’re built through constant exposure to local information—developers, city contacts, and on-the-ground insight that doesn’t live in a database.

6. Patience and repetition early in a career There’s no shortcut.

Doing the work consistently—showing up, following up, staying engaged—is what builds credibility over time.

Why this episode matters

Retail expansion decisions are expensive and difficult to reverse.

Most mistakes don’t come from bad strategy—they come from missing context early, especially at the local level.

This conversation is a reminder that:

• Access can matter more than visibility
• Markets behave differently than they look on paper
• And relationships still play a central role—but work better with better information

About the Guest

Sarah Williams is a partner at Council Real Estate, based in Atlanta. She has closed over $500M in transactions and is a multi-year Phoenix Award recipient, working across tenant and landlord representation with a focus on retail strategy.

Matthew Clark, who leads the Urban Division at Colliers International, shares his incredible journey and passion for retail real estate.

From his early days working on historic infill projects to now managing $4 billion in mixed-use real estate, Matthew has become a leading voice in the Jacksonville market.

In this episode, they discuss:

• The Power of Merchandising: How thoughtful retail curation can increase neighborhood rents by up to 300% and foster a true sense of community.
• Jacksonville’s "Tipping Point": Why this city is the Southeast’s best-kept secret and how its slow progress has allowed it to learn from and implement lessons from other major cities.
• Pearl Square: A groundbreaking $750 million+ investment that is set to define downtown Jacksonville with 30 blocks of high-density residential, retail, and world-class design.
• The "Umami" of Retail: Matthew’s strategy for hunting down authentic food and beverage brands that keep people coming back to a project.
• Future Trends: The rise of sophisticated mixed-use developments and the growing demand for contemporary soft goods, home furnishings, and luxury fashion in the region.

Matthew also highlights his collaboration with Brandmarch, emphasizing the importance of a curated platform where creative brokers and retailers can partner to do "really amazing work".

Professional Experience

• Scale of Projects: He currently manages $4 billion worth of mixed-use real estate in Jacksonville.
• Focus Areas: His expertise lies in urban infill projects and historic retail strips, where he has demonstrated the ability to increase neighborhood rents by up to 300% through strategic merchandising.
• Pearl Square: Clark is a lead figure in the $750 million first phase of Pearl Square, a 30-block downtown Jacksonville redevelopment. This project includes 300,000 square feet of retail and approximately 1,250 multifamily units.
• Strategic Approach: His team partners with developers early in the design phase to consult on public realm aesthetics and merchandising plans. He actively scouts new concepts by traveling to numerous cities annually to meet with independent restaurateurs and retailers.

Brands and Categories

Matthew Clark works with authentic and "umami" food and beverage brands like Indigo Road and Ariete Hospitality, while also targeting soft goods, luxury fashion, and home furnishing groups such as Todd Snyder, Reformation, Sezane, Mango, Design Within Reach, and LA Relaxed.

Retail expert Maria Royer (Principal at Real Retail) explores the unique "local first" consumer culture in Seattle where national restaurants struggle due to the strong foodie scene, high minimum wage, and "no tip credit" state status.

Maria, a true market authority and Principal at Real Retail, has been shaping the Seattle skyline for over 30 years. She is the force behind the retail strategies for iconic projects like Amazon's World Headquarters and Ranier Square, and the broker who brings global heavyweights like Uniqlo and Sephora into the market.

Maria spent 10 years working on Amazon's World Headquarters retail strategy, calling it a career high, and was focused on creating something local, unique, and beloved.

As a member of the President's Round Table for the Downtown Seattle Association, Maria confirms the retail energy returning downtown, evidenced by Equinox's success; reporting one of their most successful openings outside of New York.

Hear details on how Nordstrom Rack's new lease with BH Properties at the former I. Magnin site (601 Pine) near Westlake Park is pivotal to the city's future. We also discuss the 1200 Stewart development, envisioned by West Bank Properties of Vancouver and partnered with OPTrust, which will host a Trader Joe's and a new Live Nation venue.

Finally, Maria discusses the importance of using digital platforms like Brandmarch to cultivate relationships across the country.

The wellness real estate sector is booming, and we're diving deep into the movement that is [solidcore].

On this episode of ‘Behind the Lease’, we sit down with Josh Rainey, Head of Real Estate for [solidcore], who is leading their massive expansion and shares the strategy behind opening 27 new studios in 2025 alone.

Josh discusses [solidcore]'s growth, accelerating post-COVID from its 2013 DC origins, and how his unique background shapes site selection. He explains how he applies lessons from CloudKitchens, a model based on invisibility and efficiency, to [solidcore]'s focus on visibility and community.

We cover:

• [solidcore]'s Accelerated Growth. The brand's journey from a single DC studio built by hand to an acceleration post-COVID, including opening 27 studios in 2025.
• The Unique Site Selection Lens. How his time at CloudKitchens taught him to look at the total addressable market potential and use a "marketing lens" on data, prioritizing the "psychographic blend" of a community to identify consumers who will be "easy to convert".
• The Shift to Suburban Centers. Why the urban-first brand is successfully making the leap to suburban shopping centers, navigating lower-density environments, and increasing store square footage to enhance the client experience.
• The 18-Hour Ecosystem. The ideal location criteria: a blend of lifestyle and daily needs components, with co-tenants like grocers, soft goods, buzzy cafes, or local restaurant groups to ensure the center feels comfortable and exciting during the brand's key revenue-driving times (early mornings and late evenings).
• New Expansion Markets. The strategy of balancing infill in major population centers (California, Texas, Florida) with entry into secondary and tertiary markets that might surprise people, like Oklahoma City, Rhode Island, and Buffalo, NY.
• Real Estate as Brand Positioning. The value of using curated platforms like Brandmarch to drive consistency in real estate choice, safeguard brand positioning, and ensure the brand remains selective towards the premium end of retail.

This is a practical conversation about how boutique fitness brands are charting a course for expansion in modern retail markets, using unique data insights to fuel rapid, intentional growth.

Josh Rainey's Areas of Expertise

• Wellness real estate expansion and strategy
• Tenant representation for boutique fitness brands
• Site selection using psychographic data and market conversion potential
• Mastering the shift from urban-first to suburban mixed-use assets
• Developing co-tenancy and "18-hour ecosystems" for client retention

Markets Discussed

• DC (Adams Morgan)
• Atlanta
• Charlotte
• New York City suburbs
• Oklahoma City
• Rhode Island
• Las Vegas
• Salt Lake City
• California
• Texas
• Florida
• The Carolinas
• Buffalo, NY

In this episode of 'Behind the Lease', we sit down with retail real estate expert Jeremy Zidell for an in-depth look at his career journey, current brand collaborations, and a definitive breakdown of two major retail markets: Dallas's Knox Street and the massive, highly-curated Dublin Village project in Columbus.

The Dublin Village Project

Zidell details the vision for Dublin Village, a project driven by the desire for highly curated, artisan projects that offer an alternative to traditional centers like Easton Town Center.

• Scale and Delivery: The project is approximately 135,000 square feet of gross leasable area (GLA). It is scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2028 and will likely include both retail and office components.
• Targeted Mix: The vision focuses on best-in-class food and beverage (F&B), instructor-led fitness, and a smaller format furniture component.
• Fashion DNA: The fashion component will span contemporary brands through the lower end of luxury, citing Reformation, Rag & Bone, and Alice + Olivia as examples.

Knox Street and Henderson Avenue Insights

Zidell contrasts the distinct "DNA" of two key Dallas retail neighborhoods:

• Knox Street: Analogized to a combination of New York's SoHo and Madison Avenue, the environment is described as polished and regal. Zidell predicts that in five years, Knox will be a much taller, denser version of itself, becoming an "ecosystem and de facto small city unto itself".
• Henderson Avenue: Inspired by Abbott Kinney architecture, this market aims for a more ingratiated feel within the East Dallas community. It is expected to maintain a "cool kid" nature with lower-end contemporary aspirational brands.

Evolution of Brand-Side Decision Making

Zidell notes a significant shift in brand leasing decisions, emphasizing that decision-makers are now hyperfocused on the quality, resume, and track record of developers and deal sponsors. He highlights that while data is key, the business remains heavily reliant on relationships and placing trust in the "jockey" (developer) behind a project to subtract risk from the equation.

Career Path and Brand Collaborations

Learn about Zidell's start in retail real estate 22 years ago, which began unexpectedly after working in the restaurant business at Mi Cocina. He was hired alongside David Fazio as one of The Retail Connection's first interns.

Today, his team works with brands considered the "darlings of their category", including Equinox, Pura Vida, Papa's Bagel, Sézane, Framebridge, and Boll & Branch.

Retail demand in many U.S. markets is strong again. The challenge isn’t finding brands—it’s finding space.

In this episode of Behind the Lease, we sit down with Erik Christopher, a Denver-based retail real estate broker with decades of experience working across landlord, tenant, and national brand roles.

Erik shares how his career started leasing shopping centers in the Baltimore area, why working inside a retailer like Gap gave him a deeper understanding of store performance, and how that dual perspective shapes the way he advises brands and developers today.

We talk about what’s happening in the Denver retail market, why high-demand districts like Cherry Creek have almost no available space, and how some shopping centers that struggled when they opened are finally seeing their markets grow into them.

Erik also walks through the redevelopment of The Shops at Northfield, a large mixed retail center built on the former Stapleton airport site, where new ownership and population growth are helping reposition the project with major tenants and new brands.

Throughout the conversation, Erik explains how retailers think about market strategy—from the first store in a market to the second wave of expansion—and why patience and brand discipline often matter more than speed.

We cover:

• How Erik Christopher got his start in retail real estate
• What working inside Gap taught him about how stores actually perform
• Why understanding both landlord and tenant perspectives changes how deals get done
• The current supply shortage in top retail corridors like Cherry Creek
• How retailers decide whether to wait for the right location or expand elsewhere
• Why some shopping centers built decades ago are only now reaching their potential
• The redevelopment and leasing strategy behind The Shops at Northfield

This is a practical conversation about how retail expansion works in real markets—where growth is uneven, great space is limited, and the best locations are rarely available for long.

Erik Christopher's Areas of Expertise

• Denver retail real estate
• Tenant representation for national brands
• Shopping center leasing and repositioning
• Retail rollout strategy and market entry
• Mixed-use and lifestyle center merchandising
• Mountain West retail expansion

Check out Erik's profile on Brandmarch: https://www.brandmarch.com/user/erik-christopher

Markets Discussed

Denver

Cherry Creek

Boulder

Central Park (Stapleton redevelopment area)

Brands Mentioned in the Episode

Gap

Old Navy

American Eagle

Wayfair

Lifetime Fitness

MINISO

What does it actually take to build (and sustain) one of the strongest high streets in the country?

In this episode of Behind the Lease, Brett Robinson sits down with David Waldman, a broker and developer who has spent more than three decades shaping downtown Westport, Connecticut. From historic restorations to national retail leases, David has worked both as an owner and as a street retail broker, giving him a rare perspective on how great retail districts evolve.

They discuss:

• How Westport expanded beyond Main Street into a connected “Golden Triangle”
• Why parking, residential density, and food & beverage shifted the street’s economics
• How rents moved from $60 post-COVID back into the $120+ range
• Why small spaces can command the highest rents
• The underwriting realities behind cap rates, redevelopment, and flood mitigation
• What brands Westport supports, and where it likely caps out
• Why high streets thrive on thoughtful curation, not just demand

It’s a practical conversation about retail fundamentals... place-making, risk, tenant mix, and the long arc of market cycles.

If you work on high streets, represent national brands, or invest in mixed-use downtowns, this episode offers perspective grounded in real transactions.

Brands Mentioned:

West Elm, Gap Kids, Domain, Starbucks, Sundance, Chanel Beauty, Vince, Eileen Fisher, Ryridge Deli, Express, Urban Outfitters, Lux Bond & Green, Brooks Brothers, Lululemon, Alo, Vuori, Beyond Yoga, Brandy Melville

Retail expansion often looks fast from the outside. In reality, it’s slow, local, and full of tradeoffs.

In this episode of Behind the Lease, we sit down with Jennifer Price, one of Washington, DC’s most experienced high-street retail brokers, to talk about what actually drives success on streets like Georgetown and 14th Street.

Jennifer shares how she broke into retail real estate, why DC rewards consistency over flash, and what brands misunderstand about urban storefronts—especially when inventory is tight and rents keep climbing.

We cover:

• Why DC shoppers gravitate toward quality, not trends
• How multi-level, narrow storefronts change deal math
• What rising rents mean for brands entering market today
• The real differences between high streets and shopping centers
• Why relationships still matter—but only when paired with context

Jennifer also walks through current projects in Georgetown, including large-format redevelopments that are rare for the market, and explains how brands are adapting as demand continues to outpace supply.

This is a practical conversation about how retail actually works on the ground—where constraints are real, and good decisions compound over time.

Jennifer Price — Areas of Expertise

• High-street retail in Washington, DC
• Tenant representation for national and emerging brands
• Urban storefront strategy (multi-level & historic buildings)
• Market positioning for conservative, quality-led brands
• Navigating supply-constrained, high-rent environments
• Redevelopment and repositioning of complex retail assets

Brands Mentioned in the Episode

Lululemon, Veronica Beard, Vuori, Alo, J.Crew, Aritzia, Uniqlo

Dave's Hot Chicken has grown fast, but not by accident.

In our conversation, Dannon Shiff, SVP of Real Estate, shared why the real differentiator is selecting sites for long-term success. He highlighted how Dave’s considers modern customer behavior, third-party delivery, in-person traffic, and the responsibility of protecting franchisee investments.

It’s a strategic approach shaped by a brand that grew out of COVID and understands how the trade area has evolved since the early days of Fast Casual.