Two ways to circle the world / Holidays in the Big Apple / Hot Food and Beverage Trends

Two ways to circle the world

When coaching people on how to ‘work a room’ I offer two methods:  circulate the room or let the room circulate around you.  Spinning this concept a bit - this week, rather than being ‘on the road’ I was in New York, but had numerous meetings with people from other parts of the world. 

One young professional, born and raised in the US and employed by a global real estate development company, had just returned from one of many periodic trips to China when we saw each other.  He is raising money from individual investors - the Chinese love investing in the US and especially New York City!

Another meeting was over lunch with a good friend in from San Francisco.  His capital raising efforts are strictly domestic, although he works for a global real estate investment management firm.  We talked about the not un-common challenge of getting people to reply to an email or return a phone call and the ‘elation’ when they simply do!  

Brainstorming on ideas to improve results were relegated to our next encounter which we agreed would be over cocktails and dinner and which would certainly produce the answer!

Visiting from Hong Kong was a former colleague who started her own real estate investment advisory firm about two years ago.  Her niche is partnering European and Asian capital with US real estate developers.  Business is good. She and I both favor the exciting and fulfilling ‘uncertainty’ of entrepreneurship over being an employee in a large corporation.

Imagining Manhattan as the ‘room you’re working’ is a daunting thought.  But given the magnetic character of the real estate capital of the world, if you make yourself available to your global colleagues, in time the ‘room’ will circle around you!

Holidays in the Big Apple

It’s special in New York as we head into Thanksgiving and the gift-giving season. The brisk early winter air is invigorating.  The ice on the Rockefeller Center rink has been in place since October 12 and more and more holiday lights are being plugged in every day alerting the consumer that it’s time to get busy! 

The city is a wonderful place to bring children of all ages, to simply walk around, shop or perhaps take a spin on the ice at Rock Center or Bryant Park. Hey, if you are going to be in New York over the holidays and have some extra time, please reach out to me.  I’d love to meet you and toast to a healthy, happy and prosperous 2014! 

Hot Food & Beverage Trends

Some years ago my former boss hired a restaurant consultant named Michael Whiteman.  We were planning  to build our second enclosed regional mall in the Baton Rouge, LA market and wanted to differentiate it from the first. 

Whiteman’s idea was to create a unique food court of local and regional restaurants. He suggested a Louisiana road trip to experience the indigenous cuisine. I was lucky enough to be asked to accompany Michael on this adventure.  That trip is indelibly etched in my mind and on my palate!

Over the course of four days we worked (and ate) our way through Bayou country, stopping to sample truly incredible Creole and other cooking.  It was a delightful experience as Michael really knew his way around, bringing us to some tiny gems of restaurants that only a local might know.

Baum+Whiteman, a consulting business formed by Michael and the late restaurant industry legend Joe Baum, are considered to be on the leading edge of the food and beverage world.  The firm just released their annual “12 Hottest Food & Beverage Trends for Restaurant and Hotel Dining for 2014 + 30 Buzzwords.” Take a look at it here:  (http://baumwhiteman.com/2014TrendForecast.pdf). 

After devouring it, you will be the one making the cool gastronomic suggestions to friends and colleagues.  Bon appetite!

On The Road...

Nov. 20 - 21:  Johns Hopkins University to conduct a workshop for students in the Edward St. John Real Estate Program, Washington, DC

Jan. 22 - 24, 2014:  IMN (Information Management Network) Winter Forum on Opportunity and Private Fund Investing, Laguna Beach, CA

Mar. 11 - 14: MIPIM, Cannes, France (planned)

Disclaimer 

All content in this blog is created for informational purposes only. Content, which includes all text, photos, video and graphics is not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company or individual.  Steve Felix makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or other information as a result of following any featured link to or from this site.  The intention of this blog is to do no harm in regards to injury, defamation or libel. What is written or shown is not to be taken as fact or absolute.  Steve Felix will hold himself harmless for any errors or omissions in this blog’s information; including but not limited to external link information, translation or interpretation of content or incorrect grammar or punctuation. 

PREA / Music & Business Mix / Where Angels Play

PREA

Congratulations to Gail Haynes, President of the Pension Real Estate Association, and her team for producing another successful event!  Approximately 900 commercial real estate industry professionals converged on Chicago’s Fairmont Hotel last week for the 23^rd annual Conference.  This is historically the most well attended event in the industry bringing together pension funds, their managers and other service providers.  The upbeat conversations at the venue were sprinkled with talk of bursting bubbles, sinking cap rates, and rising interest rates.

During breaks and meals I noticed many people hanging out with their peers, often in the same age range.  While this is often comfortable, this may limit opportunities to hear fresh ideas.  

I’m including a link to an interesting Forbes posting on ‘reverse mentoring’ which talks of the benefits of generational knowledge sharing.   I challenge you to read this 2011 article, if you haven’t already, and not think differently.

(http://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-progress/2011/01/03/reverse-mentoring-what-is-it-and-why-is-it-beneficial).

Music and Business mix 

Last Monday night two well-known industry personalities hosted their third annual music event during a PREA conference.  Fred Gortner of Paladin Realty and Ryan Krauch of MesaWest were the orchestrators of this get-together.

Held in Chicago’s House of Blues, it was one of the most fun evenings I’ve had in a long time.  A blues band had been hired and alerted to the fact that some of the audience may want to sit in with the band – and that’s just what happened!!

Gortner is a fabulous guitar player with whom I’ve jammed before.  Joining us was Triton Pacific’s Scott Arden, a solid drummer.  Steve Vittorio of Prudential and Joe Nahas of Equus Partners were dynamic rhythm guitarists – Vittorio also adding vocals to the mix. I have known Steve a long time but until that night didn’t know he was a musician.  Quilvest's Ione Permison and her tambourine added a special dimension and I played keyboards and sang a few songs.

The next day there was a little music buzz at the PREA conference.  It was a real treat to mix business and pleasure and share the stage with industry friends who happen to be talented musicians as well.  Thanks Fred and Ryan for thinking outside the ‘box set’ of business.

Where Angels Play

It’s been a year since Hurricane Sandy devastated the northeast and almost one year since the senseless shooting massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.  

Last weekend while visiting friends in Island Park, Long Island we stopped at the site of a brand new playground, which replaces the one damaged by the hurricane.  A group of New Jersey firefighters created a non-profit organization called The Sandy Ground Project to build 26 playgrounds in 26 different communities - one for each of the 26 Newtown victims.  ‘Where Angels Play’ is the theme of the Sandy Ground project.

The new pink 2,600 square-foot playground in Island Park is named after 6-year-old Sandy Hook victim, Caroline Previdi. She loved the color pink.   Seeing her photograph at the entrance to the playground was so very sad.  The loss of the possibilities of life that Caroline left behind is unfathomable.  The naming of playgrounds after her and other young victims is a beautiful, simple and powerful tribute.  

Congratulations...

Doug Abbey has joined Swift Real Estate Partners as Chairman

Mike Coster has launched Kimberlite Advisors

Benjamin Linder joined LGT Clerestory

On The Road...

Nov. 20 - 21:  Johns Hopkins University, Carey Business School, Edward St. John Real Estate Program; Conducting a workshop for students: Careers in Real Estate / Interview Skills, Drills & Thrills, Washington, DC

Disclaimer 

All content in this blog is created for informational purposes only. Content, which includes all text, photos, video and graphics is not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company or individual.  Steve Felix makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or other information as a result of following any featured link to or from this site.  The intention of this blog is to do no harm in regards to injury, defamation or libel. What is written or shown is not to be taken as fact or absolute.  Steve Felix will hold himself harmless for any errors or omissions in this blog’s information; including but not limited to external link information, translation or interpretation of content or incorrect grammar or punctuation. 

PERE Summit / Wrong way turns out right / NAREIM Job Fair

PERE Summit          

More than 250 delegates attended this week’s Private Equity Real Estate Summit in New York City.   The audience was sprinkled with a healthy cross-section of commercial and institutional real estate professionals. 

The size of the group and setup at the Convene Conference Center allowed participants to network and have substantive conversations with one another. Clearly, bigger is not always better when it comes to industry events.

When the audience was asked to vote on which property bubble would burst first, New York and London luxury residential were the leaders.  Later, a panelist commented that while there’s a lot of foreign money being ‘parked’ in New York via really, really expensive apartments (one building now approaching $6,000 per square foot!) he didn’t see that this insane pricing trend could continue for much longer…but, then again, who really knows?

The panel I moderated included Jeff Blau of Related, Marty Burger of Silverstein Properties and Kevin Davis of Taconic Investment Partners.  Related is the developer of Hudson Yards, which may be the largest real estate development ever undertaken in the United States.  Silverstein was the owner of the World Trade Center at the time of the September 11 terrorist attack in 2001.  Silverstein is getting very close to opening their new building at 4 World Trade Center.

Taconic Investment Partners is housed in the Google building at 111 Eighth Avenue, which they formerly owned and continue to manage.  Kevin said the atmosphere in some ways is like a large, multi-storied college campus. Very cool…as you would expect from Google!

Audience curiosity was spirited regarding the Hudson Yards and WTC developments. Efficiency of space was mentioned as one of the most important criteria in attracting large office tenants. Both projects will have significant retail and restaurant components.  When completed, Hudson Yards will have 30,000 people working and 10,000 people living in its neighborhood from 10 to 12 Avenues between 30 and 33 streets. It is being developed on a 26-acre parcel, the largest single piece of undeveloped land in Manhattan with 14 acres allocated to open space and parks. The scale of this project is mind-boggling, even for someone from New York!

Those of us who have developed or redeveloped a property know the courage, stamina and resources needed to take the project from start to finish.  It’s not for the faint of heart.  But there’s nothing like the experience of visiting a site where construction is taking place and feeling the energy and seeing its progress.   Not to mention the satisfaction from visiting the finished building and watching the tenants move in. 

When I was a kid my grandfather took me to a construction site in Manhattan.  Peep-through holes had been created in the wooden barricade walls surrounding the site at varying heights to allow kids and adults to view what was going on.  I was a ‘Sidewalk Superintendent’ - a term introduced in the 1940’s to describe pedestrians stopping to watch construction or demolition work. Possibly due to insurance risk, those holes in the walls are no longer part of the construction landscape.  But I’ll never forget my grandfather holding my hand and taking me to see that building under construction.  Just one of those fond childhood memories that never disappear. 

Grandpa was a furrier most of his career.  After retirement age he started working in an admin role for a real estate company.  He told me a mysterious real estate related story about his father, my great-great grandfather, Simon Silverman.  The legend goes that Simon owned a number of small apartment buildings on upper Park Avenue in Manhattan.  Somehow, the ownership of these buildings was taken from him.  It was never clear if this was the result of a partnership dispute, unpaid taxes or a foreclosure. It seems that no one will ever know the real truth as all who might have known have since passed on.  But isn’t that sometimes what hand-me-down family stories are all about??

Wrong way turns out right      

My friend and I were getting on the #7 train at Grand Central heading to Times Square to catch the #1 uptown.  We were talking and obviously weren’t paying attention.  When the train made the next stop it was clear we had gone in the wrong direction.

Vernon Boulevard was the stop. Neither of us had ever been there.  It was one of those annoying stations that require you to exit and repay to go in the other direction. Once at street level we noticed there were restaurants on three of the four corners.  We were both famished so they all looked good.  “You pick one,” I was told.  I looked at each from a distance and said, “That one…Chez Henri.”

We walked into the quaint little café - one that might be found in a small French village.  It was lunchtime and, while we were shown to an empty table, the hostess warned us that it may take a while to get our food.  We liked the place  and decided to stay.

I’ve learned over the years that not everyone is a ‘sharing’ type eater but my dining companion and I have this in common.  First we shared a crepe…mushrooms, leek and goat cheese.  Tres bonne!  We then shared a sandwich…grilled chicken, swiss cheese and ratatouille on a wonderful Ciabatta.  Equally excellent!! 

Cafe Henri is named after a sweet dog whose picture is both on their business card and in a photo that hung behind our table.  This place is worth checking out at 1010 50th Ave, Long Island City. They actually have another location in Manhattan, at 27 Bedford St (between Downing St & Houston St) which we now also plan to try!

The piece de resistance at lunch was when “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” started playing as we were leaving.  My favorite song.  Magnifique!  Moments like these – they just happen.  Enjoy them.  Relish them.  No food pun intended!

NAREIM Job Fair

The National Association of Real Estate Investment Managers is holding their first job fair. 

Students attending the Urban Land Institute (ULI) fall meeting in Chicago have the opportunity to spend time meeting with a number of leading investment management firms at the NAREIM headquarters located in the Wrigley Building on Michigan Avenue and the Chicago River.

Register here for the job fair.

When

Tuesday, November 5, 2013 / 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Where

NAREIM

410 N. Michigan Ave.

Suite N330

Chicago, IL 60611

312-884-5180

Congratulations…

Elaine Philis who has joined TGM.

Monica Khalid now with Sentinel Real Estate.

Lindsey Sugar joined Triton Pacific.

On the Road...

Oct. 28 - 30:  PREA (Pension Real Estate Association) Annual Investor Real Estate Conference, Chicago, IL

Nov. 20 - 21:  Johns Hopkins University, Carey Business School, Edward St. John Real Estate Program; Conducting a workshop for students: Careers in Real Estate / Interview Skills, Drills & Thrills, Washington, DC

Disclaimer 

All content in this blog is created for informational purposes only. Content, which includes all text, photos, video and graphics is not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company or individual.  Steve Felix makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or other information as a result of following any featured link to or from this site.  The intention of this blog is to do no harm in regards to injury, defamation or libel. What is written or shown is not to be taken as fact or absolute.  Steve Felix will hold himself harmless for any errors or omissions in this blog’s information; including but not limited to external link information, translation or interpretation of content or incorrect grammar or punctuation. 

Greetings from the Windy City / Realty Club of Chicago

Greetings from the Windy City

Midway airport is packed.  It’s Friday afternoon and the restaurant is full of people with luggage next to every table - making it virtually impossible to navigate by either guests or staff.  There are no available power outlets anywhere and my laptop is losing juice!  

I feel almost like a teenager again at Harry Carry’s...the law is that everyone has to show photo ID before being served a cocktail! 

After a whirlwind couple of days, and testing out CTA’s Orange line to the airport, we are exhausted.  The nicest man from the Chicago Transit Authority helped us out buying our ticket from a less-than-friendly vending machine – and it made for a good discussion and an enjoyable ride. 

This week was a busy one for Liz Weiner and I in Chicago.  My partner attended the second annual NAREIM (National Association of Real Estate Investment Managers) Human Resources Council meeting while I met with some of my contacts around town. At the end of the week we were invited to speak at the Realty Club of Chicago (more on that later).

Liz spoke highly of the HR conference that took place in NAREIM’s new office in the landmark and LEED-certified Wrigley Building.  In addition to a lively discussion around the diversity (or lack thereof) in the commercial real estate workforce, interesting and challenging HR conversations covered succession planning, compensation, HR technology, employee benefits and the Affordable Care Act as well as the impact of the ACA on real estate firms of varying size. 

NAREIM CEO, Gunnar Branson, seemed to do an excellent job stimulating discussion and encouraging the exchange of ideas.  Here are a few interesting tidbits from the HR conference:

• Workforce diversity is a challenge in the real estate industry that needs to be addressed.
• Long-term incentive, as a compensation component, might be ‘wasted’ on the  junior associate who may not fully understand this incentive and may not visualize themselves at the company for the length of time necessary to fully realize the benefit.  It was alluded to that, instead of giving the younger work force a $10,000 long-term incentive, firms might be better off simply giving a $5,000 bonus - in cash.  
• Succession planning is often a difficult subject for some executives to focus on.  It requires leaders to look at their own vulnerability.  Smaller firms have different challenges than larger ones in this area.  It is so important to assure that you have leadership going forward….it requires top management to look at their organization from a new perspective…one that may not include them. 
• A few of the top reasons people stay with a company:
• Compensation
• Culture
• Company has a game plan for the future and is able to communicate that clearly  (this particularly holds true for ‘junior’ employees). 
• Like Warren Buffett speaks of under-valued assets, it would be wise to look at ‘under-valued’ talent. Paying attention to high-potential folks in your own workforce that might need just a little more training, coaching and mentoring to achieve their full potential may be well worth the effort, for the company and for the individual.  And this would certainly increase morale in the workplace.

Liz felt the conference was thought provoking and time well spent, allowing real estate industry HR professionals to connect with their peers. 

If the HR professionals in your firm are not yet familiar with the NAREIM HR Council event, it would be worthwhile to share this information with them.

Realty Club of Chicago

John Rutledge, one of the members of the legendary Realty Club of Chicago, noticed in last week’s column that I would be in Chicago this week.  He reached out to have us invited to attend their weekly luncheon.  Fortunately, we were available (and hungry!).  

While their luncheon speakers typically deliver a talk or presentation related to a real estate deal, Liz and I orchestrated a unique interactive presentation coaching session that seemed to be received extremely well.  (Thank you to our volunteer McKim Barnes and all other members for their active participation!)

“The Realty Club of Chicago was founded in 1910 and meets on Fridays at noon during eight months of the year at the Union League Club at 65 W Jackson Blvd. There are “open sessions” and formal presentations to our members who comprise an eclectic group of real estate developers, architects, attorneys, economists, brokers, appraisers, bankers, property owners, and other professionals who serve the real estate industry.”  (Taken from their website)

The camaraderie of this group is enviable.  Attendees showed considerable respect and genuine enjoyment being in each other’s company.  This translated into a workshop environment where honest and open commentary benefited everyone. 

We look forward to the next time we are in Chicago on a Friday afternoon and can join this enduring real estate luncheon group.

On the Road...

Oct. 23 - 24:  PERE (Private Equity Real Estate) Summit New York, 2013. Serving as Chairman / Moderator, New York, NY

Oct. 28 - 30:  PREA (Pension Real Estate Association) Annual Investor Real Estate Conference, Chicago, IL

Nov. 13 -15:  NCREIF (National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries), Fall Meeting, Miami Beach, FL

Nov. 20 - 21:  Johns Hopkins University, Carey Business School, Edward St. John Real Estate Program; Conducting a workshop for students: Careers in Real Estate / Interview Skills, Drills & Thrills, Washington, DC

Disclaimer 

All content in this blog is created for informational purposes only. Content, which includes all text, photos, video and graphics is not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company or individual.  Steve Felix makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or other information as a result of following any featured link to or from this site.  The intention of this blog is to do no harm in regards to injury, defamation or libel. What is written or shown is not to be taken as fact or absolute.  Steve Felix will hold himself harmless for any errors or omissions in this blog’s information; including but not limited to external link information, translation or interpretation of content or incorrect grammar or punctuation. 

My father didn’t eat sushi

My father didn't eat sushi

There’s this gem of a sushi place near my apartment called Fuji Sushi.  I’ve been frequenting it for the past four years.   Typically, I sit at the sushi bar and watch Chen, the head sushi chef, create delectable sushi and sashimi. The other night I observed two men seated at a table in my sightline.  While not eavesdropping, I realized it was a father and son. The son was probably in his late 40’s and the father could have been anywhere from 75 to 85.  

I didn’t hear any of their actual conversation but did periodically look over and watch them interact.  I missed my father.  While he never ate sushi, Dad would accompany my sons and me, and our extended family, to Japanese restaurants where he ate…was it tempura??   He was always a good sport about the choice of restaurants, although he consistently made comments like, “How can you eat raw fish?!”  

November will be four years since my Dad died. He was 92.  No one would have guessed he was in his early 90s until his last year with us; he always had an amazingly youthful look. 

It’s incredible how time is slipping away from us…can you believe that we’re already into the fourth quarter of 2013?  Cher sang about wanting to ‘turn back time.’ Even if we try, with all our might, we cannot go back; we cannot change what has happened.  We can live today and plan for tomorrow.  We can look back and see where we might have made previous errors in judgment, done some dumb things or even said something that hurt someone.

Like many in the real estate investment world say, we can benefit from “lessons learned.”  And, if we can learn and take those lessons forward so that we’re not making the same mistakes over and over again, we should feel proud of ourselves. But change is not easy!  

My dad was pretty stuck in his ways.  I don’t believe that he felt he needed to change anything about himself.  I liked my father.  And, the other night, watching that man interact with his Dad, I simply missed Manney Felix.  

On the Road...

Oct. 16 - 18: Client meetings, Chicago, IL

Oct. 23 - 24:  PERE (Private Equity Real Estate) Summit New York, 2013. Serving as Chairman / Moderator, New York, NY

Oct. 28 - 30:  PREA (Pension Real Estate Association) Annual Investor Real Estate Conference, Chicago, IL

Nov. 13 -15:  NCREIF (National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries), Fall Meeting, Miami Beach, FL

Nov. 20 - 21:  Johns Hopkins University, Carey Business School, Edward St. John Real Estate Program; Conducting a workshop for students: Careers in Real Estate / Interview Skills, Drills & Thrills, Washington, DC

Disclaimer 

All content in this blog is created for informational purposes only. Content, which includes all text, photos, video and graphics is not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company or individual.  Steve Felix makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or other information as a result of following any featured link to or from this site.  The intention of this blog is to do no harm in regards to injury, defamation or libel. What is written or shown is not to be taken as fact or absolute.  Steve Felix will hold himself harmless for any errors or omissions in this blog’s information; including but not limited to external link information, translation or interpretation of content or incorrect grammar or punctuation. 

Disclaimer 

All content in this blog is created for informational purposes only. Content, which includes all text, photos, video and graphics is not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company or individual.  Steve Felix makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or other information as a result of following any featured link to or from this site.  The intention of this blog is to do no harm in regards to injury, defamation or libel. What is written or shown is not to be taken as fact or absolute.  Steve Felix will hold himself harmless for any errors or omissions in this blog’s information; including but not limited to external link information, translation or interpretation of content or incorrect grammar or punctuation.