How Disruption in the Retail Sector is Affecting Commercial Real Estate
Hyatt Regency Boston
One Avenue de LaFayette, Boston MA
Public
As a consumer, are you buying everything from groceries to clothing online? As a real estate professional, are you seeing the impact of quickly shifting shopping habits change the way traditional retail space is or could be occupied? From clicks to bricks and experiential consumerism, there are many powerful trends at work, impacting everything from the size of commercial spaces; the look and feel of destination shopping; the rationale for what stores are actually for; and new ways of activating ground floors.
Join CREW Boston at the third in a series of our "Real Disruption" luncheons at the Hyatt Regency Boston for a panel discussion featuring experts at the forefront of what is literally a changing landscape for retail and mixed-use development. Boston Globe innovation reporter Janelle Nanos will moderate as we explore the factors accelerating change -- from expectations of instant gratification and the desire for curated experiences, to apps that place your order and, course, Amazon. We'll discuss what all of this means for restaurants, boutiques, malls and main streets everywhere.
Our panel consists of:
Douglass E. Karp, president of New England Development
Doug is involved in all aspects of New England Development's business, including site acquisition, financing, permitting and planning, design, construction and leasing. He manages the firm's retail and mixed-use development projects and works closely with New England Development’s family of companies, including Nantucket Island Resorts, MarketPlace Development, The Pinehills, Newburyport Development, and Old Sandwich Golf Club. He also serves as asset manager for Nantucket Island Resorts, a collection of premier hospitality and retail properties on Nantucket. In addition to his development and asset management experience, Mr. Karp brings to New England Development the perspective of a retailer, including expertise in market research, real estate development, and marketing. Prior to joining New England Development in 1999, Douglass co-founded Lids, the specialty retail pioneer and leader of officially licensed and branded athletic fashion headgear. Under his leadership, the firm grew to include more than 400 mall-based, airport, and street level stores throughout the country. Mr. Karp serves on the boards of Boston Children’s Hospital Trust, Boston Youth Sanctuary, Combined Jewish Philanthropies, New England Aquarium, Surmesur, Union College, and the Massachusetts chapter of NAIOP where he is currently President. Douglass also serves on the Harvard Kennedy School Taubman Center Advisory Board and on the Executive Board of Marcus Smart’s YounGameChanger Foundation. He received a BS from Union College and is a graduate of the Harvard Business School Owner/President Management Executive Education Program.
Cheryl Kaplan, President and Co-Founder of M.Gemi
A retail veteran, with over 20 years of experience in the fashion industry, Cheryl Kaplan began her career as a buyer honing her skills in merchandising, assortment planning, analysis. In 1999, Cheryl joined Nickelodeon-backed start-up Red Rocket where she pioneered the movement for commercial brands to embrace the digital marketplace and create online experiences to match changing consumer behavior. The following year she was introduced to Ben Fischman at Smart Bargains. Over the next seven years, Cheryl oversaw the brand’s creative, user experience, production, and merchandise programming. In 2007, Cheryl took on the role of EVP and Chief Member Advocate of Rue La La, developing the overall brand strategy and implementing a seamless customer experience across merchandising, programming, product, mobile, customer service, brand and creative. Following the sale of Rue La La, Cheryl again joined Ben Fischman to launch M.Gemi, a brand reinventing the luxury market by bringing the highest quality, hand crafted, Italian made footwear directly to consumers at uncommon prices. As President of M.Gemi, Cheryl oversees creative and brand management, technology, client experience, merchandising, planning and programming. Under her stewardship, M.Gemi has seen rapid growth in the 2 years since launch -- swiftly moving to the forefront of the new luxury market and setting a new standard for the direct to consumer movement.
Jesse Baerkahn, President and Founder of Graffito SP
Graffito SP is a Boston-based commercial real estate company best described as part retail brokerage, part creative agency, and part urban design firm. Jesse’s multidisciplinary work at GSP combines his transactional training as an attorney and broker with lessons learned through other entrepreneurial endeavors within the real estate, arts and entertainment fields. Jesse has been working hands-on with restaurateurs, retailers, artists, makers, and other creatives in various capacities for two decades and is an outspoken advocate for real estate development strategies that embrace localism and entrepreneurship. Under his leadership GSP currently spearheads ground-floor activation initiatives for some of the region's most respected universities, corporations and real estate investors. Jesse is currently on the Board of Directors for the Kendall Square Association and was previously a Director and Board Member for the Artisan’s Asylum, a non-profit maker-space in Somerville, MA. He is a proud graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Madison (BA) and Northeastern University School of Law (JD).
Janelle Nanos, Boston Globe reporter
Janelle is a business reporter at the Boston Globe, covering retail, restaurants, and consumer culture. She thrives on diving deep into the ideas, people, and businesses that drive Boston’s economy. She has previously worked at Boston Magazine, National Geographic Traveler, and New York Magazine, and she currently teaches a class in magazine writing at Boston College. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, among other publications. She is a Senior Fellow at the Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism.
11:30 a.m. Networking & Registration
12:00 p.m. Lunch
12:20 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. Program
Hyatt Regency Boston
One Avenue de LaFayette, Boston MA
Cost
Members: $0
Non-Members: $95