ICSC RECon Attendees Talk Trends, Expectations

Part 1 of 2

Stephanie Skrbin, a principal with Avison Young, travels to a lot of shows throughout the year, but says that ICSC’s RECon is the show to mingle and interact with her fellow real estate professionals, and she is very much looking forward to it. If you are like Skrbin, and are heading to the big event this weekend in Las Vegas, you aren’t alone. We, along with 40,000 or so attendees will also be there, so we took some time out to exclusively talk trends and expectations with some attendees before the big event.

“I expect the conversation to revolve around what the industry will look like in five to 10 years. Even though our industry seems to be in a constant state of upheaval, there is a lot of positive momentum around the retail space, and disruption is going to give us a lot to think about,” Skrbin tells GlobeSt.com. “We want to talk to others about the emerging retail concepts that are going to define 2018 and beyond, since there are a lot of intriguing concepts that are starting to take shape. Combining digital outlets with physical spaces is definitely something that is going to happen a lot, but we’re seeing some of these online-only entities just dipping their toes in the physical waters (at least at first.) That should change as more and more companies do it,” Skrbin says.

Another idea gaining steam is the showroom strategy, she adds. “This allows major brands to “right-size” their locations and give shoppers a more personal experience by deploying experts and stylists on-site to assist in making shopping more efficient. And what is the thought around turning anchor parcels into more kid-friendly options? Some locations might think about incorporating a Kid City (or similar) to draw parents that see this as an opportunity to give their kids an option while the parent shops.”

GlobeSt.com also caught up with veteran retail real estate executive and past ICSC Trustee, Michael Glimcher, who this year, will attend his first RECon as CEO of Starwood Retail Partners. He tells GlobeSt.com that he expects an optimistic event for an industry that must adapt to a changing customer.

“RECon has always been a place to reconnect with industry friends and trends, and I anticipate that as much as ever. Our team’s schedules are booked,” he says. “While much has been made of store closures in over the past 18 months, much less discussed is the number of store openings, and the new retailers from around the globe and around the Internet that are looking to take space in our properties.”

What will be fascinating this year, he says, is how the industry focuses on innovation in terms of reusing space. “Food & beverage will become ever more prominent in our portfolio, and we are continuing to add new non-retail uses as spaces become available. We must think of our properties not just as ‘shopping centers’ but as places for our guests to be entertained, to work and to experience life. Our meetings with retailers will focus on their concerns and needs as we evolve our properties into mixed-use cores of our communities. I expect some fascinating conversations – and some exciting deals in the days and weeks afterward.”

When we asked Heather Danko, president and CEO of Olivia and Rose & Associates, how she expects this conference to be different than past years, she said that exhibitors at the conference will be increasing their use of technology to market their brands and services to the customer and client.

Technology was also top of mind when we chatted with Josh Poag, president and CEO of Poag Shopping Centers. “The conversation of what’s next will dominate the halls of the show and we expect to come away from these discussions with some interesting insight that we can take back to our portfolio. Our goal currently is coming up with the best ideas to provide our customers with the most innovative current trends in restaurants, fitness, “retailtainment” and technology. We are also interested in discussing the current perceptions of retail with the financial community to determine the best ways to take advantage of the current climate.”

As for what Poag is looking forward to? Like most attendees, he is looking forward to meeting with other lifestyle center developers, lenders and equity partners to pick their brains about what they’re seeing happening in the space. “We are interested in learning about some of the emerging and innovative retail concepts that we could target as prospective tenants in the future at our centers, including the slew of on-line retailers looking for bricks and mortar locations. We see a shift occurring in what tenants are looking for so we want to stay on the cutting edge of offerings to stay top-of-mind with potential clients.”

Hear more from experts in the next few days as we fully cover the RECon 2018 event, with thoughts not only from attendees and panelists, but coverage of sessions, parties and more.