Episodios

  • Retail Retold Replay: One deal, 100 calls later

    Retail Retold Replay: One deal, 100 calls later
    Sep 18 2026
    Persistence, scarce retail space and the fundamentals behind the right deal.This Retail Retold replay brings us back to a conversation with Kevin Nassimi, Vice President of Real Estate at Nassimi Realty, about a question that still matters: Does America actually have enough physical retail space?For years, the industry talked about the U.S. being over-stored. Chris Ressa and Kevin challenged that assumption, looking at the forces already reshaping retail supply, from intense demand for pad sites and limited big-box availability to former retail space being converted to multifamily, industrial, and self-storage.It’s a conversation worth revisiting because the fundamentals behind it go beyond one market cycle.Kevin shares what he was seeing across Nassimi Realty’s portfolio, including significant demand for freestanding pad sites and fewer available big-box spaces. Chris digs into why. Former 100,000-square-foot boxes have increasingly been divided among multiple tenants, expanding the pool of potential users while reducing the amount of true large-format space available.They also discuss how limited new construction and the repurposing of obsolete retail have further constrained supply. As former retail properties are converted to multifamily, industrial, self-storage, and other uses, that square footage leaves the retail market altogether.But the conversation isn’t only about supply and demand. Kevin shares the story behind bringing Burlington to a former Kmart space in Clifton, New Jersey, after reaching out close to 100 times over four years. The deal is a reminder that persistence matters, but so does knowing your asset, understanding the trade area, and recognizing when the right tenant belongs at the right property.From changing store formats and limited supply to retailer demand and the fundamentals of dealmaking, this replay takes another look at a question retail real estate is still navigating: How much physical retail space do we actually need?What You’ll HearWhy demand for retail pad sites has become so intenseHow big-box availability reached levels Kevin hasn’t seen in his careerWhy splitting former Kmart-sized boxes is changing retail supplyHow conversions to multifamily, industrial, and self-storage are removing retail space from the marketWhy high construction costs are making new retail supply even harder to deliverWhat nearly 100 calls over four years taught Kevin about persistence in leasingWhy knowing the asset and trade area matters more than accepting a retailer’s first “no”How a major wave of store closures could temporarily disrupt today’s fast leasing environmentWhy retailer optimism remains high despite broader economic uncertaintyChapters0:00 — Meet Kevin NassimiKevin shares his role at Nassimi Realty and the family-owned company’s approach to suburban shopping centers.4:53 — Clear the AirA difficult residential conversion, construction blind spots, and Kevin’s surprisingly generous philosophy on broker commissions.9:12 — 100 calls later: the Burlington dealKevin explains why he kept pursuing Burlington for years—and what finally changed.12:27 — Persistence only works if you know the real estateChris breaks down the fundamentals behind the Clifton deal, from trade-area knowledge to tenant critical mass.15:27 — What’s happening in retail right now?Kevin shares what he’s seeing across markets after reconnecting with retailers and brokers at ICSC.15:59 — Why pad sites are kingDemand for freestanding buildings and drive-thru opportunities is creating fierce competition for limited space.18:50 — Where did all the big boxes go?Chris and Kevin examine why large-format availability has tightened and how former boxes are being divided among multiple tenants.22:09 — Retail supply is disappearingConversions to industrial, multifamily, and self-storage are taking former retail square footage permanently out of the market.22:35 — Is America under-stored?Chris challenges the old assumption that the U.S. has too much physical retail.23:00 — Smaller boxes, more tenants, less riskWhy breaking up former Kmart-sized spaces has expanded the tenant pool and diversified landlord exposure.25:39 — The impact of the next major store closureChris and Kevin discuss why a large bankruptcy or closure wave could slow leasing activity far beyond the affected properties.27:07 — Retailer optimism is still highDespite economic uncertainty, Chris says the confidence among physical retailers at ICSC was hard to miss.27:51 — RadioShack, Bloomingdale’s and a serious salt toothKevin closes with the retailers he misses, how he shops, and the Target aisle
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    33 m
  • Retail Is Winning. Can Institutional Capital Keep Up?

    Retail Is Winning. Can Institutional Capital Keep Up?
    Sep 10 2026
    The case for more retail investment is getting harder to deny.

    Retail real estate has spent years proving its strength. Vacancy is tight, rents are growing and recent performance has outpaced other major commercial real estate asset classes. Yet retail still accounts for just 13% of institutional real estate holdings.

    So why hasn’t capital caught up?

    CBRE’s Karly Iacono and Chris Ressa look at the disconnect between retail’s compelling fundamentals and its relatively small share of institutional investment. The opportunity is there, but retail isn’t an easy asset class to understand from a spreadsheet.

    Co-tenancy, exclusives, tenant sales, market rents and local dynamics all influence how a shopping center performs. Two centers across the street from each other can support very different rents based on traffic, tenant performance and the strength of the individual property. Understanding those differences requires more than access to data. It requires knowing what the data means and having the ability to act on it.

    That’s where the operator becomes increasingly important.

    As institutional investors look to increase their exposure to retail, operating partners can provide the market knowledge, retailer relationships and execution needed to turn an investment thesis into actual NOI growth. Chris argues that we’re in the “age of the operator,” where simply owning the right asset may not be enough.

    And the fundamentals continue to strengthen the argument. Rent spreads are growing without sacrificing occupancy, quality retail inventory remains limited and there may still be significant room for rents and NOI to grow.

    The fundamentals are there. Now it’s a matter of who knows how to capitalize on them.

    What You’ll Hear

    • Why retail remains underallocated despite stronger fundamentals
    • How co-tenancy risk is changing for landlords and investors
    • Why operational expertise is key to unlocking value
    • How tenant sales and data shape market rent
    • Why local market knowledge can make or break a deal
    • How operating partners help institutions get comfortable with retail
    • Why retail may still have significant room to run

    Chapters

    01:16 - Why is retail still underallocated?

    Retail fundamentals are strong, but institutional ownership still trails multifamily and industrial.

    04:42 - The 13% allocation gap

    Retail represents just 13% of institutional holdings, even as recent performance has outpaced other asset classes.

    07:45 - Is co-tenancy risk overstated?

    Why the details inside the lease matter more than the presence of a co-tenancy clause itself.

    12:16 - Where operational complexity creates value

    The challenge isn’t simply running a retail asset. It’s executing the plan needed to unlock its upside.

    16:04 - What is market rent, really?

    How tenant sales and property performance can drive different rents at shopping centers across the street from each other.

    18:46 - Having the data vs. understanding it

    Why access to retail data only goes so far without the expertise to interpret and execute on it.

    19:19 - Why local market knowledge matters

    The opportunity in secondary markets, local tenants and the relationships that can’t always be captured in underwriting.

    23:30 - The age of the operator

    Why institutional investors are turning to operating partners and JVs to execute their retail investment strategies.

    26:02 - What institutional capital wants to buy

    From grocery-anchored centers to power centers, why deal type, location and quality still shape where capital moves.

    29:35 - Does retail still have room to run?

    Strong rent spreads, occupancy and NOI growth make the case for more institutional capital moving into retail
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    34 m
  • Working out solidcore's real estate growth strategy

    Working out solidcore's real estate growth strategy
    Sep 2 2026
    Prime retail space is hard to find. How does solidcore keep growing?Solidcore is scaling fast. The boutique fitness brand will have approximately 190 locations open by the end of the month, up from about 85 when Josh Rainey joined the company. It expects to reach roughly 240 locations by the end of next year.The demand is there. The real estate is the harder part.Josh, senior director of real estate and growth at solidcore, joins Chris Ressa to explain what it takes to expand a national fitness concept when nearly every growing retailer wants the same 1,800- to 3,000-square-foot spaces.Solidcore is pursuing high-quality real estate across tier-one and tier-two markets, but it does not rely on one property type. The team studies how customers move through each trade area, what conveniences they expect, and which destinations already fit their routines. A street-front studio may work in New York. Surface parking could be critical in Texas. A grocery-anchored center can win when it offers the right mix of food, services, and daily traffic.The larger lesson is that good real estate is not defined by a category. It is defined by the customer.Josh also shares how solidcore doubled the size of a high-performing Chelsea studio by taking over the adjacent space. The expansion required the brand to revisit its lease, navigate a landmarked New York City building, and connect the two studios while closing for only 72 hours. What began as an unusual solution has become a model solidcore plans to replicate.The conversation goes beyond finding available boxes. It examines how co-tenancy reinforces customer habits, why convenience changes from market to market, and how a retailer’s lease priorities evolve as the company matures.For landlords, retailers, and investors, solidcore’s growth offers a clear takeaway: winning locations come from understanding how people actually use a place—and creating enough value to make them return.What You’ll HearHow solidcore grew from approximately 85 studios to nearly 190 locationsWhy the 1,800- to 3,000-square-foot range has become one of retail’s most competitiveHow solidcore evaluates street retail, grocery-anchored centers, lifestyle projects, and freestanding locationsWhy customer behavior matters more than adhering to one preferred property typeHow food, beverage, and complementary co-tenants can reinforce a seven-visit-per-month fitness routineWhy parking expectations in Texas are different from those in Los Angeles or MiamiWhat the shift toward services, wellness, and specialized fitness means for retail real estateHow solidcore doubled the size of a successful Chelsea studioWhat a growing retailer can gain by reopening and restructuring an existing leaseWhy reliable rent payments, reinvestment, and a clear growth story matter to landlordsChapters00:00 — Welcome to Retail RetoldChris introduces Josh Rainey, senior director of real estate and growth at solidcore.01:02 — Building a career in retail real estateJosh shares how an early fascination with places and development led him to the retailer side of the business.03:16 — Solidcore’s growth storyThe brand has grown from approximately 85 locations to nearly 190, with more expansion ahead.05:10 — Where fitness spending is movingJosh explains why consumers continue to invest in health, wellness, services, and specialized workouts.06:15 — Why boutique fitness keeps fragmentingSmaller classes, specialized formats, recovery, and flexibility are reshaping the fitness landscape.09:40 — Competing for retail’s most wanted spaceSolidcore’s preferred size range puts the brand in direct competition with many other expanding concepts.11:14 — Choosing the right type of real estateStreet retail, lifestyle centers, grocery-anchored properties, and freestanding buildings can all work under the right conditions.13:34 — Co-tenancy that strengthens a routineJosh breaks down how food, beverage, and complementary brands can make a center more valuable to solidcore customers.15:00 — Convenience changes by marketParking, transit, access, and local expectations influence what makes a location viable.17:40 — The Chelsea expansion storyA high-performing studio needed more capacity, so solidcore looked through the wall instead of across the market.20:46 — Renegotiating for growthThe brand blended the expanded premises into one lease while updating language that no longer matched its standards.23:08 — Connecting two studios in 72 hoursSolidcore kept disruption to a minimum while creating a contiguous dual-studio location.24:38 — A new brand and a larger ecosystemJosh previews solidcore’s next concept and the company’s ambition to capture more of the customer’s wellness spending.25:32 — Retail rapid fireJosh makes the case for bringing back Burdines and Sharper Image—and admits where Chris would find him at Target.
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    29 m
  • A LiveView of technology, trust, and safer retail

    A LiveView of technology, trust, and safer retail
    Aug 28 2026
    How do technology and trust create safer shopping centers?Security is easy to notice after something goes wrong. The harder question is whether owners and operators are doing enough before that moment arrives.Chris Ressa talks with Mark Bradshaw, vice president of property management at DLC, and Paul Ganz, vice president of business market development at LiveView Technologies, about how retail properties can reduce risk without making customers feel like they are entering a fortress.The answer is not another camera. It is a layered security strategy built around deterrence, technology, property operations, law enforcement, and community relationships.Ganz brings an unusually broad perspective. He spent 13 years as a police officer before moving into retail loss prevention, supply chain, store operations, and corporate security. Bradshaw brings the owner-operator view, including how DLC uses mobile security units for more than surveillance. The same equipment can help property managers monitor vendors, assess weather conditions, inspect work, and maintain visibility across a geographically dispersed portfolio.The conversation also gets honest about artificial intelligence. AI can already identify loitering, unauthorized access, and other predefined behaviors without forcing someone to stare at a wall of screens. But the technology still cannot replace human judgment, direct a complete response, or build the local relationships that make security programs work.That distinction matters now. Retail centers are private property designed for public use. Owners need to protect tenants and customers while preserving a welcoming environment. Deploy too little security, and risk grows. Deploy too much without a strategy, and customers may assume the property is unsafe.The strongest takeaway is simple: security is not a product purchase. It is an operating discipline. The best results come when property owners, technology providers, guards, police departments, and local communities share information, test assumptions, and solve problems together before an incident forces the conversation at each retail property.What you’ll hearWhy deterrence is difficult to measure—and still essential to a retail security strategyHow owners can “harden” a property without making it feel unwelcomingWhy cameras, guards, environmental design, and operating protocols must work togetherHow DLC uses mobile security units to monitor vendors, weather, property conditions, and security risksWhat AI can already identify, including loitering, unauthorized access, and suspicious behaviorWhere AI still falls short and why human judgment remains criticalHow relationships with police departments, local officials, HOAs, and customers can reveal security gapsHow mobile technology helped law enforcement combat illegal dumping across vacant county landWhy more visible security does not always make customers feel saferWhat separates a technology vendor from a true strategic partnerChapters 02:17 — Meet Mark Bradshaw and Paul Ganz The guests share their paths through property management, law enforcement, loss prevention, retail operations, and security.03:46 — What LiveView Technologies does Paul explains how mobile security units bring camera technology, analytics, and deterrence to locations without traditional infrastructure.05:05 — Can deterrence actually be proven? The group examines how owners measure the value of preventing an event that never occurred.08:19 — Why mobile security towers were created Construction theft and infrastructure gaps created the need for security technology that could operate remotely.10:14 — Why retail security requires layers Mark explains how cameras, guards, property design, alerts, and physical response work together.12:17 — What happens when the system detects suspicious behavior Paul breaks down the progression from flashing lights and audio warnings to alerts and human intervention.14:43 — What AI can—and cannot—do AI can recognize predefined behaviors, but its reliability and role within a broader security strategy still require scrutiny.17:49 — How DLC uses LiveView beyond security Mark discusses using mobile units to monitor vendors, inspect work, track weather, and provide visibility across DLC’s portfolio.21:16 — Why community relationships matter Mark shares how working with police, local leaders, HOAs, tenants, and customers helps owners identify and address problems.25:40 — Helping law enforcement solve problems faster Paul describes how LVT technology helped identify illegal dumping activity across thousands of acres of vacant land.27:14 — Sharing camera access with police The guests discuss evidence requests, property-owner authorization, and controlled access during active incidents.28:50 — Can too much security backfire? Visible technology can reassure customers—or signal that a property is unsafe if it is deployed without a clear strategy.30:41 — The next ...
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    33 m
  • The Dark Horse of Consumer Spending: Is Retail Paying Attention?

    The Dark Horse of Consumer Spending: Is Retail Paying Attention?
    Aug 20 2026
    The Dark Horse of Consumer SpendingRetail is obsessed with the next consumer.What does Gen Z want? How will younger shoppers change stores? Which brands, experiences, and trends will win their attention?But while everyone looks ahead, retail may be overlooking one of the most powerful consumers in the market right now.Gen X accounted for $15.2 trillion in global consumer spending in 2025 - that's more than the entire spending power of ChinaGen X are in their peak earning years, but that’s only part of the story. Many are making purchasing decisions for households that stretch in both directions, from their children to their aging parents.That makes Gen X more than a valuable demographic. It gives them outsized influence over where money is being spent and what consumers need from the places they visit.And we may already be seeing the impact in retail real estate.The growth of service tenants, demand for health and wellness concepts, the value placed on convenience and quality, and the evolution of shopping centers into places where consumers can accomplish multiple things in one trip all align with the needs of a generation with money to spend and very little time to waste.“Gen X is the overlooked generation that is kind of a spending dark horse,” said Natalie Chambers, Executive Creative Director at The Dealey Group in her conversation on Retail Retold with Chris Ressa. “Retail real estate, in particular, should pay attention to what Gen X is looking for.”Because understanding who is spending is only the beginning.The bigger opportunity is understanding what that spending power changes: the brands that grow, the services consumers seek out, the tenant mixes that drive repeat visits, and ultimately, what makes a shopping center more relevant to the communities it serves.Gen X may be the forgotten generation.Retail can’t afford to forget about them.What You’ll HearWhy Gen X is retail’s “dark horse”The power of the “sandwich generation”What’s driving the rise of services in retailWhy Gen X may be the bridge between analog life and AIThe connection between Gen X and the longevity boomThe growing value and influence of consumer reviewsHow shopping centers are evolving for multiple generationsWhy intentional spending is gaining groundChapters01:16 — The consumer signals worth watchingNatalie breaks down the Dealy Group’s mid-year trend work and the signals that put Gen X on the radar.01:52 — Why Gen X is suddenly having a momentFrom fashion to pop culture, Gen X influence is showing up in places marketers may not expect.03:16 — The $15.2 trillion wake-up callThe spending data that changes the conversation about how much attention Gen X deserves.04:51 — The consumer in the middle of everythingWhy being the “sandwich generation” gives Gen X influence over spending across multiple age groups.07:38 — What Gen X actually valuesQuality, efficiency and clarity; and why “worth the money” may matter more than simply buying more.09:02 — Is Gen X driving the rise of services?Natalie connects Gen X behavior to service-oriented leasing, while Chris offers another explanation for the shift.12:12 — Why repeat visits matterHow landlords are using service tenants to build retail ecosystems consumers need to visit again and again.13:08 — The generation between analog and AINatalie argues Gen X occupies a unique cultural position. Chris challenges whether that advantage will last.18:36 — Why analog is backVinyl, film, BMX bikes and nostalgia reveal a growing appetite for experiences outside the digital world.25:01 — Longevity is becoming retailWhy wellness concepts focused on staying healthier longer could be another expression of Gen X demand.27:24 — Do online reviews deserve our trust?Chris and Natalie debate who actually writes reviews; and whether those people represent the consumers relying on them.35:02 — Designing retail for three generations at onceWhy green space, restaurants, services and gathering places can solve a very practical Gen X problem.36:49 — Consumers are getting more intentionalFunctional gifts, planning around sales and buying for utility point toward a more deliberate spending mindset.37:43 — The Gen X opportunityNatalie’s final argument: retail real estate should pay closer attention to what this overlooked but influential consumer wants.
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    40 m
  • Why Retail Rents Are Rising and New Supply Is Still Years Away

    Why Retail Rents Are Rising and New Supply Is Still Years Away
    Aug 13 2026
    Retailers want to grow. The question is what they’ll pay for the right space.Retailers want more stores. Vacancy remains historically low. And meaningful new retail development is still years away.So what does that mean for the next five years of retail real estate? What are the forces today that are driving the future?At the center of the August What’s in Store conversation between CBRE’s Karly Iacono and Chris Ressa is a fundamental supply and demand imbalance. Retailers continue to look for opportunities to grow, but the economics of large-scale new development remain challenging. Construction costs, land availability, interest rates and exit values all factor into the equation.But there is one lever that ultimately has to move to make more projects pencil: rent.And that shift is already underway.The question is how far it can go, and what happens along the way.Karly and Chris dig into what rising net effective rents and limited new supply could mean for existing retail real estate, and whether retailers have more room to pay for the locations they really want. They also explore why the physical store has become more valuable to retailers, not just as a place to generate sales, but as a critical part of how brands reach and serve their customers.The changing market is influencing more than rents. Retailers are rethinking the traditional store prototype, using better data to make decisions about where to open, how big to go and which formats make sense in different markets. The result is a much more nuanced approach to expansion, from flagships and large-format stores to smaller concepts, outlets and pop-ups.And as competition for the right space increases, the way deals get done is evolving too. Lease negotiations are changing, retailers are planning their pipelines years in advance, and both sides are looking for ways to move from opportunity to open store faster.Where does all of this lead?The conditions shaping retail real estate today could define the market for years to come. What’s changing now, what still needs to change, and what it could mean for the next five years.What You’ll HearWhy rents need to rise before meaningful new retail development returnsHow low vacancy is making the right locations more valuableWhy retailers are getting more intentional about where and how they growHow better data is creating more conviction around store decisionsWhy physical stores matter more than the headlines suggestHow the landlord and tenant dynamic is shiftingChapters03:10 - When does new retail development come back?Chris explains why rent, not retailer demand, is the biggest hurdle standing between today’s market and meaningful new shopping center construction.05:45 - The rent growth hiding in plain sightFace rents don’t tell the whole story as TI packages, retailer investment and net effective rents reshape deal economics.08:36 - Does geography change the development equation?Land availability, Sun Belt growth, interest rates and construction costs determine where new projects have the best chance of penciling.11:12 - The physical store is more valuable than the headlines suggestChris argues that the market still underestimates what stores do for retailers and their relationship with consumers.12:03 - Retail’s one-prototype era is overRetailers are using data to make smarter decisions about formats, distribution, clustering and market-specific store strategies.16:41 - What younger consumers reveal about physical retailKarly’s New York retail tour with her kids shows how pop-ups, flagships and social media can work together to drive real-world shopping.21:09 - Lease negotiations are moving back toward balanceAfter years of tenant-friendly movement, landlords and retailers are becoming more pragmatic about non-monetary provisions and getting deals done.24:24 - Why the store-opening timeline still needs workRetailers are planning pipelines years in advance because leases, municipalities and multiple decision-makers make timelines difficult to compress.27:02 - The lease provision seeing the biggest shiftUse restrictions have become significantly more flexible as shopping center tenant mixes continue to evolve.29:28 - The local entrepreneur has changedMore founders are thinking about scale, franchising, private equity and monetization before they even open location number one.
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    32 m
  • The Real Value of the Bank Branch

    The Real Value of the Bank Branch
    Aug 8 2026
    In a World Using Less Cash, Banks Keep Opening Branches! Why?

    Bank branches are everywhere, even as more of our banking happens online.

    You can deposit a check from your phone, transfer money in seconds, and apply for a loan without ever walking into a bank. Yet some of the country’s largest banks and credit unions continue investing heavily in physical locations.

    So what makes the bank branch so valuable?

    The role of the branch has changed. Many of the routine transactions that once required a teller can now happen digitally. That leaves the physical location to do something more important: attract deposits, acquire customers, build trust, serve businesses, and create deeper relationships.

    Chris Ressa sees a strong parallel to retail.

    For years, ecommerce was expected to make physical stores less relevant. Then digital customer acquisition became more expensive, and retailers learned that stores could actually make their entire business stronger. Physical and digital weren’t competing. They were working together.

    Banks are seeing the same thing.

    A customer might open an account online and do most of their banking from a phone. But they still drive past their local branch. They know the name. They know where to go when they need help. That physical presence creates familiarity and trust that can turn one account into a much larger, longer relationship.

    And that’s where the economics get interesting.

    For landlords, investors, and anyone in retail real estate, foot traffic doesn’t tell the full story of a bank branch. Deposits, customer acquisition, retention, and long-term relationships can be far more important.

    As banking becomes more digital, the branch isn’t disappearing. Its purpose is changing, and that helps explain why banks still want four walls on great corners.

    What You’ll Hear

    • Why banks still want physical branches in a digital world
    • How technology actually changed the value of the bank branch
    • Why deposits and customer relationships matter more than foot traffic
    • What banks are learning from the evolution of physical retail
    • Why the branch and the app are stronger together
    • How great real estate can become a customer acquisition tool

    Chapters

    Chapters

    00:00 — Why are banks opening new branches?

    The contradiction between digital banking and continued investment in physical locations.

    01:45 — The changing role of the bank branch

    Technology has changed what happens inside a branch and where its value comes from.

    03:15 — Moving toward higher-margin relationships

    Why branches can focus less on routine transactions and more on valuable customer relationships.

    04:10 — Why deposits drive the economics

    Deposits are the raw material of banking, and physical relationships can make them stickier.

    05:05 — Customer acquisition costs are the new rent

    Why acquiring customers through physical locations can compete with increasingly expensive digital channels.

    06:25 — What banks can learn from retail

    The evolution of bank branches looks a lot like what physical retail experienced with ecommerce.

    08:00 — Building deeper banking relationships

    How branches can help turn one account into a long-term, multi-product relationship.

    09:25 — The branch and the app work together

    Why digital and physical banking can strengthen each other instead of competing.

    10:30 — More than four walls in a community

    How branches create trust, visibility, and a lasting physical presence in local markets.

    11:19 — Why physical branches still matter

    What continued investment in branches says about the value of physical banking.
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    11 m
  • Retail Retold Replay: The Store That Changed Five Below Forever

    Retail Retold Replay: The Store That Changed Five Below Forever
    Jul 29 2026

    What if one real estate decision changed the trajectory of an entire company?

    Back in 2021, the retail industry was navigating supply chain disruptions, soaring construction costs, and an uncertain recovery. Today, this conversation with Five Below Vice President of Real Estate Zach Minteer feels less like a snapshot in time and more like a masterclass in building a resilient retail business.

    This replay features Chris and Zach discussing one of retail's most remarkable growth stories. Before Five Below became a national retailer with thousands of locations, it was a startup learning hard lessons about growth, operations, and disciplined decision-making. Zach shares how one store in Downingtown, Pennsylvania became the turning point that helped shape the company's future.

    The conversation explores why Five Below intentionally slowed its expansion after growing too quickly, completely reimagined its store prototype, and took a calculated risk on a larger format that ultimately became the blueprint for the brand's explosive growth. Zach walks through the real estate strategy, landlord negotiations, site selection process, and partnership required to make that first prototype store a reality.

    It's also fascinating to revisit the industry's perspective on post-pandemic consumer demand, construction costs, supply chain disruptions, leasing momentum, and the rapid acceleration of omnichannel retail. Some challenges have evolved, while others remain just as relevant for retailers, owners, and investors.

    Beyond the market discussion, Zach shares what it was like joining Five Below as one of the company's earliest employees, helping scale the business from just a few dozen stores to a publicly traded retailer, and why preserving company culture matters as much as opening new locations.

    More than a time capsule, this conversation is a reminder that while retail continues to evolve, disciplined growth, strong partnerships, and thoughtful real estate decisions never go out of style.

    What You’ll Hear

    • Why Five Below paused its growth to build a stronger foundation
    • The story behind the prototype store that changed the company's future
    • Lessons on scaling a retailer from startup to public company
    • How landlords and retailers partnered through uncertain market conditions
    • Why company culture becomes even more important as organizations grow
    • Timeless real estate and leadership lessons that still apply today

    Chapters

    00:00 – Welcome to Zach Mintier

    Chris welcomes the Five Below real estate leader and longtime industry friend.

    09:20 – Retail's post-pandemic comeback

    A look back at the surprisingly strong recovery, leasing activity, and consumer demand.

    18:30 – Construction costs and supply chain challenges

    Why retailers and landlords had to collaborate to keep deals moving.

    27:45 – The story of Downingtown begins

    How one Pennsylvania store became a defining moment for Five Below.

    31:20 – Pressing pause to rethink growth

    Why Five Below halted expansion, redesigned its stores, and changed course.

    35:30 – Negotiating the impossible deal

    Finding the right site, convincing leadership, and partnering with the landlord.

    45:30 – Opening day changes everything

    The launch of the first larger-format Five Below and the customer response.

    48:45 – From startup to retail powerhouse

    Zach reflects on scaling Five Below while preserving the culture that fueled its success.

    51:30 – Retail wisdom

    Favorite retailers, grilling, Target aisles, and Chris' signature rapid-fire qu
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    54 m