To pursue development, investment and leasing opportunities using our wealth of knowledge and experience, offer strategic advisory services to assist in the creation of unique retail destinations benefit of our clients, capital partners and communities throughout the country
OUR MISSION
CANDACE GRAY
ENVISION REALTY ADVISORS, LLC & ENVISION WEST, LLC
Founder/Principal Broker
OWNER REPRESENTATION- WE ARE ALIGNED WITH OUR CLIENTS
The retail landscape is ever-changing. Retail projects must remain relevant to the communities they serve. We have worked on a broad range of retail assignments from street retail, mixed-use urban projects, lifestyle, community centers, and regional centers. We provide a custom approach to each owner's objectives while providing guidance in project positioning given the market conditions locally, regionally and nationally. With our depth of knowledge and experience on both sides of the table in-house with national retailers and developers, we have the experience to act as your out of house retail department providing feasibility services, merchandising and co-tenancy strategies, pro-forma analysis, project redevelopment consulting, ground-up development consulting, project leasing and marketing strategies from concept to completion.
ADVISORY SERVICES
We provide a broad range of services for investors, institutional buyers and sellers. We leverage our experience to provide solutions and opportunities for our clients in transaction due diligence, development consulting services, predevelopment due diligence, market evaluation, andpro-forma analysis.
TENANT REPRESENTATION- BRAND POSITIONING IS KEY
We recognize relationships in the retail world are key and each retailer or restaurant has specific needs. The right location is a critical part of the brand's identity and must align with their business and financial objectives. With our unmatched market knowledge and creative thinking, we collaborate with our clients in the execution of their strategic expansion plans. From concept to completion we provide local, regional and national market research, competition analysis, custom mapping, trade area analysis, site selection, lease negotiation and acquisition, and disposition services in every segment of the retail market.
For more than 26 years Candace Gray has brought a multifaceted approach to the retail industry. In 2007 Ms.Gray founded Envision Realty Advisors LLC with partners Envision to leverage their experience in assisting Retailers and Owners with their retail objectives and challenges in all segments of the retail industry. Prior to forming Envision Realty Advisors LLC. Ms. Gray formed Gray & Associates Inc., a premier boutique commercial real estate firm in Portland, Oregon designed to provide acquisitions, dispositions, merchandising, leasing and advisory services to investment groups, developers, landlords, municipalities and retailers. She has facilitated the expansion strategies for her longtime national retail clients and Fortune 500 companies including Regal Entertainment Group, GAP, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Williams-Sonoma, West Elm, Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, Chico’s and many more. Prior to forming Gray & Associates, Ms. Gray served as the regional leasing VP for The Rouse Co. in the Northwest. She has also played a leading role in the implementation and execution of both the pre-development and redevelopment strategies for the merchandising and leasing of over 3 million sq. ft. of Premier Street, a lifestyle and mixed-use shopping center development on the west coast. Ms.Gray received an Orchid Award from the Portland Business Journal and served as a panelist for CREW. She is an active member of the International Council of Shopping Centers ( ICSC)
For thirty years, John Roper has been active in commercial real estate as a broker, developer, advisor, instructor, and corporate representative. Beginning in 1987, Mr. Roper focused his real estate career in providing professional services to movie theatre exhibitors. Beginning in its formative years and for seventeen successive years, he was affiliated with Regal Entertainment Group, from which he retired in 2007 as Senior Vice President of Real Estate - a position in which he directed the day-to-day development/redevelopment, acquisitions/dispositions and property management of Regal’s real property portfolio. During this tenure, Regal Entertainment Group expanded to the largest movie exhibitor with more than 540 movie theatres and 6,000 screens. In addition to his experience, Mr. Roper’s formal education includes a bachelors degree in economics and a masters degree in business and economics, and he is an active member of ICSC and a former panelist for the ULI.
PETER RUSNAK
ENVISION REALTY ADVISORS, LLC & ENVISION REALTY ADVISORS MIDWEST, LLC
Founder/Principal Broker
envisionrealtyadvisorsmidwest.com
Peter Rusnak has spent twenty-six years in the real estate business. His prior experience includes being a principal in Rusnak Schaaf Associates which consulted for numerous national retailers on their real estate strategies, VP of Leasing for City Center Retail Trust, a private REIT owned by Security Capital Group, and Director of Real Estate for Crate & Barrel, where Mr. Rusnak also served on the Development and Operations Committees. During his career, Mr. Rusnak has participated in hundreds of lease transactions in malls, lifestyle centers, strip centers and street locations in cities including Chicago, New York City, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. Mr. Rusnak has been responsible for national expansion strategies for retailers in both the United States and Canada. Mr. Rusnak is an active member of the ICSC and has participated as a panelist for the ULI and he is a member of the AHC Metro Realty Funds Investment Advisory Board. Mr. Rusnak has also consulted for institutional clients who include Hines Global REIT, JP Morgan, and Madison International.
SKIP MARTIN
ENVISION REALTY ADVISORS MIDWEST, LLC
Principal Broker
envisionrealtyadvisorsmidwest.com
Skip Martin has been a principle at Highview Partners from March of 2006 with an extensive background in tenant representation. Prior to joining Highview Partners, he was a Vice President at GreatStreet Realty Partners, LLC. Clients he has developed and executed expansion strategies for include: Gap/Gap Kids, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Athleta, Gap Outlet, Banana Republic Factory Stores, Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, West Elm, Rejuvenation, Victoria Secrets, Bath & Body Works, American Eagle, American Eagle Outlet, Ashley Furniture Homestores and ZZZ’s by Ashley, Galyans, Lane Bryant, Walgreens, Osco Drug, Justice, Swoozies and Robbins Brothers.
Martin served 16 years in the retail leasing/tenant representation forum with CB Richard Ellis before joining GreatStreet. He was a member of the CB Richard Ellis Retail Advisory Board 1990-1992 and in 2000 and he was awarded the Largest Retail Transaction Award nationwide in 1999. Martin was a finalist for the Chicago Retail Broker of the Year in 1996 and 1997.
In addition to developing expansion strategies for national retailers, Martin has consulted for several suburban economic development committees regarding the recruitment and retention of retailers for their central business districts. Communities he has served include: Lake Forest IL, Lake Bluff IL, Highland Park IL, Barrington IL, Evanston IL, Winnetka IL, and Blue Island IL.
Martin earned a B.S. degree in Political Science (Pre-Law) from Illinois State University, Bloomington-Normal, Illinois. A licensed Real Estate Broker, he is also actively involved with the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC).