Still On The Grow
While adding new branches to its services, Florida-based Woolbright continues to expand through its trademark retail acquisition/ redevelopment projects.
Leah Sanders

With continuing growth and year-round tourism, Florida is a strong state for quality retail, and Woolbright Development is meeting the need. Based in Boca Raton, Florida, Woolbright has settled down in the state — yet is anything but complacent. In the past year, Woolbright has added a ground-up development line and begun to plan mixed-use projects while also looking beyond the Sunshine State to North Carolina. Staying true to its roots, though, it continues to be a strong player in the acquisition and redevelopment world of Florida retail.

Woolbright currently has in its growing portfolio 24 retail developments totaling 2.4 million square feet. It purchases properties that need various kinds of enhancements, whether adding tenants in empty spaces or new landscaping, and then quickly provides these improvements. “Being able to redevelop properties is really our bread-and-butter deal that we were initially really well-known for,” says Mike Fimiani, executive vice president of leasing and marketing at Woolbright. Woolbright purchased 11 properties last year, and Fimiani estimates a similar growth this year of approximately one acquisition for redevelopment per month.

Woolbright recently purchased Lantana Square, a 151,552-square-foot retail center in Lake Worth, Florida.

The acquisition of Lantana Square is a classic example of how Woolbright grows by going after properties in markets where it is already familiar. Once it has a foothold in one area, it continues to grow there, acquiring and renovating more sites. Lantana Square is located opposite Pinewood Square, a Publix-anchored shopping center already owned by Woolbright; the company now owns two of the three properties at the intersection. Growth within a market sometimes occurs very quickly, as when Woolbright purchased its first Orlando property approximately 2 years ago and had acquired 1 million square feet of property in Orlando within a year. The company now has an Orlando office.

Del Mar Village in Boca Raton, Florida, includes tenants such as Winn Dixie, CVS/pharmacy and Boston Market.

In November 2005, Woolbright acquired Oak Grove Shoppes, which is located at the corner of State Road 434 and Jamestown Boulevard in Altamonte Springs, Florida. The 176,000-square-foot shopping center includes office space in its second story. The center is anchored by The Fresh Market, Stein Mart, World Gym and Drexel Heritage; other tenants include Applebee’s, Friendly’s and People’s Community Bank.

Creative thinking about acquisitions has recently become a key feature for Woolbright. Woolbright has found that forming joint ventures with property owners who are not ready to sell is an effective method for getting a grasp on targeted markets. Another problem that Woolbright has tackled is working with owners who would be willing to sell if they could invest in another property after the transaction. Woolbright has found that it is able to trade one of its already-refurbished properties to attain a new property in need of enhancement. Fimiani says that such methods, along with working with investment partners such as Morgan Stanley, BlackRock and Principal Financial Group, fuel the growth of the company.

Woolbright purchased the 75,000-square-foot Shops at Boca Grove in Boca Raton, Florida, in August 2005.

The company also considers whether it can make the property worth the investment. “We look at what we can do with the project and how profitable we can make it. We look at the market and the business plan to find out if it is within our threshold and worth it to buy and redevelop the property. We’re looking to enhance the value of the property by at least 30 percent or more,” Fimiani says.

Woolbright’s makeover of the property is key to increasing the site’s profitability. “The renovation work tremendously enhances the shopping environment for the retailers. If a property has bad lighting, potholes and overgrown or non-existing landscaping, it’s not a great shopping environment. Retailers don’t feel good about their shops, and shoppers don’t feel good about shopping there,” Fimiani says. “By renovating shopping centers, we have actually seen increased foot traffic, and tenants sales increased after the renovations we’ve done.”

The 176,000-square-foot Oak Grove Shoppes is located on the corner of State Road 434 and Jamestown Boulevard in Altamonte Springs, Florida.

With the bedrock foundation of acquisition/redevelopment, Woolbright is looking at expansion possibilities. Adding residential units will be a new business line for the company in its development and redevelopment projects, and Fimiani expects the company will have much to announce this year in the way of mixed-use developments and redevelopments. He says the company wants to meet needs of the growing population in Florida and recognizes the demand for mixed-use projects.

Firmly established in the Sunshine State, Woolbright is also looking outside Florida to North Carolina. The company’s strategy for branching out includes finding a strong development partner that will pave the way for a smooth transition into a new state. The pattern will replicate the method Woolbright chose for recently adding its development business line. To add development to its list of capabilities, Woolbright partnered with Master Development in Kendell, Florida, and each company brought its own expertise to the project. Woolbright expects a similar method for moving into North Carolina, but the plan to expand into North Carolina is “still in the early stages,” according to Fimiani.

Woolbright’s research approach is a driving force behind its acquisitions, redevelopment and ground-up projects. Fimiani says that research has been a key to the Woolbright program “since day one of the company,” and Woolbright continues its commitment to building its research capacities. It tracks three components of retail that feed into their acquisition and development plans. First, the company follows approximately 2,000 shopping centers throughout Florida. Then, it looks at the markets to observe absorption, new developments and square footage growth in metropolitan areas. Finally, it watches tenants and tracks information about retailers such as credit ratings and number of stores opening each year. It also keeps records of who represents retailers and acts as brokers, so that it has quick and easy access to retailers when working on a project. With all this research available, the technological focus is on information-sharing, allowing all members of the Woolbright team fast access to the same data.

“We’re constantly working on how we can do a lease more quickly and how we can get permit times down for tenants so that they can get in and open more quickly,” Fimiani says, “We’re going to be very focused on making the company better by using cutting-edge techniques to improve the quality of performance not only for ourselves but for our clients, the tenants.”

The strong growth in acquisitions and the beginning of its development line has necessitated internal company growth as well. Woolbright began 2005 with 70 employees but has more than doubled to 150 employees now. Fimiani predicts continued growth this year and for several years to come. “We’re adding and constantly looking to add good-quality people to our team in all categories, whether it’s leasing, property management, accounting or planning,” he says.

The company will retain its strength from the inside out by building a company that is good for the employees. In the process of hiring a full-time human resources person to handle employee needs, Woolbright already works to assist the employees, offering such benefits as an in-house exercise facility and personal trainer. “We want people to be healthy, have a great work environment and a good family environment. We’re really trying to work on those issues as well, trying to create not just a profitable company but also a great place to work, where people can grow and learn and have a long career,” says Fimiani.

BROKERING FLORIDA Mark Gilbert (right) and his partner, Adam Feinstein (left), received the Service Excellence Award in Financial Service Group. Mark Gilbert, a Cushman & Wakefield executive director, has been busy in the world of Florida retail brokerage. As a member of the commercial real estate firm’s Capital Markets Group in Miami, he handled 10 transactions last year, totaling 2.4 million square feet of space and in excess of more than $450 million. A recent list released by Cushman & Wakefield shows that he is among the commercial real estate firm’s top 100 brokers nationwide in 2005, and past sales indicate continued future success. “I think we’ve done an excellent job of spreading the sale assignments around to buyers without any favoritism, and I think we’ve been rewarded as a result through the buyers in terms of getting other assignments,” says Gilbert. Gilbert, his partner, Adam Feinstein, and the rest of the team have recently received an assignment from Woolbright Development that includes 10 open-air shopping centers in Florida. The portfolio, which is approximately 1.7 million square feet, includes seven neighborhood centers and three large power centers. The centers, which are concentrated in the South and Central Florida areas, include South Dade Shopping Center, a Miami shopping center anchored by Publix and Bed Bath & Beyond; Palm Lakes Plaza, which is located in Broward County and anchored by Publix and CVS/pharmacy; the Publix-anchored Alafaya Square in Oviddo; and Marketplace at Dr. Phillips, an Orlando center anchored by Albertsons, Stein Mart, Office Depot and HomeGoods. The team plans to sell the shopping centers in no more than three portfolio transactions. The team specializes in retail brokerage, with a majority of its work being in traditional, open-air shopping centers. In addition to Woolbright Development, the team’s clients include companies such as Equity One, Investcorp, AMB and Thor Equities. Gilbert predicts that 2006 will be another strong year for retail center sales. “Florida is the beneficiary of a growing population and certainly in the large, metro areas. It’s growing and getting more diverse and younger. I think that bodes very well for the retail environment, both in terms of how retailers do, rental rate growth and demand for product,” says Gilbert. “I would expect there to be as much product sold in 2006 as there was in 2005.” — Leah Sanders