Atlantic Retail
Retail Resurgence Demands Local Market Judgment

Justin Smith, Head of Capital Markets

Retail has remained an investable real estate asset class through multiple market cycles and this one is no different. Institutional appetite for the sector has strengthened noticeably over the past two to three years, renewing attention on an asset class that continues to evolve with changing market conditions. That appeal rests in part on resilient cash flow and the strength of the retailers producing it.

Limited new construction across the retail sector over the past two decades has left demand for high-quality brick-and-mortar space outpacing supply in many markets. Scarcity raises the stakes on every decision a retailer and landlord make, as the sector has realized a shift back into neutral leverage (if not more into the investor's camp) between the two parties during negotiations.

Atlantic Retail has built its business around retail real estate since 1990. Its history in the sector gives clients unmatched context drawn from prior transactions, retailer category awareness and submarkets knowledge, helping them evaluate decisions with a deeper understanding of how a market has behaved over time.

That specialization, more than any single tool or dataset, is what a client is actually buying when they hire Atlantic.'

Where Judgment Enters the Process

Retailers today have an extensive list of digital tools at their disposal, from mapping software and digital infrastructure to consumer behavior data derived from cell phone activity. These tools can all help narrow in on a target trade area or a promising submarket that meets the retailer's demographic initiatives. None settles the harder question, the exact position within that micro-market that gives a retailer the best chance of reaching its intended audience.

Traffic patterns, landlord dynamics and the performance of other retailers in a given micro-market rarely appear cleanly in a dataset. Atlantic, which completes nearly 1,200 lease transactions a year, finds that its brokers are consistently being asked to augment the analytics when advising clients.

That leasing activity also gives Atlantic’s capital markets teams the current context on retailer demand and property positioning, allowing the firm’s advisors to view an asset through both operating and investment lenses.

Atlantic’s broader platform rests on the leasing business that preceded it. Partner Bryan Anderson oversees platform operations and day-to-day activity across service lines, with Dan Lynch, Sean Gildea, Roy Crain, Ben Starr and other partners being responsible for regional oversight as part of the leasing leadership.

“The growth of our capital markets platform is built on the foundation and brand our Global Partners established,” says Justin Smith, head of capital markets. “Without their support and confidence in our team, Atlantic Capital Partners would not have realized this level of success in such a short period.”

The Right Fit, Not Just the Right Box

Judgment matters just as much on the landlord side, as the most successful shopping centers have curated an offering that draws shoppers to the real estate. Limited new construction has changed negotiating dynamics across many retail markets, providing landlords more leverage, but the key to the permanence of cash flows requires judgment from owners. Landlords now often have multiple options to backfill quality space, a marked change from the tenant-favored environment that persisted for years.

Atlantic’s advisors look beyond whether a vacancy is filled and ask whether the retailer fits the consumer the property is built to serve and whether the resulting tenant mix draws that shopper without duplicating what is already there.

Retailers are increasingly expecting both brokers and landlords to think beyond the four walls of an individual store. Programming, upkeep, infrastructure and the broader shopping environment can influence how a customer experiences a property and how effectively a tenant can serve that customer.

Atlantic estimates that roughly 80 percent of current retail redevelopment falls into a lighter repositioning category, a struggling concept giving way to a more current one in a center that otherwise has remained healthy.

Full mall redevelopments, trading an aging enclosed format for open-air, exterior access, parking, outparcels and entertainment uses, are fewer and farther between because of the challenges in getting every tenant in an aging property to vacate on the same timeline, which rarely happens organically. However, in the select cases where mall properties have been completely reconstructed, the end product often results in a modern shopping experience that benefits from the historical infrastructure that was designed to service the mall concepts.

Judgment Applied to an Exit

Owners come to Atlantic’s capital markets team for a range of reasons, which include marketing an asset for sale, a loan reaching maturity, a shift in family circumstances or a fund closing out its lifecycle. Whatever the trigger, the process starts with an honest look at a property’s blemishes and which ones are worth fixing before a sale. Not every lease gets extended just because an owner asks and not every flaw is worth the cost of correcting, but Atlantic believes the valuation process needs to include this advisory in order to properly guide a transaction decision.

That standard is where the integrated platform becomes most useful. Because Atlantic works across tenant representation, landlord assignments and capital markets, its teams can bring multiple perspectives to the same retail decision rather than viewing leasing and investment activity in isolation.

Atlantic Capital Partners has developed an established depth in advising owners, irrespective of the property's size or complexity. David Hoppe, Eric Suffoletto and Patrick Wagor have helped grow the net lease platform to one of the most prolific groups in the country by working with the developers from the onset of the project, while Chris Peterson, Sam Koonce, Fred Victor and Dean Sands are part of the multi-tenant investment sales team serving shopping center owners across the East Coast.

Atlantic’s client base reflects what that discipline builds. Of the more than 250 sale transactions Atlantic advised on last year, 190 involved repeat clients, a track record built less on any single transaction than on advice an owner trusted enough to seek out again.

One Platform, Applied Locally

Retail investors have grown more geographically flexible over the past 2-3 years as yields remain extremely compressed in the south, forcing buyers to consider alternative submarkets in order to achieve higher returns. Regional groups are pursuing opportunities nationally, while institutional investors increasingly evaluate multiple major metros rather than staying tied to a single region..

Once a client’s investment thesis is clear, an opportunity outside its usual footprint can be flagged when it fits and the client is handed to a local Atlantic team that knows the market on the ground. The strategy travels with the client, ensuring that the platform is providing the experience the market has come to expect. Smith went on to describe servicing clients' needs throughout the region by saying, “Despite investors expanding strike zone, we believe the best way to provide exceptional execution is for the advice to remain local.”

Retailers face the same challenge when they move into unfamiliar territory. A concept built for a suburban shopping center rarely translates directly to a dense urban block without concept adjustments. A fitness brand reads one way in suburban Atlanta and differently on a Manhattan storefront. Local knowledge helps Atlantic understand where a retailer’s traditional model can stay intact and where the market may require flexibility.

The Case for a Closer Look

Retail remains a consumer-driven asset class. Strong employment gives consumers buying power. Consumer strength supports retailer expansion. Retailer expansion supports shopping-center valuations, which in turn influence lenders' appetite.

Atlantic’s emphasis on long-term relationships extends beyond transactions. Four years ago, the firm launched Commissions for a Cause, bringing members of the retail and investment community together in support of charitable organizations. With this year’s event, Atlantic expects total fundraising to surpass $200,000 and to support more than 70 charities over the initiative’s four-year run.

Most importantly, Atlantic sees the platform through the responsibility clients place in its teams to help shape their real estate strategies. The firm is equally emphatic in expressing its gratitude to the investors and tenants who have entrusted it with that work.

Reading these forces across markets is the specialization Atlantic has built over more than three decades and it is becoming increasingly relevant as institutional investors take a broader look at retail.

For its focused retail expertise and its ability to connect consumer, retailer and investment dynamics across the retail real estate landscape, Real Estate Business Review recognizes Atlantic Retail as a Top Real Estate Brokerage Services 2026 honoree.