On April 28, D CEO will reveal the winners of its 2021 Commercial Real Estate Awards program. Leading up to the big event, we’re featuring all 83 finalists (51 projects and deals and 32 professionals), one category at a time. Today, we’re sharing excerpts from interviews with seven honorees in the Emerging CRE Professional category.
Ryan Johnson
SRS Real Estate Partners
WHY REAL ESTATE:“Problem–solving and building relationships have always been passions of mine, and as I got exposure to the retail industry in internships during college, I knew retail real estate brokerage would give me continuous opportunities to pursue both of those passions. After studying economics and finance in college with the intent to go into investment banking in New York, a number of motivating factors drew me back to Dallas, where the greatest opportunities were all in real estate. After my summer internship with Trammell Crow’s retail group, I knew this would be a great line of work that fit my personality and skill set.”
WHAT I LOVE ABOUT IT: “I love digging into our clients’ businesses and understanding what makes them work and what makes them profitable. I love the process of translating that business anatomy into making sound and strategic real estate decisions. None of that is possible without building and strengthening the relationships with the people who make those real estate decisions. It also requires surrounding yourself with teams of people who complement your skills to provide all of the tools and services that our clients need to make those decisions.”
MY MENTORS: “My older brother, Russ Johnson, and my partner, Mark Reeder. Russ and I went to Vanderbilt together, and part of the reason I interned at Trammell Crow before my senior year was that he was on their office leasing team. Although we are in different segments of commercial brokerage today, there were lessons and wisdom that he taught me that helped shape me as a professional and are applicable to all segments of the industry. Mark was a senior broker at my first job with Staubach Retail Services in 2004, and for a number of reasons, we always seemed to work well together and complement each other. As he brought me along to work on a number of large national accounts, I gained invaluable knowledge, experience, relationships, and opportunities to improve myself. We’ve been partners running the Dallas SRS office for several years now, and I learn more and more every year we work together.
2020 ACHIEVEMENTS: “The retail industry is going through more changes than I’ve ever seen in my career, but in many ways it is similar to the great recession of 2009. Although many retailers are dying and going through bankruptcy, many are thriving. So, whether a business is contracting or expanding during a recession or a pandemic, there are numerous opportunities if you know how to identify them. … I was able to focus in 2020 as much of my time and energy to help service clients who were active both expanding and contracting. A lesson I learned from the great recession was to stay active, present, connected, and visible. COVID made 2020 more difficult than ever to do those things, but I felt at the same time I was able to navigate the crazy circumstances and make the most of it.”
LOOKING AHEAD:“Retail is going to continue to evolve, and that is going to create significant new opportunities and problems to solve. They won’t necessarily be the same opportunities or problems as today, but I feel we are well-positioned to adapt and execute as those changes come.”