T E N A N T
R E P R E S E N T A T I O N
"Our strategy is to align ourselves with talented regional brokers such as Metro Commercial and benefit from their unique understanding of the local market and ability to move quickly to capitalize on opportunities."
Vice President
Real Estate Development
PETsMART
In many respects, the success of any category killer is directly linked to the affinity consumers hold for a product, interest or passion. And for many consumers, no passion is greater than the affection they hold for their pets. That simple premise accounts for the tremendous success of PETsMART, the 580-store chain of pet superstores that today ranks as the nation's largest retailer of pet-related products and services. Founded in 1987 in Phoenix, Arizona, PETsMART represents an ingenious retail strategy that plays directly to a highly brand-loyal target market, insensitive to price and committed to sharing their lives with their family pets. That formula will see PETsMART open an additional 60 new stores, which average 20,000 square feet, nationwide in 2003. To better manage internal costs and more effectively penetrate its targeted markets, PETsMART outsources some of its real estate responsibilities to regional brokers - those with the size and substance to find, negotiate and secure premier "Grade A" locations. In 2001, PETsMART began working with Metro Commercial as a regional broker to assist in coordinating their real estate transactions from Virginia to Maine. That relationship includes a unique strategy of working in collaboration with other local real estate brokerage firms outside Metro Commercial's traditional markets of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware. "For us, these relationships are key and the most effective way to provide PETsMART a way to reduce their overall investment in real estate staffing, while still delivering world-class talent with local expertise to every transaction," says Tom Londres, senior vice president of Metro Commercial. "It is a strategy that has allowed Metro Commercial to complete a total of over 30 leases for PETsMART, 15 of which have been completed in the last twelve months in the New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore/Washington, Virginia and New England metropolitan markets." "In the current environment, every retailer is searching for ways to reduce costs while still providing excellent service to the customer," says Steve Jackson, vice president, real estate development for PETsMART. "Our strategy is to align ourselves with talented regional brokers such as Metro Commercial and benefit from their unique understanding of the local market and ability to move quickly to capitalize on opportunities."
