Our Mission

Learn who we are and how we serve our community

Leadership

Meet our leaders, trustees and team

Foundation

Developing the next generation of talent

C+CT

Covering the latest news and trends in the marketplaces industry

Industry Insights

Check out wide-ranging resources that educate and inspire

Government Relations & Public Policy

Learn about the governmental initiatives we support

Events

Connect with other professionals at a local, regional or national event

Virtual Series

Find webinars from industry experts on the latest topics and trends

Professional Development

Grow your skills online, in a class or at an event with expert guidance

Find Members

Access our Member Directory and connect with colleagues

ICSC Networking Platform

Get recommended matches for new business partners

Student Resources

Find tools to support your education and professional development

Become a Member

Learn about how to join ICSC and the benefits of membership

Renew Membership

Stay connected with ICSC and continue to receive membership benefits

New York National Conference biggest yet

October 30, 2015

ICSC is expecting record attendance at this year’s New York Conference & Deal Making, to be held next month, Dec. 7–8, at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, in New York City. Last year there were 10,000 participants and nearly 500 -exhibitors in attendance. It was the first year that meeting was held at the newly renovated Javits Center. 

This year, with such blue-chip development, retail, and leasing firms as Boston Properties, Forest City Enterprises, RFR and Simon already confirmed, organizers are anticipating that the final tally could be somewhere about 12,000. The New York meeting remains ICSC’s second-largest conference of the year, after RECon, in Las Vegas.

“The conference is first and foremost about deal making,” said conference -Co-Chairman David Firestein, managing partner of the New York City office of the -Atlanta-based Shopping Center Group. “But it’s also a great time to be in New York: There’s a lot of energy and excitement in the streets, with all the shopping and the tree-lighting at Rockefeller Center — the city is brimming with people. That’s part of the magnetism of the show.” 

Organizers are expecting a considerable international presence this year, too. “That is part of what separates the New York conference from RECon,” said Firestein. “It’s a lot easier to get to New York from Europe than it is to get to Vegas.” This is, for instance, the first ICSC conference at which German real estate firm ECE Projektmanagement will be an exhibitor, notes Tim McGuinness, ICSC’s staff vice president of global trade expositions. 

Elevating the conference experience is its new location at the Javits Center. Last year the meeting moved to the 1.8 million square foot convention hall — after decades at hotels. “Going to this class-A facility really upgraded the event from a larger regional event to a must-attend national event,” said McGuinness. “You were in a facility that had wide open spaces, a high ceiling and good service. It lent a buzz and electricity to the event that was just contagious. And it was still easier to move around than Vegas.” 

The September opening of a new subway line directly across from the Javits Center adds to the -appeal, whisking attendees to and from midtown to the center in minutes. 

“It makes getting to the conference even easier,” said Firestein. “I’d like to take credit for that, but instead I’ll just say that I’m pleased it happened on my watch,” he quipped.

This year vendors will take 165,000 square feet of exhibition space, and for the first time the conference will feature a special pavilion dedicated specifically to public-sector organizations, with representatives from state and local chambers of commerce and from departments of economic development present. Attendees can also look forward to an impressive retail runway with the likes of Century 21, Juice Press, Retro Fitness and Starbucks discussing growth strategies, as well as interactive informational -sessions on retail technology trends and similar topics.

“New York is not only one of the major commercial capitals of the world,” McGuinness said, “it’s also got great entertainment value.” And there are a lot of sponsored parties planned, at some of the most buzzed-about locations in the Meatpacking District and at the Highline — a 1.5-mile-long park built along an elevated section of a disused railroad line. 

From a deal-making perspective, real estate companies have begun to view the New York conference as the must-attend event McGuinness has cited. “I go every year,” said Michael Puline, senior vice president of leasing in the Atlanta office of Tarrytown, N.Y.–based DLC Management Corp. “Aside from Las Vegas, this is one of the most vibrant, well-attended conferences there is. We always have great meetings there.”

Anyone wishing to make deals should certainly take into account the record number of participants who are expected to turn out this year, urges McGuinness. “This is the event you have to be at in order to complete the full circle of business this year,” he said, “and to jump start business in 2016.”