The Retail Connection
The Retail Connection is a Dallas-based, privately held retail-specialized commercial real estate services firm founded in 2004, operating four Texas offices with ~105 professionals and delivering integrated brokerage, advisory, investment, and management services to 300+ retail clients and 200+ landlord clients across Texas and nationally.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersDallas, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What The Retail Connection does
The Retail Connection (TRC) is a Dallas-based, privately held retail-specialized commercial real estate services firm founded in 2004 by Steve Lieberman and Alan Shor. The company operates four full-service Texas offices (Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio) staffed by approximately 105 professionals spanning brokerage, property management, research, construction, and leadership, with the firm also extending its reach nationally via its membership in ChainLinks Retail Advisors — a network of 600+ retail brokers across 60+ firms.
TRC delivers an integrated four-pillar platform — Brokerage, Advisory, Investment, and Management — organized around four sub-brands: Connected Acquisition Services, Connected Development Services, Connected Management Services, and Connected Capital Services. The brokerage line covers tenant representation, project leasing, general brokerage, investment sales, and surplus property dispositions. Advisory provides retail expansion strategy, merchandising plans, and operations support. Investment includes acquisition strategy, ground-up development, merchant banking, and strategic capital through JV structures with institutional partners (e.g., Trammell Crow Co., MSD Partners, Gillon Property Group). Management offers ongoing property, asset, and construction management for retail shopping centers. Underlying these services is a proprietary "knowledge-driven" research platform combining demographic profiling, trend analysis, and store performance benchmarking to evaluate retail sites and markets.
Commercially, TRC operates a relationship-based, sales-led go-to-market targeting national and regional retail chains (Nordstrom Rack, Kohl's, Best Buy, Dunkin', Lowe's, Costco, Topgolf) and institutional landlords (Kimco, Kite Realty, Brookfield). Revenue mechanics are transaction-fee-led (brokerage commissions), supplemented by managed-services fees from property management, professional-services fees from advisory mandates, and capital-related income from investment JVs and merchant banking. Pricing is negotiated per-assignment and not publicly disclosed. The firm has acquired or developed more than 5M SF of institutional-quality retail real estate over the past five years and actively participates in ICSC Texas and ICSC Recon Las Vegas, where it represented 28M+ SF of listings across 300+ retail and restaurant clients.
The Retail Connection firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Retail Connection
- Legal name
- The Retail Connection
- Website
- https://theretailconnection.net
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- The Retail Connection is a Dallas-based, privately held retail-specialized commercial real estate services firm founded in 2004, operating four Texas offices with ~105 professionals and delivering integrated brokerage, advisory, investment, and management services to 300+ retail clients and 200+ landlord clients across Texas and nationally.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Retail Connection industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Commercial Real Estate Services
- akta.pro primary industry
- Retail Brokerage (BPAJABAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Retail Tenant Representation (BPAJALAB)
Keywords
Where The Retail Connection is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Dallas
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
The Retail Connection business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Brokerage Commissions: TRC earns commissions on tenant representation assignments, project leasing mandates, general brokerage transactions, investment sales, and surplus property dispositions. This is the primary revenue stream driven by transaction-based fees.
- Advisory Fees: Fees from providing strategic retail real estate growth strategies, expansion planning, merchandising plans, retail operations optimization, and national advisory services to retailers and landlords.
- Investment Revenue: Revenue from Connected Acquisition Services and Connected Development Services, including structuring investment joint ventures and direct property acquisition/development. Also includes merchant banking and strategic capital services for emerging growth retail companies.
- Property and Asset Management Fees: Ongoing management fees from Connected Management Services providing property management, asset management, construction management, and marketing services for retail shopping center owners.
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels7 records
The Retail Connection product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Retail Connection is a full-service retail real estate services firm providing brokerage (tenant representation, project leasing, general brokerage, investment sales, and surplus property dispositions), strategic advisory, retail real estate investment and development, and property/asset management services. The firm serves national and regional retail chains, shopping center owners, REITs, and investors primarily across Texas markets through four offices in Dallas, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio.
Product overview
The Retail Connection is a full-service retail real estate services firm offering an integrated platform of four core services: Brokerage (tenant representation, project leasing, general brokerage, investment sales, surplus property/dispositions), Advisory (expansion strategy, merchandising plans, national advisory, retail operations), Investment (acquisition, development, merchant banking, strategic capital through Connected Acquisition Services, Connected Development Services, and Connected Capital Services), and Management (property management, asset management, construction management through Connected Management Services). The company serves retail, entertainment, and landlord clients across Texas and the Southwest, with proprietary market knowledge and research capabilities supporting client strategies.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Connected Acquisition Services: Acquisition strategy advising and management, and advises retail real estate clients and structures joint ventures to purchase retail investment properties.
- Connected Development Services
- Connected Management Services
- Connected Capital Services
Products and services
- Brokerage
- Advisory
- Investment
- Management
- Connected Capital Services
Quantifiable outcome
- 5+ million SF of institutional-quality retail real estate acquired and/or developed in the last five years
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use The Retail Connection
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
The Retail Connection technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
The Retail Connection partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Trammell Crow Co.coreTrammell Crow Co. is a major commercial real estate developer and the primary development partner in the Knox Street mixed-use project in Dallas. TRC is one of the joint venture partners in this four-acre, luxury hotel, office, and retail development near the Katy Trail.
- Gillon Property GroupcoreGillon Property Group is a real estate investment firm participating as a joint venture partner in the Knox Street mixed-use development project in Dallas alongside TRC, Trammell Crow Co., and an investment firm for Michael Dell.
- ChainLinks Retail AdvisorscoreTRC is a member of ChainLinks Retail Advisors, a national retail real estate partnership of 600+ retail brokers in 60+ privately-held companies. ChainLinks is described as the number one retail brokerage network in North America, providing TRC with national reach and cross-market deal flow.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
The Retail Connection competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Brixmor Property Group: Brixmor Property Group is a publicly traded retail REIT that owns and operates open-air shopping centers. Comparable to TRC as a retail landlord counterparty in Texas and beyond, primarily from the landlord/owner side rather than the services side.
- Kimco Realty: Kimco Realty is one of the largest publicly traded retail REITs in North America and is also a TRC landlord client. Comparable as a major counterparty in retail property leasing and investment, though it operates at vastly greater scale and as a capital owner rather than a services firm.
- Phillips Edison & Company: Phillips Edison & Company is a publicly traded retail REIT and owner/operator of grocery-anchored shopping centers. Comparable as a retail-property owner active in leasing and asset management in Texas, though its scope is broader and primarily as a landlord/investor rather than a brokerage.
- Cushman & Wakefield: Cushman & Wakefield is a major global commercial real estate services firm with a significant retail practice. Competes with TRC for national retail tenant and landlord mandates and provides similar brokerage and asset services at significantly larger scale.
- Newmark Group: Newmark Group is a global full-service commercial real estate firm with a dedicated retail capital markets practice. Comparable to TRC as a competitor for retail leasing and investment mandates, though much larger and broader across asset classes.
- JLL Retail (Jones Lang LaSalle): JLL is one of the largest global CRE services firms with a substantial retail platform that competes for the same major tenant and REIT clients as TRC. Comparable as a competitor in retail brokerage and capital markets, though operating at global scale with broader service lines.
Direct peers
- The Shopping Center Group: The Shopping Center Group is a national retail-specialized commercial real estate firm providing tenant representation, project leasing, and landlord advisory. Direct competitor in retail tenant and landlord representation with similar service breadth.
- Mid-America Real Estate Corporation: Mid-America Real Estate is a retail-focused CRE investment and brokerage firm. Comparable to TRC in retail-exclusive focus, brokerage-plus-investment dual platform, and tenant/landlord representation work.
- SRS Real Estate Partners: SRS Real Estate Partners is a retail-focused commercial real estate firm offering brokerage, investment sales, and management services across the U.S. Most directly comparable to TRC by exclusive retail focus, multi-office model, and integrated service platform.
Emerging players
- R2C Group: R2C Group is a retail-focused commercial real estate platform combining brokerage, advisory, and investment activities. Comparable to TRC in retail-exclusive focus and integrated service offering, with a different geographic footprint.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The Retail Connection social profiles
Digital presenceThe Retail Connection financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Retail Connection leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
The Retail Connection subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries4 records
The Retail Connection funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Retail Connection M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments1 record
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Retail Connection
What does The Retail Connection do?
The Retail Connection is a full-service retail real estate services firm providing brokerage (tenant representation, project leasing, general brokerage, investment sales, and surplus property dispositions), strategic advisory, retail real estate investment and development, and property/asset management services. The firm serves national and regional retail chains, shopping center owners, REITs, and investors primarily across Texas markets through four offices in Dallas, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio.
Is The Retail Connection a public or private company?
The Retail Connection is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was The Retail Connection founded?
The Retail Connection was founded in 2004. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is The Retail Connection based?
The Retail Connection is headquartered in Dallas, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Retail Connection make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Brokerage Commissions are the primary driver. The others are advisory Fees, investment Revenue and property and Asset Management Fees.
Who are The Retail Connection's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Brixmor Property Group, Kimco Realty, Phillips Edison & Company, Cushman & Wakefield, Newmark Group and JLL Retail (Jones Lang LaSalle). Direct peers are The Shopping Center Group, Mid-America Real Estate Corporation and SRS Real Estate Partners. R2C Group is listed as an emerging player.
Does The Retail Connection have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Retail Connection.
What industry is The Retail Connection in?
The Retail Connection's product category is Commercial Real Estate Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAJABAB, Retail Brokerage, with a secondary code of BPAJALAB, Retail Tenant Representation.