Rooker

What Rooker does

Rooker is a privately held, family-owned industrial real estate firm headquartered in Atlanta, GA, founded in 1968 and tracing its operating lineage to a 1911 transportation business. The company provides full-lifecycle industrial real estate services across four core capability lines: Industrial Development (site planning, design, entitlement, LEED-certified development), Build-to-Suit Solutions (custom turnkey facilities for specific client requirements), Leasing & Management (in-house property management of owned assets), and Government Projects (facility development for GSA, federal, and state agencies spanning 10 states). Rooker also operates Atlanta Metro Studios, a wholly owned film and television production facility developed from a 2014 acquisition of the former Shannon Mall site near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Over 57 years, Rooker has developed more than 500 sites totaling over 59 million square feet and owns 2,000+ acres of industrial land across the Southeast. The company's revenue model combines transactional development fees and build-to-suit project revenue with recurring rental income from owned industrial assets leased to enterprise tenants and government agencies. Self-funded without outside capital partners, Rooker goes to market through direct enterprise sales driven by senior leadership, with named relationships spanning FedEx, Home Depot, Ford, Petsmart, Thyssenkrupp, Hyundai, IRS, USDA, GSA, SSA, and other federal agencies. Geographic footprint is concentrated across the Southeastern United States — Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky, and Texas — with active 2025-2026 expansion into Florida, North Carolina, and Alabama markets.

The business is operationally small (11-50 employees with average tenure of 25 years) but capital-intensive, leaning on owned land and retained earnings rather than external equity or debt financing for project execution. The customer base skews enterprise and government, with multi-year build-to-suit contracts and long-term leases rather than volume-based SMB transactions. Marketing is relationship-driven and direct, supported by a corporate website (rookerco.com) that lists building and land availabilities; the company does not operate a software or technology product layer.

Name

Rooker

Legal name

Rooker

Website

https://rookerco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1968

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Rooker is a family-owned, Atlanta-based industrial real estate firm offering turnkey site selection, build-to-suit, leasing, and government project services across the Southeastern US, with 2,000+ acres of owned land and 59M+ SF developed since 1968.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Industrial Real Estate Development: Full-service real estate development from site selection through entitlement, design, construction, and lease-up. Revenue generated through development fees, land sales, and long-term asset ownership.
2. Property Leasing & Management: In-house property management of owned industrial assets generating recurring lease revenue from industrial tenants.
3. Build-to-Suit Solutions: Custom facility development for specific client requirements, delivering turnkey solutions designed and constructed to client specifications.
4. Government Projects: Development and construction services for government agencies including GSA, federal, and state projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Rooker is a private real estate development and construction management firm that delivers industrial, commercial, and government build-to-suit projects, along with property leasing and facility management services. The company acquires and develops land, constructs customized facilities for enterprise tenants and federal agencies, and provides ongoing leasing and management of its owned portfolio.

Product overview

Rooker is a privately owned real estate development and construction management company offering turnkey industrial real estate solutions throughout the Southeast United States. The company's service portfolio includes four core service lines: Industrial Development (planning, design, and development of industrial sites), Build-to-Suit Solutions (custom turnkey facilities), Leasing & Management (in-house property management and tenant services), and Government Projects (commercial space for GSA and state agencies). Rooker maintains a portfolio of move-in-ready industrial buildings and shovel-ready land sites available for lease or development across multiple Southeastern markets including Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, and Tennessee. Key properties include logistics centers in Georgia (85 South Logistics Center, M2 Logistics Center, North Georgia 400 Business Park), major trade centers (Seaport 16 Trade Center, Bana 85 Commerce Center, Rowan 85 Trade Center), Florida developments (North Tampa 75, Duval 95 Trade Center), and land sites for build-to-suit projects. The company operates from its headquarters in Atlanta, GA and has developed over 500 sites with more than 60 million square feet of construction and development to its credit over 57 years of operation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Atlanta Metro Studios: Full service purpose-built film and television production facility located in Fairburn, GA, previously known as Shannon Mall before its 2014 redevelopment

Products and services

• Build-to-Suit Development and Construction End-to-end design and construction of customized industrial, distribution, retail, and government facilities for enterprise tenants and federal agencies, including site selection, design, permitting, and construction delivery.
• Property Leasing and Management

Quantifiable outcome

• 500+ sites developed over 57 years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• GSA (General Services Administration)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrusted government partner for GSA and federal agency projects. Rooker has developed government facilities for various federal agencies including IRS, USDA, SSA, FBI, and GSA projects spanning 10 states.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Prologis: World's largest industrial REIT with a dominant logistics portfolio. Rooker's Senior VP Brian Cardoza previously oversaw a 9M SF industrial portfolio at Prologis Atlanta, indicating direct functional overlap. Prologis is the institutional incumbent Rooker competes with in Southeast logistics.
• Duke Realty (Prologis): Previously a top-3 U.S. industrial REIT specializing in bulk distribution and medical office, acquired by Prologis in 2023. Cited here as a historical comparable given its Sun Belt industrial development footprint and BTS execution model.

Direct peers

• IDI Logistics: Privately held industrial developer with deep U.S. Sun Belt exposure. Rooker's VP Cason Bufe previously held capital deployment and business development roles at IDI, evidencing talent and operating-model overlap as a directly competing industrial developer.
• EastGroup Properties: Sun Belt-focused industrial REIT developing, acquiring, and operating Class A distribution facilities across high-growth Southeast markets — including Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, and Texas — making it a directly comparable pure-play industrial owner/developer.
• Panattoni Development Company: One of the largest privately held industrial real estate developers in North America, with significant speculative and build-to-suit activity in the Southeast. Competes with Rooker on land aggregation, BTS execution, and tenant relationships.
• Hillwood: Perot-family-owned industrial and residential developer active in Texas and across the Sun Belt. Comparable as a large, family-controlled private industrial developer pursuing megascale master-planned logistics parks similar to Rooker's Seaport 16 and Bana 85 sites.
• McDonald Property Group: Southeast-focused industrial and commercial real estate developer headquartered in Atlanta. Targets the same Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and Alabama submarkets as Rooker for spec build-to-suit and BTS industrial facilities.
• Crow Holdings Industrial: National industrial development platform within Crow Holdings developing Class A logistics facilities in core Sun Belt markets. Overlaps with Rooker on tenant type (FedEx, Home Depot-supply-chain), geography, and BTS/speculative execution.
• CT Realty Investors: National industrial developer and investment manager focused on acquisition, development, and value-add logistics in major U.S. distribution markets including the Southeast. Directly competes with Rooker for BTS mandates from enterprise occupiers.
• TPA Group: Southeast U.S. industrial developer specializing in speculative and BTS distribution and manufacturing facilities across Georgia, the Carolinas, and Florida. Closely comparable in size, regional focus, and service mix.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/jwrook
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rooker

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rooker