What Direct Development does

Direct Development is a privately held commercial retail real estate firm founded in 1997 and headquartered at 5310 Harvest Hill Rd., Suite 250, Dallas, Texas. The firm provides three core services: Development Services (ground-up construction of shopping centers, with over 3.5 million square feet constructed), Leasing Services (representing owner/landlord clients with 30 years of Southwest leasing experience across transactions ranging from 175,000 SF regional anchors down to 1,000 SF tenants), and Management Services (active hands-on property management of retail assets, with a portfolio exceeding 2 million square feet). Its core "product" is not a technology platform but a project pipeline of shopping centers delivered in partnership with national anchor tenants including Target, JCPenney, Kohl's, Dick's, Belk, Home Depot, Lowe's, Best Buy, Safeway, Office Max, Ross, TJ Maxx, Old Navy, Bed Bath & Beyond, PetSmart, Petco, Cinemark, Dollar Tree, Hobby Lobby, Cost Plus, and Ulta. Notable projects include Market Heights (650,000 SF, Target-anchored, Harker Heights, TX), Fritts Farm (Home Depot/Target-anchored, Moore, OK), Robertson's Creek (450,000 SF, JCPenney/Belk-anchored, Flower Mound, TX), Cross Timbers Village (Tom Thumb-anchored, Flower Mound, TX), Highland Court (30-acre, 97-lot residential development with David Weekley Homes), and Stone Creek Crossing (San Marcos, TX). Under the leadership of Managing Principal David Watson, President/COO Bruce Sifford, CFO Brenda Blake (CPA), VP Property Management Beth Connett (ACoM/CSM), VP Development and Leasing Chris Hipps (MS from SMU, BA Duke), and VP Leasing Cheryl Nabors, the firm has cumulatively developed, acquired, and managed over 5 million square feet of shopping center assets.

The business operates as a private, sales-led, relationship-driven commercial real estate services firm. Revenue mechanics derive from development fees on ground-up projects, leasing commissions on retail space placement with anchor and in-line tenants, and recurring property management fees on owned or third-party-managed assets. Its GTM motion is direct enterprise sales to shopping center owners and landlords, supported by attendance at International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) events and direct anchor-tenant relationships. Customer segments include (1) shopping center owners/landlords as primary clients (development, leasing, management engagements), (2) major retail chains seeking prime locations in Texas and Oklahoma markets, and (3) residential developers (e.g., Highland Court partnership). The firm offers quote-based, project-level engagements rather than standardized pricing.

Vertically, Direct Development executes the full lifecycle of shopping center real estate — site evaluation, construction, leasing, property management — with a self-described "post tsunami" specialty in turnaround and value-maximization engagements. The firm holds no patents, has no proprietary software platform, has no API or integrations, and operates no mobile applications; its deliverables are physical retail assets and associated professional services. The firm has not disclosed funding rounds, institutional investors, mergers, acquisitions, or restructuring events. Operating geographies are concentrated in Texas (Dallas, Flower Mound, Sachse, Wylie, Harker Heights, Addison, San Marcos, Fort Worth area) and Oklahoma (Moore).

Name

Direct Development

Legal name

Direct Development

Website

https://ddevelopment.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Direct Development is a privately held Dallas-based commercial retail real estate firm founded in 1997, offering development, leasing, and management services for shopping centers across Texas and Oklahoma, serving landlord/owner clients and partnering with national anchor tenants including Target, JCPenney, Home Depot, and Lowe's.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Dallas

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Development Services: Commercial retail shopping center development from ground up. The company has constructed more than 3.5 million square feet of shopping center space and develops centers in partnership with major anchor tenants including Target, JCPenney, Kohl's, Dick's, Belk, Home Depot, Lowes, Best Buy, Safeway, Office Max, Ross, TJMaxx, Old Navy, Bed Bath & Beyond, PetSmart, Petco, Cinemark, Dollar Tree, Hobby Lobby, Cost Plus, and Ulta.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Direct Development is a commercial retail real estate firm that develops, leases, and manages shopping centers across Texas and Oklahoma. The firm has constructed more than 3.5 million square feet of shopping center space and developed, acquired, and managed over 5 million square feet of retail assets. Its services cover site evaluation, construction management, landlord-side leasing representation, and hands-on property management for owner/landlord clients.

Product overview

Direct Development is a privately held commercial retail real estate firm founded in 1997, offering three core service lines: Development Services, Leasing Services, and Management Services. The company has developed over 3.5 million square feet of shopping center space across Texas and Oklahoma. Direct Development operates as a single unified service offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture, providing end-to-end commercial real estate solutions from development and leasing to property management. The company's portfolio includes multiple retail development projects such as Highland Court (residential), Cross Timbers Village (Tom Thumb anchored), Fritts Farm (Home Depot/Target anchored), Market Heights (Target anchored), and Robertson's Creek (JCPenney/Belk anchored).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Development Services

Named customers16 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.

• David Weekley HomescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 September 2015Partnership with David Weekley Homes for Highland Court development in Flower Mound, Texas. David Weekley Homes agreed to purchase all 97 lots in the 30-acre Highland Court development.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Brixmor Property Group: Large publicly traded retail REIT that owns and operates open-air shopping centers nationally. Overlaps in shopping-center ownership, leasing, and management but at much greater scale and with public balance sheet.
• JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle): Global commercial real estate services giant offering investment sales, leasing, property management, and development services across retail and other asset classes. Overlaps as a service provider but operates at substantially larger scale and broader geography.

Direct peers

• Venture Commercial Real Estate: Texas-focused commercial real estate brokerage and development services firm with a regional retail and investment sales focus. Comparable in service mix and Texas regional concentration.
• Stream Realty Partners: Dallas-headquartered commercial real estate services firm offering development, leasing, and management across multiple asset types in the Southwest — directly comparable in size, geography, and service mix to Direct Development.
• Henry S. Miller Commercial Real Estate: Long-standing Dallas-based commercial real estate firm offering brokerage, management, and development across retail and other asset classes in the Southwest. Comparable regional commercial real estate services peer.
• Cencor Realty Services: Texas-based commercial real estate firm where Managing Principal David Watson spent 10 years prior to founding Direct Development. Operates in the same Texas grocery-anchored and regional shopping-center development niche.
• The Retail Connection: Texas-based commercial real estate firm focused exclusively on retail tenant representation, landlord leasing, and shopping center services. Direct overlap with Direct Development's retail leasing and management services.
• Weitzman: Texas-based full-service commercial real estate firm with a strong retail and shopping-center leasing/management practice; Beth Connett joined Direct Development from Weitzman. Comparable in geography and service offering.
• NewMark Merrill Companies: Shopping center owner, developer, and manager focused on necessity-based grocery-anchored retail. Comparable as a regional retail developer with vertically integrated leasing and management services.
• SRS Real Estate Partners: National commercial real estate firm with a strong retail shopping-center practice offering brokerage, management, and development services. Comparable in retail focus and integrated service offering.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/directdevelpmt
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/a-and-d-development

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Direct Development