Chicagoland Association of Shopping Center Owners

What Chicagoland Association of Shopping Center Owners does

The Chicagoland Association of Shopping Center Owners (CASCO) is a non-profit trade association founded in the early 1990s by local retail real estate investors to facilitate networking, education, and best-practice sharing among shopping center owners in the Chicago market. The association is the only organization of its kind in the Chicagoland area focused exclusively on shopping center owners, and its roughly 50 members are actively engaged in the ownership and operation of commercial real estate as their primary source of business. Members hold leadership positions throughout the Illinois commercial real estate industry.

CASCO's core offering is its exclusive membership program, which gates access to educational meetings, networking events, advocacy initiatives, charitable sponsorships, and a library of member-only resources including meeting schedules, a member directory, vendor resource lists, by-laws, an IDFPR audit resource page (with templates and management agreements), and a COVID-19 crisis resource center. The organization also runs an annual scholarship program for young people entering commercial real estate, with the most recent cohort welcomed at an October 2023 cocktail event. Annual luncheons featuring political and industry guest speakers (such as Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias) serve as the principal in-person engagement mechanism.

The organization's business model is membership dues-funded, with fees not publicly disclosed and membership granted on an inquiry-based, selective basis. Marketing is conducted through a basic informational website (cascochicago.com), word-of-mouth within the retail real estate community, and member referrals. There is no evidence of paid digital marketing, technology product development, or external revenue streams beyond dues and event-related contributions. The organization is domiciled in Illinois, USA, and operates exclusively within the Chicagoland market.

Name

Chicagoland Association of Shopping Center Owners

Legal name

Chicago Association of Shopping Center Owners

Website

https://cascochicago.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The Chicagoland Association of Shopping Center Owners (CASCO) is a non-profit trade association founded in the early 1990s that serves roughly 50 shopping center owners in the Chicago market through exclusive membership, in-person networking events, educational programming, advocacy, and member-only resources.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

CASCO is a non-profit trade association that provides an exclusive membership program for shopping center owners in the Chicago market. The membership delivers educational meetings, networking events, charitable sponsorships, and advocacy initiatives aimed at retail real estate investors, along with access to member-only resources such as directories, by-laws, vendor lists, and specialty audit and crisis resource pages.

Product overview

The Chicagoland Association of Shopping Center Owners (CASCO) operates as a membership-based professional association, not a technology product company. The organization's primary offering is its membership program, which provides access to educational meetings, networking events, charitable sponsorships, advocacy initiatives, and exclusive member downloads including meeting schedules, directories, vendor resources, and by-laws. Additional specialized resources include IDFPR audit templates and the COVID-19 crisis resource center. The association also runs an annual scholarship program for students entering commercial real estate.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CASCO Membership Exclusive, inquiry-based membership for shopping center owners in the Chicago market, providing access to educational meetings, networking events, charitable sponsorships, advocacy initiatives, member-only resources (meeting schedules, directories, vendor lists, by-laws), and specialty resource centers for IDFPR audits and COVID-19 crisis materials.
• CASCO Scholarship Program Annual scholarship program that grants scholarships to young people to enter the field of Commercial Real Estate, with recipients recognized at an annual cocktail party event.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• ICSC (Innovating Commerce Serving Communities): The global trade association for the shopping center industry, formerly the International Council of Shopping Centers. ICSC is the most direct peer to CASCO, serving the same shopping center owner constituency but at a national/global scale with events, advocacy, and research.

Broad incumbents

• NAIOP: The leading national trade association for commercial real estate developers, owners, and investors. Comparable as a CRE-focused membership organization offering networking, education, and advocacy, though with a broader scope beyond shopping centers.
• CCIM Institute: A leading global commercial real estate association best known for the CCIM designation, serving investment and brokerage professionals. Comparable as a CRE membership/education body serving the same commercial real estate investor audience as CASCO.
• IREM (Institute of Real Estate Management): National organization for real estate management professionals, providing certifications, education, and networking. Comparable as a CRE membership body, though focused on property management credentials and practitioners rather than shopping center ownership specifically.
• BOMA International (Building Owners and Managers Association): International trade association for commercial real estate building owners, managers, and developers. Comparable membership-based model serving CRE owners with education, advocacy, and resources, though more focused on office and operational property management.
• Urban Land Institute (ULI): Global research and education organization focused on land use and real estate development. Comparable in providing networking, education, and research to commercial real estate stakeholders, though at a much broader scale and scope than CASCO.

Regional players

• Local CRE Council / State REALTORS Association (e.g., Illinois REALTORS): State and regional real estate trade associations serving brokers and owners in Illinois. Comparable regional membership-association model serving Chicagoland-area real estate professionals, though broader in scope than shopping center owners.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/oitentaecinco

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Chicagoland Association of Shopping Center Owners