Women's Retreat 2018

The road ahead

Growing to-do lists dominate work days for conference attendees

The work comes from all angles. For today's female commercial construction executive, that is the job. If it's not store openings, renovations, marketing plans, etc., it is working overtime to manage a sophisticated work/life balance. And if you ask any of the attendees of the 2018 Women’s Retreat in Buffalo they'll tell you that the road ahead is filled with long work days, burgeoning time constraints and promise. The Retreat, held in the first week of August at The Hyatt Regency in downtown Buffalo, included some of the industry leading female executives across the retail, restaurant and hospitality sectors. The three-day event, sponsored by Commercial Construction & Renovation, offered a series of business meetings and networking events, including a Niagara Falls boat tour and jet boat ride on the river rapids.

Following is a wrap up of the Friday afternoon roundtable, where attendees discussed a number of industry-related topics. This is the first in a two-part series, which will conclude in the November/ December issue of Commercial Construction & Renovation.

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Colleen Biggs The Little Gym

Lauren Bishop Beam Team

Kim Bowling Under Armour

Marilyn Brennan Egan Sign

Kelli Buhay Retail Maintenance Specialists

Kelly Burnette F&D Commercial

Aly Chally Aaron’s Inc.

Amy Fu Forever 21

Jennifer Grieser Tuesday Morning

Fatima Hakim Loro Piana

Karla King EBI Consulting

Jennifer Kong Forever 21

Melissa Mannetta Lido Lighting

Sabina Ramsey Insight

Bernice Radle Buffalove Development

Laurie Schindler StoreCrafters, Inc.

Amanda Scott Orscheln Farm & Home

Penny Sengstacken Tricarico Architecture and Design PC

Amanda Whitley GameStop

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CCR: What's on your to-do list?

Laurie Schindler, StoreCrafters: The biggest thing that we’re working on right now is perfecting our open remodel program for our clients. Our current clients are looking to change the shopping experience in their stores for their customers. Open Remodels come with their own set of challenges. It takes a special team both in and out of the office to be successful because there are so many moving parts and personalities involved. Therefore, training your team to be effective communicators is so key in the success for both the retailer and us as the GC.

Aly Chally, Aaron’s Inc.: Currently, we are finishing our 2018 remodel program. My main focus has been keeping the team on schedule and hitting our deadlines while navigating a series of rapid program changes that have occurred this year. Looking into 2019, there are some pretty exciting changes coming. We are forecasting a 25 to 50 store rollout implementing a new interior

store design that also focuses on new methods of engaging our customers to acquire more of the millennial market. We’re working on a rollout and finding more successful ways of execution. Being able to collaborate with other industry professionals has been helpful and enlightening.

Kelly Burnette, F&D Commercial: We’ve been working creatively to come up with customized solutions for our partners. Many commercial sectors are getting away from soft surfaces, or have the need for more durable or waterproof products, and we’re working with them to help them come up with alternate solutions, such as luxury vinyl and water resistant laminates and woods. We partner with our customers to try to find unique solutions for their needs. That’s been our main focus.

We specifically rolled out a “Custom Spec” program this year that allows us to build a vinyl product of any specification to meet your needs—the construction of the planks is fully customizable in that you can choose, the texture, the thickness, the size of the plank, the ware layer and if you want a floating rigid board with or without a built in sound-underlayment or a traditional glue-down. It’s a great

illustration of our innovative approach and business model, and we pride ourselves on being able to work with our partners in that way. We hope to follow suit with tile as well in the near future.

Finally, although we’re not the new kids on the block anymore, and we’ve been around a few years now and have quickly gained momentum and traction, brand recognition as a significant player in the commercial world is crucially important to us.

Bernice Radle, Buffalove Development: This is more a personal thing, but I’m really working on becoming a badass CEO. My initiative personally has been the 5 a.m. challenge, where I wake up and make sure my day is started properly. My goal is to be my best self for my business and for my 22 employees. A lot of that comes more of an internal drive. I would welcome any recommendation that you may or may not have, or things that maybe you tried and didn’t work. For me, I’m trying to rebrand my business so that way we can do more work and work different communities.

I have a brewery I’m working on in Niagara Falls. It was old town apartments—a $3.5 million project. It was one of the largest non-hotel related projects that Niagara Falls has probably seen in probably two decades or more. I just want to continue to buy more buildings and build my company.

I won’t get into a lot, but being a boss is really tough because you just have to figure out where all the missing pieces are—where you did make money that’s 10 percent here and 10 percent here. That all adds up and if you get it right, then you make a sustainable business. That’s really what I’m really focusing on right now.

Kelli Buhay, Retail Maintenance Specialists: I’ve been with Retail Maintenance for four and a half years. Last year, we moved and have grown under a controlled growth structure. We actually doubled business in less than four years, so that was a big accomplishment for us. We continue to grow with our service managers, our coordinators, our project managers. We’re now putting trucks on the road, which is very exciting. So it has been a very interesting year as far as that goes. Doubling business under controlled growth can be a difficult thing to do because you never want to take on a client and not be able to put your best foot forward. That can be a little frustrating at times. We’re just continuing to move on and continue to grow and meet the challenges of all our clients and future clients.

Jennifer Kong, Forever 21: My main priority on my to-do list right now is to ensure that we are procuring and shipping all construction materials, fixtures and visual elements quickly in order to open several stores that we had originally scheduled for December, but are now pushed up to Black Friday. That includes our new chain of stores,

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which is called Riley Rose. This is our new cosmetic and skincare brand, which has a completely different concept and look than our regular Forever 21 stores.

Our team is working vigorously to manage what we already have in inventory and also make sure that our vendors are pushing through and expediting all production and shipments to meet our short and quick construction schedules.

Karla King, EBI Consulting: One of the biggest things our team has on the retail side of our business is working on a large portfolio fast food restaurant renovation—on the permitting and architectural side. One of the biggest challenges the team faces is having them put out a lot of

One of the things on my to-do list is sustainability—defining what that means to Loro. Right now, I’m just defining that and the easiest approach I can find is with the lighting.

deliverables in short amounts of time. A lot of you have the pressure of keeping things on schedule, which passes down to us as consultants. It’s about keeping employees motivated and engaged.

On the business side of things, I’m also trying to pursue my L.E.E.D. Accredited Professional designation. I have my Green Associates designation right now. So, in my spare time, I’m finding time to study for it. I found out recently that there is a 40 percent pass rate, which is even lower than the bar exam, so it’s a little intimidating.

I actually have two additional full-time jobs—my 3-year-old and 1-year-old. They’re fabulous and thank god for daycare.

Amanda Scott, Orscheln Farm & Home: The biggest thing on my to-do list is transitioning roles in the company from the director of visual merchandising to the

– Fatima Hakim, Loro Piana

divisional director of soft lines merchandising. I’m excited to learn and transition to the new role, but lots of details to finish up old projects, including finishing a relocation of a store. We’re fine-tuning those details—fixtures, merchandise, etc., and opening two more new stores before the end of 2018.

We also launching our first in-store concept or our sporting goods department Orscheln Outdoors. In addition, we have our fall in-store signage and fixture projects.

My husband and I also have a two little girls at home getting ready to start school, so it’s always a balancing act. Family is my first priority, but back to school means getting back in the routine of balancing work, school and family life.

Melissa Mannetta, Lido Lighting: As VP of sales, the top on my to-do list is increasing business. In our industry new opportunities can take time to develop but can remain for many years.

While I am fairly new with Lido, we are definitely not the new kids on the block. We are a second generation, family owned business that’s been around for almost 50 years.

My goal is to share our tried and true methods developed for lighting in rollouts. Retail and Hospitality require strict timelines and quality product to create the same experience day one and day one thousand one. By selling all brands and handling the feedback, we have insight to help guide your future choices.

My more personal objective is to enter into as many conversations about lighting as possible. There are so many new technologies in LED and especially the controls that run them. The intention would be to listen to client experiences and share some of our most cost conscious yet effective methods. Controls will be a requirement by code nationally soon and most just want the most basic to pass and conform.

Colleen Biggs, The Little Gym: I recently moved into a new position. I’m still overseeing the overall design of the facilities, and now I have the pleasure of optimizing and securing the brand equity for the company in the long run. We are 100 percent franchisee owned, so that in itself is a feat.

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Right now, I am wanting to visit every U.S. location. Since April, I’ve visited a little more than 50 and I have about 200 I’d like to spend time with in some form or fashion no later than the 2nd quarter of next year. I’m in the data collection stage right now. Visiting every facility in person is an eye-opening experience for the Franchisor. Having the ability to connect on their “turf” and opening ourselves up to listening to their wants and needs as a Franchisee can be a powerful conversation on both sides. We want to see if they’re happy where they are in their business, what their needs are day-to-day, areas that we can streamline and make it a little bit easier for them on the local level.

In addition, we are focusing on areas that we can stratify to increase the equity of our brand. You had mentioned that about brand recognition. I’m surprised how many people I meet that are unfamiliar

with who The Little Gym is. We’ve been around for 40 years and are in just about every state and several countries.

Our goal is to unite The Little Gym global community to implement consistent, best in class business processes, which maximize brand value and franchisee profitability, sounds simple but will take a company mindset to accomplish.

On a personal level, I’m really focused on personal and professional growth while I have ample time on the road. I enjoy listening to many audio books.

Penny Sengstacken, Tricarico Architecture and Design: It’s an exciting time for our firm because we’re in the midst of rebranding. In fact, when this issue comes out, you may not recognize our logo because it is very different from the one we’ve been using for over a decade. We have evolved as a company and want to ensure that both our current and future clients are aware of how we are repositioning ourselves and our service offerings. We’re eager to implement and share these changes because they are symbolic of our rejuvenation as a firm.

My role as a project manager is constantly progressing as well. Every day here is unique, filled with both challenges and achievements. My team recently began working with a small but growing veterinarian’s office. It’s change from our usual retail clients. The exhilarating part of helping a new brand develop and expand is that you become an integral part of their journey. My team and I use our long standing industry knowledge to guide clients, while keeping an emphasis on a collaborative environment between all key personal involved in the project.

One goal that I set for myself was to keep my finger on the pulse of our ever changing industry. I have continued to remain focused on that. I regularly organize lunch and learns at our office to make sure we are always knowledgeable about the most cutting-edge materials, products and technology available.

Fatima Hakim, Loro Piana: High on my to-do list would be tackling sustainability – defining what it means for Loro Piana in the Store Planning environment. Every year, we’re tasked with showing an increased effort and presenting that information to LVMH. Right now, the simplest approach would be updating our lighting. Our shops are primarily designed using natural materials, down to the oak and cashmere fixturing and those materials are pretty sustainable. Looking for greener building materials and fixtures would mean disrupting things at the design phase and there are not many opportunities, at this time, to make those changes. With lighting, we can partner with our lighting provider to retrofit our existing fixtures with more sustainable products and best practices and right now, these things are incentivized through the utility providers. It’s great to be able to do something good and receive a significant return on investment.

I am also working on standardizing our repairs and maintenance program. With the introduction of ServiceChannel, a work order management tool, we will be able to define new KPI’s, enhance our reporting capabilities and analyze our vendor performance as a whole instead of individually as it is done now. Loro Piana has a lot of remote locations so rolling over to a national provider for all things is not the best option for us. Most of our remote shops use service providers who only service that one location —so, trying to get the brand to operate in sync isn’t an easy task. I can’t just call up somebody and say, “Hey, I need your help in Hawaii to power wash the windows and you have 48 hours or in the mountains of Vail during summer or East Hampton in mid-November. So on my to-do list, creating this matrix of local providers that align with our business is also a high priority.

It’s very unique task for me, I didn’t come from luxury retail. I came from luxury commercial real estate, but not luxury retail, so I have all different challenges ahead of me. It’s just a huge process and I have a lot in front of me with the sustainability and trying to

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get ServiceChannel up and running, slipping in the new or alternate vendors that are capable working in the brand and matching our strategy. Overall, I’m pretty excited about it.

Jennifer Grieser, Tuesday Morning: My to-do list is pretty long, but cost savings is always at the top. Are we spending intelligently? Are we prioritizing appropriately? Are there efficiencies we can pick up?

Often, the best option is to allow those who have more expertise and stronger trade partnerships to leverage their position to provide more cost effective spend management. Outsourcing has become more of the trend in facilities management. Through outsourcing, I find that managing a vendor partner allows for more timely and cost effective execution ofR&M and facilities programs. Using their expertise and vendor relationships not only controls spend, but allows for more strategic work internally.

Unfortunately, disaster recovery on also on my to-do list far too often. I have hired a disaster recovery company to assist with my current outsourced facilities management team on all disasters. This relationship is still new and the process is still being tweaked.

Sabina Ramsey, Insight International: The organization was founded around 10 years ago. It was really a thoughtful decision. Basically, I didn’t know anyone in Buffalo and I’ve never worked in my industry, so it wasn’t a real sound strategic move on me to start a business here. But we have grown through the years. I’ve

Right now, I’m wanting to visit every U.S. location. Since April, I’ve visited a little more than 50 and I have about 200 I’d like to hit. I’m in the data collection stage right now.

– Colleen Biggs, The Little Gym

grown my business from my home and now we are planning to move downtown. We have some major local companies that we work with that have strong brands here locally.

My original vision of what I’m working on is that I really wanted to work internationally, so my company is actually Insight International. We wanted to work strategic and we wanted to bring—actually nurture—female leaders specifically within the creative industry. We are well on our way, but right now our struggle is that we have not yet reached out to that international market.

We are stuck in Buffalo, to be honest with you. We see tremendous opportunity through NAWBO, the other organization I’m involved in, to work with more national companies. I have a tremendous talented design and web team, and I’m looking forward to working with them and our strategic coach to really make some progress with the next three years.

Kim Bowling, Under Armour: Our NA Store Development team is currently going through an Evolution 2.0. My team currently manages Facilities Maintenance for NA Retail & Wholesale. We will be transitioning the remainder of the year into a cross functional partner taking over additional responsibilities for the execution of DTC NSO’s, Relocations, Remodels and Wholesale SIS, as well as Special Projects. Our focus is on proper training of teammates and defining the process of transfer from Planning and Feasibility over to the Execution team. Other things on the list are bringing our Canada Wholesale business onto our work order management system Service Channel by November 1st and performing year end closeout so we can hit the ground running in 2019. The team is focused and excited for the new opportunities.

Amanda Whitley, GameStop: The biggest thing on my to-do right now is telling our sustainability story. We launched a store facing green program- “Power to the Planet” – in 2017, but it was kind of quiet. We did a tremendous amount of projects last year that reduced our carbon footprint by 13 percent domestically, which was fantastic, and we need to share the impact we are making. So we are trying to figure out how to tell that story in a way that resonates with our customers and associates.

We want to get the message out there that we do care about our environmental footprint and we aren’t just checking a box to be compliant. It is our duty and commitment to make these changes.

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One goal that I set for myself was to keep my finger on the pulse of our ever changing industry.

– Penny Sengstacken, Tricarico Architecture and Design

We’re hoping to implement a composting program in our corporate office and expand our recycling—through better education and trying to gamify this part of corporate responsibility. We want to have these very visible things at the corporate level so that the people who are making decisions for all 5,000 plus of our stores can remember this is something that they need to be cognizant of.

We’re in the middle of an LED retrofit in our stores. We have about 2,000 more to get done by the end of our fiscal year. It’s a lofty goal, but it’s something I’m so excited about. That’s the great thing about sustainability at this scale—you’re impacting the planet and your community as well as the bottom line.

On the strategic sourcing side, I have an RFP out right now for our exterior sign business and I’m looking to release a couple more for some of our other trade services. Our facilities team has become a great partner for the procurement team and a lot of opportunities have come from that, there has been so much consolidation in the industry that we are hoping to leverage that model across several trades to maintain fantastic service as well as great pricing.

In general, I am in procurement right, so I’m always trying to bring cost savings and value to my internal stakeholders. Sometimes that’s just coffee and a joke that wasn’t very funny—but those moments are what us find new opportunities to make GameStop better together.

Lauren Bishop, The Beam Team: I’ve been there just under four months. As director of renovations, I’m learning quite a bit. Before that, I came from a very strong background of merchandising and fixture installation. What I’m working on is trying to find qualified subs and trades people, it’s very difficult to find them these days and ones that want to show up and do the jobs that they said that they can do.

What I strive to do every day is keep my commitment to my customers and what I mean by that is, deliver what we say we’re going to deliver on time and a nice product. The great thing about the Beam Team is that we are diversifying even more. We are really trying to grow the hospitality, restaurant and hotel piece of our business. That has

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been very exciting, but really my big thing right now is trying to find qualified subs and trades people and trying to even develop them from within.

Amy Fu, Forever 21: For the strategic sourcing team, our ultimate goal is always to help our company save money. Last year with the Riley Rose program, from the instore fixture side only, we have saved almost 40 percent of the budget just by sourcing from various vendors compared to the previous round of this fixture program.

Right now, we have 12 stores opening throughout the country and four more opening in the fall. During first quarter of 2019, we have five to seven stores scheduled so far. That being said, the very next thing on my to-do list is to send out another RFP for Riley Rose fixture package to see if there are more saving opportunities for our company. We’re going to evaluate all the options we were provided and hopefully find a better deal.

On my personal side, being new to the country, learning English is always my priority. So my personal to-do list is to fill up my “Word of the Day” booklet I created for myself.

Marilyn Brennan, Egan Sign: As director of business development, my goal is to increase our sales. Egan does that a little differently than most companies, we really look for long term partnerships. Most of our new clients that I have on-boarded in last two years has come from CCR (Commercial Construction & Renovation) events. We have built some really close relationships and learned about what people are looking for. We enjoy finding those companies that know RFPs are important, but there’s a reliability in a partnership that you can count on when you have an emergency.

We are forecasting a 25 to 50 store rollout implementing a new interior store design that also focuses on new methods of engaging our customers to acquire more of the millennial market. We’re working on a rollout and finding more successful ways of execution.

– Aly Chally, Aaron’s Inc.

You hear a lot about expediting schedules these days. Our business model is architected to expedite all the time for our clients. I worked for companies that saw an opportunity to charge more to assist our clients in need, they would charge you 20 percent more because they could. We don’t do that. We just pull things out of the fire. We are in it for the long haul; we are partners. I also work very closely with leadership in our company to develop new talent, bring new talent in and instill in them the idea of what they are—that they are truly an extension of our client’s team.

When there is a challenge on a project, either in the schedule or a site condition, we will do the unimaginable to make things happen for our client. It may involve spending extra money to do something on the weekend,” or whatever it takes.

Personally, last year I said one of my goals was to get more involved in the industry besides just attending events, so I’ve been really active on advisory boards and writing articles related to signage for publication. I am committed to inviting both existing clients and people I have just met, to attend these retreats and other events because I feel like there is so much knowledge that the vendors and brands bring to the table. CCR

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Gone Italian

Attendees live (and taste) the good life at Tappo’s

It almost seemed like the perfect place for a group of commercial construction executives to have dinner in downtown Buffalo. Sure, while the noted Italian cuisine at Tappo grabbed the headlines, it was the building that drew the attention.

Saved from the scraps of the city’s Horton Coffee Building, which was vacant from more than 20 years, the building was the brainchild of an enterprising chef and developer. Thanks to Mike Andrzejewski and Rocco Termini, respectively, Tappo is one of the centerpieces of the city’s “Culinary Corridor” on Ellicott Street. It was there attendees of the 2018 Women’s Retreat set up shop for dinner on the first evening.

The Retreat, held in August at The Hyatt Regency in downtown Buffalo, included some of the industry leading female executives across the retail, restaurant and hospitality sectors. The three-day event, sponsored by Commercial Construction & Renovation, included a series of business meetings and networking events.

The ‘Maid of the Mist’ Voyage

Attendees take their shot at Mother Nature

Raging currents. A deafening thunderous roar. The misty rain of 600,000 gallons of water falling before your eyes every second. You want Mother Nature, you got Niagara Falls. And thanks to the legendary Maid of the Mist, attendees of the 2018 Women’s Retreat received an up close and personal look at one of the world’s great attractions. To note, the Maid of the Mist has been ushering visitors near the Falls for more than 100 years. The networking connection was part of the Retreat, held in August at The Hyatt Regency in downtown Buffalo.

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And away we go...

Jet boat tour whisks attendees on through the Niagara rapids

They came. They saw. They conquered. It was the prevailing attitude attendees of the 2018 Women’s Retreat embraced after moving from one adventure to the next on their trek in and around Niagara Falls. After taking the scenic and surreal journey near the base of the Falls, they hit the rapids on the Whirlpool Jet Boat tour. The excursion covers the expanse of the Niagara River, which collects all the water from the Great Lakes (roughly 20 percent of the world’s fresh water). The adventure was the second part of the Retreat’s morning networking slate.

Pass the BBQ

Lunch provides welcome retreat from Niagara rapids

If you’re going to risk it all on the Niagara River (we can be dramatic for effect, here), you have to celebrate. That’s where more of the greater Buffalo area’s food comes in. The Brickyard Pub & BBQ offered the perfect culmination of a morning of adventure, thanks to some of the best wood-fired cooking in the area.

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All about Frankie’s

Dinner is served at a Buffalo institution

The name says it all—Frankie Primo’s +39. The restaurant, which features the country code (+39) if you were to phone Italy, is the ultimate in Italian fare. With a wide variety of Italian favorites to choose from, attendees brought the stories and photos and energy from two days of networking and business to a celebratory gathering. The dinner was part of the Retreat, held in August at The Hyatt Regency in downtown Buffalo.

Face to face

One-on-ones bring the business to table

When it’s time to sit down and get to business, nobody does it like commercial construction executives. In one on of the 2018 Women’s Retreat’s most anticipated gatherings (the Falls aside), attendees squared off for a morning of one-one-one meetings, where vendors and end users take time to discuss who can help who in the marketplace. The meetings continue to be a vital resource for Retreat attendees looking to improve their contact lists and set their agendas for the upcoming quarters.

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