How my retail experience shaped a career in real estate management

A little more than two years ago, I joined Landsec as the deputy centre director at St David’s Shopping Centre in Cardiff. Before joining Landsec, my career had been focused on retail from the perspective of brands and I had worked within two Landsec centres before joining the company.

It was during my time in retail at St David’s that I noticed an opening within the centre itself. Having already established a relationship with Landsec, I was familiar with their strong values, which resonated with my own. With over 18 years of experience in consumer retail behind me, I was looking to progress my career. So, when the chance came at St David’s, I decided to go for it.

Although my background does not include formal training in real estate, the skills I’ve developed in customer service and commercial awareness have definitely been beneficial as I moved into the sector.

I also think it’s important to be inquisitive and be persistent, to find answers and to achieve results. From my experience, if you have the curiosity to learn, the determination to deliver and a good team around you, you can develop to fill any skill gaps you may have.

Different perspectives

Because of my background, I’m not like some of the people I had met in the sector before, yet the positive reception to my ideas and the encouragement I have received has been energising. I really feel I can be myself and add a different perspective.

Two years in, I feel as though my skills from working in retail have enhanced the experience for our guests and the relationships we have with our brands in the centre. I also hope that my fresh approach and energy has benefited the wider business.

I am an active member in Landsec Pride and I am part of the Retail Diversity & Inclusion forum, both of which allow me to have influence over the welcome we give to staff and those visiting our centres across the UK.

For anyone that’s looking to start a career in real estate, or is indeed looking to change their career path like me, I’d say go for it. It’s a diverse and rewarding profession, offering new experiences every day.

Top tips

If I was going to give my top tips for joining the industry, I would say develop your communication skills and start thinking about who you need to network with to help you in your role. Different assets and roles have different challenges and you can use your network to help you when starting out.

It’s also important to get to know your neighbours and customers, and be up to date with local trends and activity around your asset. That way, you get to know what your guests actually want, what frustrates them, why they want to visit, and what would make them stay for longer and ultimately spend more money.

Knowing this will help you make better commercial decisions when reviewing your centre.

Finally, if you get a chance to visit other centres, or shadow other members of the real estate teams in your company, you should jump at it. Everyone has different ideas and perspectives and you’ll learn something new from every interaction – you’ll also get a boost when your realise that you do something better than one of your competitors.

And remember to enjoy yourself too. It’s often a very fast-paced environment and at times you have to juggle various tasks in different fields. Work out a way that suits you to stay organised and hit deadlines.

Richard Stephens-Knott is deputy centre director at St David’s Shopping Centre in Cardiff which part of Landsec’s property portfolio. Thank you to Landsec for their support of our Future Leaders programme 2024..
You can hear Avneeth Fernandes, head of financial accounting at Landsec, speak at Real Estate Futures on Tuesday 17 September as part of the Future Leaders programme .