Brand Urban Hires Team of Six From Alvarez & Marsal to Expand Retail Services – Commercial Observer
Retail advisory firm Brand Urban is expanding its headcount with the addition of a team from another New York City brokerage, Commercial Observer has learned.
Founded by Taryn Brandes, Brand Urban is bringing on Matthew Krell, Daniel Bodner and Lucas Kooyman as well as three others from Alvarez & Marsal Property Solutions in an effort to broaden the range and scale of its services, according to the two firms.
Krell will join Brand Urban as principal, while Bodner and Kooyman join as executive vice president and vice president, respectively. The three other new hires from Alvarez & Marsal include Max Swerdloff, Rikard Cederberg and Isabel Krajovan.
The hiring of the Alvarez & Marsal team members brings with them clients such as Asana Partners, Nuveen Real Estate and Kushner Companies, as well as retailers such as Patagonia, Lush, Ghirardelli and Barcelona Wine Bar.
“At Brand Urban, we’ve been incredibly thoughtful — some would say slow, I would say thoughtful — about growing the team,” Brandes told CO. “We’ve been thoughtful about leadership, we’ve been thoughtful about the individuals we bring into the firm and the clients that we partner with. The addition of Matt and his team is about strengthening our leadership given his experience on the operation and management side of brokerage.”
Brandes has built the business from a New York City brokerage into a larger national framework through partnerships helping retailers expand nationally. Customers have included delivery-oriented eatery Goop Kitchen, cafe chain Maman and grocery chain Trader Joe’s.
“Gut instincts still matter in this business, but our clients expect recommendations backed by real market intelligence, and Brand Urban has consistently expanded in its service offerings and invested in the data and research capabilities,” Krell said. “The additional services of place-making and growth advisory services were really attractive to our team. It allows us to serve our clients with conviction and not just opinions.”
Brand Urban is taking particular interest in Manhattan’s NoMad and Flatiron District neighborhoods, where it is advising Nuveen at 10 Madison Square West, just north of Eataly, which Brandes believes epitomizes live-work culture in the five boroughs.
Alvarez & Marsal did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mark Hallum can be reached at mhallum@commercialobserver.com.
