Building new markets around the world
About me
I advise developers, investors and owners on creating, growing and repositioning outlet destinations. My expertise spans outlet development, asset optimisation, placemaking and destination strategy, with a particular focus on emerging and underpenetrated markets worldwide.
Having worked in the outlet sector for more than 25 years, I have witnessed the industry’s evolution from its established foundations in North America and Europe to its expansion across Asia. While many markets have matured, significant opportunities remain for thoughtfully planned outlet destinations and the repositioning of existing assets.
In 2010, I founded B2U Consult, through which I continue to individually advise clients on retail real estate and outlet development.
For projects requiring broader international expertise, I work alongside TORG www.outletresource.com, an international real estate advisory and development platform founded by Lisa Wagner in the US. As a founding member of TORG Europe since 2015, I have collaborated on projects across the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Georgia and other international markets.
Today, our work increasingly focuses on regions with significant growth potential, particularly Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region, where we help clients adapt proven international outlet concepts to local market conditions.
Whether advising on a new outlet development, repositioning an existing asset or identifying opportunities for long-term value creation, my approach is always practical, strategic and rooted in real-world experience.
What I Do
I support clients at every stage of outlet development and retail expansion, providing strategic advice to help them turn their initial idea into a feasible vision and profitable plan for the future.
My work also involves transforming good retail destinations into great ones.
MASTERPLANNING &
VISION
Helping to find the best outlet and retail sites to bring an initial vision to life
- Scout potential locations to identify the most suitable plots in terms of access, visibility, catchment area and market economics
- Identify and collaborate with the most suitable architects for the masterplanning and detailed design
- Establish technical feasibility in terms of best use, optimum size, phasing, layout and orientation
- Adapt the project size to demand and purchasing power in the catchment area, also considering tourism potential
- Conduct research to measure consumer interest and expectations in terms of brands, services, and the concept in general
- Have sustainability as a guiding principle to help my clients achieve accreditations such as BREEAM and LEED
B2B MARKETING &
RETAIL STRATEGY
Creating a most compelling story and marketing the project in all the relevant channels
- Devise a placemaking strategy including retail and gastronomy as well as hospitality and entertainement
- Curate a brand mix vision including anchor typologies, required unit sizes and their distribution in the project
- Develop compelling B2B marketing material including a website, digital presentations, videos, and computer generated images
- Find the best agency partners to create purposeful and impactful real estate marketing and messages
- Endorse the project on social media, communicate to the trade and business press nationally and internationally
- Raise awareness of the project at key industry conventions and relevant international or national conferences
LEASING STRATEGY &
BRAND NETWORKING
Attracting and retaining the best retailers for your project and building long-term brand partnerships
- Curate a detailed leasing strategy and build a tailor-made retail mix of national and international brands to attract the desired customer targets
- Plan an F&B strategy to meet the culinary expectations of the target customers
- Analyze presence of brands, whether directly or indirectly present, identify key distributors for international brands
- Gauge initial reactions to the relevance of a given market at brand partners´ head office level
- Identify best resources and local leasing experts to help market the scheme and develop all contractual documentation and legal framework
ACTIVATION STRATEGY &
PRE-OPENING
Making sure that the original vision is maintained throughout the development process, all the way to the opening
- Oversee the construction and delivery process in collaboration with the local team, architects, project managers and other specialists
- Devise a B2C marketing vision in collaboration with the best local talent to find a creative concept that can be translated throughout all marketing touchpoints
- Recommend the best resources for third-party services, such as CRM management, e-commerce and footfall counting
- Work with the brand partners so that they understand their position and role in the centre’s future success
- Recruit a local management team with the most suitable candidates through a rigorous selection process
RETAIL EXPANSION &
INTERNATIONALIZATION
Working with brands to identify the strategically most relevant markets for full price retail or outlet expansion
- Thoroughly analyse the retail market in terms of demand, demographics, consumer behavior, the competitive landscape, and the overall business climate.
- Advise on the best way to enter a given market, whether through direct presence, a joint venture, a distributor, a franchise or a licence agreement.
- Find the right partners and draw up a rollout plan with measurable milestones.
- Help retailers and distributors in emerging countries to form partnerships with brands that are not yet present in their country or portfolio.
My background
I was part of the generation that helped establish the outlet industry in Europe during its formative years. Working alongside some of the sector’s pioneering developers and operators, I gained first-hand experience in creating destinations that have since become some of Europe’s leading outlet villages.
Having started my career in cosmetics and fast-moving consumer goods in Paris, I moved to London in 2000 to join the rapidly expanding outlet sector. Over the following decade, I held senior marketing and development roles with industry leaders including McArthurGlen and Value Retail, as well as pioneering developers such as Outlet Centres International (OCI) and BVS Outlet Villages.
As Marketing Director at McArthurGlen, I played a key role in the launch and early positioning of several flagship outlet destinations, including Roermond (The Netherlands), Parndorf (Austria), Berlin (Germany), and Troyes and Roubaix (France). These experiences gave me a deep understanding of every stage of an outlet’s evolution – from market positioning and brand recruitment to customer experience and long-term asset performance.
In 2010, I founded B2U Consult, providing strategic advice to developers, investors and retail real estate owners on outlet development and destination strategy.
Since 2015, I have also been a founding member of the European arm of TORG, The Outlet Resource Group, working alongside Lisa Wagner and an international network of specialists to deliver advisory services across Europe and increasingly in emerging markets.
Having lived and worked internationally throughout my career, I am fluent in German, English and French, with a good working knowledge of Spanish. I regularly participate in international retail real estate events, including MAPIC and ICSC, and continue to build relationships across the global outlet industry.
Portfolio
Over the years, I have been commissioned by real estate developers of some of the most innovative and ambitious outlet and mixed-use destinations in emerging or unsaturated countries worldwide.
