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Howard Spunt Cofounds Landmark Retail Group And Joins Company As Chief Operating Officer
NewMark Merrill Companies is proud to announce the addition of Howard Spunt as a Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer for Landmark Retail Group, a new subsidiary of the Newmark Merrill Companies. This new subsidiary will be responsible for identifying tenants who have targeted Southern California as a growth market, and providing development support for that growth. As Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Spunt will be responsible for all strategic, operational, entitlement and corporate oversight of targeted real estate sites for new development throughout Southern California, building retail tenant relationships and assisting in the day-to-day operations of the company.

“I have worked with the principals of NewMark Merrill Companies for almost 20 years and we have partnered on many successful ventures. This is a great opportunity to work with a team of seasoned, respected and highly-regarded professionals and I’m honored to be joining the NewMark Merrill team”’ stated Mr. Spunt.

“Howard’s has been a key partner in our growth, an incredible asset and a friend. When we decided to launch a new company, it was our main goal to bring Howard into the organization and we are very excited he has become a co-founder. He brings to LandMark Retail Group an incredible amount of development experience in all areas of retail development, and especially in working with cities, contractors and other development professionals. His integrity, excellent reputation, and ability to take challenging sites and make them a reality will be prove to be a great asset to the growth of this division,” stated Sandy Sigal, Chief Executive Officer of NewMark Merrill Companies.

Prior to co-founding Landmark Retail Group, Mr. Spunt served 12 years as the President and Co-Founder of Spectrum Construction, specializing in the construction of shopping centers for national and regional tenants and local developers. Before joining Spectrum Construction, Mr. Spunt served 12 years as the President of an architectural firm focused on commercial shopping centers. During his tenure there, Mr. Spunt gained invaluable hands-on experience in strategic planning, value engineering, resolving challenging entitlement related matters, and negotiating tenant and city issues.

A licensed contractor and member of the ICSC and YPO (Young President’s Organization), Mr. Spunt is also actively involved in his community. In addition to serving on the board for The Foundation for Camp Max Strauss — a non-profit organization dedicated to helping disadvantaged youth — Mr. Spunt has also been involved in charitable endeavors as a member of the Chase Foundation’s golf committee for the last 5 years. Married for 19 years, Mr. Spunt and his wife, Melinda, have two sons. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family, golfing, surfing with his son, and traveling.

NewMark Merrill Companies, LLC, is owned by Chief Executive Officer Sandy Sigal. In business since 1984, he has led NewMark Merrill in the management, acquisition and/or development of over 5 million square feet of shopping centers in over 30 cities. Tenants have included Wal-Mart, Ralph’s, Albertsons, Vons, Food 4 Less, Lowe’s HIW, Old Navy, Marshall’s, Mervyn’s, Toys R Us, Linens N Things, The Gap, 99 Cent Only Stores, K-Mart, Stein Mart, Pep Boys, KB Toy works, Sav-On, Rite Aid, FAMSA, Bally Total Fitness, Trader Joes, Regal Cinemas, Mann Theatres, Pacific Theaters, and many other national and regional Tenants.

NewMark Merrill Companies was ranked among the top 100 Fastest Growing Private Companies in 2004 by the LA Business Journal, a distinction it has held for the last 4 years. In addition, NewMark Merrill is also ranked as one of the top 20 developers and top 20 property managers in Los Angeles County. NewMark Merrill Companies has regional offices in San Diego County, Orange County, Ventura County and Los Angeles County. Log on to www.newmarkmerrill.com to learn more.