Part IV of the New Age SA Panel Series, a joint effort between the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce and San Antonio Young Professionals, was held last Thursday, February 2nd at Alamo Beer Company. This segment of the series focused on businesses making the jump into commercial real estate, be it co-working spaces, commercial leases, or commercial build outs.
Co-moderators included:
- Darian Padua – CEO & Co Founder, Maverick MRI
- Sarah Esserlieu Khalil – Economic Development Director, Centro San Antonio
Panelists included:
- Alejandro Berea – Head of Customer Success, KLS Creativity Inc.
- James Nichols – Senior Project Manager, JLL
- Aamil Sarfani – CEO & Principal Broker, Sarfani Commercial Advisors
- Charlie Weil – Vice President, Transwestern
Darian prefaced the panel conversation by explaining how the idea for the series came about through his experience in starting a business and the lessons he learned the hard way, both in terms of time and money. By partnering with the San Antonio Chamber, Darian who serves as President of the San Antonio Young Professionals, was able to broadcast his message to a larger audience of small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs. As a prelude to the focal point of the conversation around leasing/buying/building a physical space, the first topic emphasized by Alejandro was how to establish an online presence through digital marketing prior to investing in a physical space to ensure your business’ growth and profit margins can sustain the move, thus saving yourself from “dying while trying.”
While discussing the pros and cons of entering a commercial space, panelists concurred on the following: being honest about how much space your business needs and how much it will need years from now given growth predictions, evaluating where your business should be located considering employee commute and targeted clientele, and the need to include a real estate attorney and project manager throughout the negotiation process. According to the panel, many people do not have experience in dealing with commercial lease contracts, and having industry professionals in your corner to serve as a guide throughout the process will ensure your assets are safe and your business gets the attention it deserves.
Along those same lines, panelists had a candid conversation on the importance of working with a real estate broker who has your interest at heart and specializes in the type of space you are looking for. They also pointed out there are brokers who work specifically on behalf of the landlord and aim to get them the best return possible which could result in a much steeper price per square foot, whereas brokers who work on behalf of the tenant aim to get you the best deal possible and their services are usually at no cost to you, a win-win scenario!
To learn more about any of the topics of conversation described above, panelists’ contact information can be found here.
And once again, thank you to Alamo Beer Company, a proud Chamber member, for hosting us!