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| GPL RETAIL DEVELOPMENT
SOLUTIONS |
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Drawing upon the extensive industry experience of founder
Graham Luck, GPL Retail Development Solutions was founded
in 2005 to provide a comprehensive outsource solution for
managing retail store expansion.
Luck is a seasoned retail executive with an exceptional background
in construction management. He served as a senior executive
at Contempo Casuals, Guess and Charlotte Russe and was instrumental
in executing their roll-out programs. At Charlotte Russe,
Luck helped to generate a return on investment in excess of
80 per cent in the first year. The vision for GPL is primarily
based on his in-depth knowledge of the store
expansion process.
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The company
is currently working with a number of retailers in the US, such
as Trina Turk, for whom it has just opened a new store at Fashion
Island Mall in Newport Beach, and Harvey’s, with a new
store on exclusive Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. It has also
recently completed a superb showroom development for Walker
Zanger.
“Meeting with retailers made me aware that many do not
have adequate in-house project management. I realised there
was a need for the skill sets that I had accumulated,”
explains Luck, a member of the International Council of Shopping
Centers (ICSC).
In addition to growing its domestic clientele, the strategic
initiative of the company right now, says Luck, is to reach
out to those UK and European retailers, in fact retailers from
anywhere in the world, that are considering an entry into the
US. |
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“It occurred
to me that having a Brit on this side of the Atlantic who has
opened 600 stores and knows the European culture, might provide
foreign retailers something of a comfort level when embarking
upon an expansion into the US.”
At GPL, the critical relationship between real estate, legal,
design, and construction in the retail roll-out schedule is
paramount. By managing these four disciplines essentially as
a single process, and becoming involved in the process as early
as possible, the company helps its clients develop a high-performance
expansion model. GPL improves both the cost and time efficiency
with its store development programme. |
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“We
bring the pieces of the puzzle together to provide a clear vision,”
says Luck.
“Whilst managing the process, we work diligently and diplomatically
with the retailers’ trusted partners.”
“Quite often, the real estate broker’s commission
is paid by the landlord,” continues Luck. “I believe
this presents a potential conflict; we have increasingly been
asked to provide an opinion on the viability of the strategic
placement of the store and that the terms of the agreement are
appropriate.”
GPL’s deep expertise and experience enables the company
to provide seamless support to management and to serve as its
liaison with all constituents involved in the store opening
process. GPL delivers value by leveraging its experiential insights,
key real estate relationships, and extensive network of construction
resources. |
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“In
my experience with retail companies, there is often a disconnect
between the real estate or property, legal, store design, and
construction,” says Luck. “We bring these four disciplines
together to achieve a common goal. We recognize there are many
property specialists out there that tell you they know about
cost-to-build. They don’t. There are many designers that
will tell you that they understand the lease exhibits. They
don’t. What we do is integrate the entire spectrum of
property, legal, store design, and shopfitting functions; we
have the experience to bring all of these disciplines together,
and save our clients from the overhead cost and stress by offering
our services on an outsource basis.”
GPL has a truly impressive range of capabilities that guide
each step of the store development and expansion process, including:
real estate strategy development; lease review and negotiation;
store design oversight; materials, fixtures and custom decorative
elements procurement assistance; and construction management.
For the full article please see the RLI
June 09 issue
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Paramount
Publications Ltd Suite 15, Hardmans Business Centre, New
Hall Hey Road, Rawtenstall BB4 6HH UK
Tel: +44 (0) 1706 212200 Fax: +44 (0) 1706 211782 Email:
info@rli.uk.com
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