Retail & Hospitality Forum 2026 Agenda

8:00 AM: Registration & Networking Breakfast

8:30 AM: Reinforcing Madison Avenue as NYC’s Flagship Retail Corridor

Speakers

KEYNOTE

rachel abeles

Senior Vice President, Customer & Revenue Growth

Bloomingdale’s

KEYNOTE

david koeppel

Partner

Koeppel Rosen LLC

Jackie Totolo serves as a Senior Managing Director with Newmark in New York, where she specializes in both landlord and tenant representation.
Totolo has worked on behalf of many owners, including AR Global, Atlas Capital, Bettina Equities, The Carlyle Hotel, GFI Hospitality, Macklowe Properties, Marx Realty, MetLife, The New Museum, The Plaza Hotel, Related Companies, RFR Realty, The Sherry Netherland Hotel, SL Green Realty Corp. and The Winter Organization.
As an owner representative, Totolo has been instrumental to the successful leasing of many projects throughout New York City. She leased 575 Fifth Avenue on behalf of MetLife to Guess; 935 Madison Avenue on behalf of the Straus Family to Moynat, Aqauzzura, Nespresso, Golden Goose Deluxe Brand and Joe Bananas; 781 Fifth Avenue to Delvaux for its Fifth Avenue Flagship and Chocheng on behalf of The Sherry Netherland; One Wall Street on behalf of Macklowe Properties to Whole Foods Market and Lifetime Fitness; 63 Wooster Street on behalf of JP Morgan to Gucci; 980 Madison Avenue on behalf of RFR to Vince, Rebecca Taylor and Sandro; 785 Madison Avenue on behalf of HUBB to A. Lange & Sohne; and 1186 Broadway on behalf of the Ace Hotel to Milk Bar.
On the tenant representation side, Totolo has represented many retailers. She currently represents Itsu, Levain Bakery, Pret A Manger, SEE Eyewear and Swarovski, among others.

9:00 AM: Retail Repositioned: State of the Market & Emerging Strategies for the Next Generation of Shopping Centers

Today’s retail landscape continues to be redefined as owners adapt to shifting consumer behavior, evolving tenant demand, and a more disciplined capital environment. From repositionings and new tenant strategies, to the rise of mixed-use developments and retail as an amenity, owners are taking placemaking to new levels. Join this state of the market session to get high-level insights on what’s working, where top opportunities lie, and what can be expected as we enter the next generation of retail.

Speakers

MODERATOR

danielle lesser

Partner & Chair, Business Litigation

Morrison Cohen

9:35 AM: Experiential Retail & Hospitality: Entertainment, Wellness & the Future of Destination Developments

Bringing experience into the equation has become a requirement for brands to rise above the competition. Owners are seeking out more experiential tenants to increase foot traffic and dwell time, and to craft a memorable competitive edge in a tight market. Hear how entertainment, wellness and best-in-class amenities are ushering in a new class of destination retail and hospitality.

Speakers

jordan Bargas

Executive Vice President, Development

Related Ross

10:05 AM: Networking Break

10:20 AM: Fireside Chat

Speakers

10:55 AM: Underwriting Lifestyle & Experience: How the Hospitality Sector is Unlocking Value to Build Investor Momentum

ity centers and tourism strategies were upended in the first half of this decade as they navigated changes in foot traffic patterns in major CBDs, generational shifts, and the rapid acceleration of technology that pushed some brands out of their storefronts and onto e-commerce platforms. Now, as we enter the second half of the decade, in-person business has not only returned, it’s booming in the urban corridors supported by vibrant streetscapes. Learn how restaurants have become the cornerstone of neighborhood amenities, and what reservation waitlists and the prominence of social media influencing mean for urban revitalization.

Speakers

Daniel H. Lesser has more than forty years of specialized experience worldwide in hospitality related: real estate appraisals, economic feasibility evaluations, investment counseling, asset management, receivership, and transactional services of hotels, resorts, conference centers, casinos, mixed-use facilities, spa & wellness properties, and timeshare/fractional ownership properties.

Mr. Lesser offers a 360-degree, cross-functional and multi-disciplinary lodging industry perspective. Proffering innovation and strategy, Mr. Lesser serves as a third-party advisor and independent expert witness, neutral arbitrator, business model canvasser, asset manager, property/business receiver, and as a principal investor, borrower, guarantor, and franchisee. Mr. Lesser provides services to corporate, institutional, municipalities, and individual clients on all facets of hospitality real estate including site evaluation, highest and best use analysis, appraisals for mortgage, acquisition and portfolio management, workout strategies, operational analysis, property tax assessment appeal evaluations, economic impact studies, market and feasibility analysis, strategic planning, management and/or franchise company selection and contract negotiation, deal structuring, and fairness opinions. Mr. Lesser has served as a Court Appointed Receiver in connection with dozens of hotels throughout the U.S.

An international authority and thought leader with ironclad credibility on the topic of hotel feasibility and property valuation, Mr. Lesser has served as an expert witness under oath through depositions and testimony in court and arbitration hearings in U.S. federal and state courts, and domestic and international arbitrations in connection with a wide variety of matters including bankruptcy, solvency, valuation analysis, interest rate and plan confirmation feasibility, brand area of protection, condemnation, construction defect and/or delay damages, ground/property rent reset, management dispute, partnership/joint venture conflict, property tax certiorari, and lodging industry standards, customs, and practices to evaluate legal liability.

Mr. Lesser always bases his opinion(s) and/or conclusion(s) on thorough research conducted with an objective perspective. Furthermore, rather than limiting his litigation-related engagements to one type of stakeholder, he has been retained by counsel to hotel owners, lenders, investors, and management companies, thus enhancing his credibility with finders of fact. Mr. Lesser has balanced his practice with service as a neutral panelist in commercial arbitration disputes.

Prior to his hospitality advisory experience, Mr. Lesser held operational and administrative positions with Hilton Hotels Corporation and Eurotels-Switzerland. He is highly sought after to speak at lodging and real estate events, as well as lectures at prestigious institutions of higher education, including American University Washington College of Law, Columbia University, Cornell University, New York University, and Pennsylvania State University. Mr. Lesser is widely published and quoted in major newspaper, internet, business, real estate, and hospitality industry periodicals, and has or currently serves as a columnist for HotelNewsNow.com, HotelBusiness.com, GlobeSt.com, and Hotelsmag.com.

Mr. Lesser earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel Administration from Cornell University and attended the Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne Switzerland, and Baruch College – City University of New York. Mr. Lesser holds the following professional designations: MAI (Member of the Appraisal Institute), FRICS (Fellow of The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors), CRE (Counselor of Real Estate), and CHA (Certified Hotel Administrator). Mr. Lesser is a Certified Part 36 Judiciary Receiver in the State of New York.

Mr. Lesser is a member of and/or has served on numerous committees for the Counselors of Real Estate, the Appraisal Institute, the American Hotel & Motel Association, and the Board of Directors of the New York City Chapter of the Cornell Hotel Society. He is a former Advisory Board member and member of the Fundraising Subcommittee for the New York University Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management. Mr. Lesser is an advisory board member of Mosaic Real Estate Investors, LLC and 1st Service Solutions, Inc. He is a member of The Penn State School of Hospitality Management Industry Advisory Board and served as the school’s Fall 2015 Walter J. Conti Visiting Professor. Mr. Lesser is a founding member of the Lodging Industry Investment Council (LIIC), the hotel industry “think tank.” He is a member of the American Arbitration Association (AAA) Panel of Neutrals. Mr. Lesser is an advisory board member of the annual Radical Innovation Award. He served as an Honorary Committee Member of the annual UJA-Federation New York Hotel & Hospitality Division Dinner and was a founding member of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Real Estate Division. Mr. Lesser has served on the fundraising committee for the Shatterproof Challenge at the 2016 through 2022 Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS). Mr. Lesser serves on the Board of Directors and as a Senior Advisor to the Founder and President of The MirYam Institute, a U.S. based, non-profit NGO with official 501(c)(3) status.

scott koster

Executive Vice President of Asset Management

GFI Hospitality

11:25 AM: Meeting Consumer Demands: How Owners are Working with Tenants to Curate their Real Estate Strategies to Scale

As consumer expectations evolve, retail and hospitality brand are rethinking where, how and why they expand. Hear how tenants are leveraging data and omnichannel insights to curate smarter, more flexible real estate strategies that support scalable growth. Experts will discuss everything from site selection to store formats, lease negotiations, and how they’re balancing their flagship presence with plans for expansion.

Speakers

Brandon Singer Retail & Hospitality Forum 2026 Agenda

brandon l. singer

Chief Executive Officer & Founder

MONA Retail Holdings, LLC