Pierce Thompson, 37

Pierce Thompson traveled around the world before the age of 21, often finding himself drawn to the places where people spent their money.

He grew up in the Washington, D.C., suburbs, but as a teenager accompanied his mother, a Smithsonian museum curator, on work trips to England, France and China, where he learned about high-end fashion brands like Comme des Garcons and Issey Miyake and how they designed their stores.  

While at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, Thompson enrolled in a Semester at Sea program in 2010, circumnavigating the world and docking in more than half a dozen nations. At each port, he gave reports that focused on how brands built their presences in these countries.

The experience taught him how to live more independently and become more outgoing to understand how others live.

“It required vulnerability, and that’s something you’re still learning,” he said. “Studying abroad really brought that out, which allowed me to get to know the local people, understand the culture and how it fits within a global world. It was important and transformative.”

After graduating in 2011, Thompson started his career at Horizon Media, where he managed national strategy for Geico. But he wanted to get into retail, and so joined RKF, which Newmark acquired in 2018. 

Thompson was soon tasked with representing landlords in New York City and retail tenants around the country. In 2024, he leased the former Steinway piano store at 111 West 57th Street to Bonhams, the British auction house, which opened its U.S. headquarters at the base of the luxury condo tower earlier this year.

Thompson also worked with Issey Miyake to establish its new flagship at 45 Madison Avenue after being located in Tribeca for two decades. He leaned on his deep history with the store and familiarity with their locations in Japan, France and the U.K. to meet their needs, which he said they appreciated.

“Brands are really driven by architecture and design and how they fit into a cultural moment, and they want to understand that you understand them,” Thompson said. “That makes your opinions more authentic and valuable.”