Kenneth, Steven and Winston Fisher

Fisher Brothers got an early start on the retrofit trend, pouring millions of dollars into upgrading their family’s office stock in Manhattan. And it’s paying off. 

The third generation to lead the family company, Kenneth, Steven and Winston Fisher, spent 2021 filling up some of the firm’s prime office spaces; diversifying into entertainment, hospitality and venture capital; and lending their fortune to a variety of causes. 

The company completed over 20 office leases totaling roughly 800,000 square feet at several recently renovated buildings such as 1345 Avenue of the Americas, 299 Park Avenue and Park Avenue Plaza. At the last one, Morgan Stanley agreed to lease the 300,000-plus square feet that BlackRock is vacating to move to Hudson Yards, bringing Park Avenue Plaza to 100 percent leased. Fisher Brothers also refinanced the building with a $575 million loan in the fall of 2021, just missing the inflationary turbulence that followed. 

Fisher Brothers created a hospitality company called Ease to manage amenity centers in its office buildings and accommodate flexible work. It is also involved in efforts to create a park on Park Avenue’s median, which will soon go to a request for proposal. 

“It’s been a dream to see Park Avenue operate more like the High Line,” Winston Fisher said, referencing the elevated park.

Outside Manhattan, Fisher Brothers completed its first year running AREA15, an interactive retail and entertainment center in Las Vegas. The destination had 2 million visitors in 2021, despite the pandemic, per Winston Fisher. They’re now taking the same concept to Orlando, where the group purchased an 80-acre plot to build a second AREA15 several miles away from Disney World. “It’s a reimagination of retail, entertainment, social gathering,” Winston Fisher said. 

On top of that, the company continues to expand its lending platform, Lionheart, and its venture capital arm, which invested in a beauty brand, a whiskey purveyor and an energy startup. 

ESG is also a big focus for Fisher Brothers. The company launched an internship program with Project Basta to help add diverse candidates to its pipeline of real estate talent, it installed automation systems in its properties for more fresh air intake, and has an internal task force working on integrating ESG into every division.

“We’re working to create real diversity inside of real estate at the ground level,”  Kenneth Fisher said.