Santiago joins Cushman & Wakefield as director

Eva Santiago, a retail strategist and development consultant who most recently served as vice president for retail corporate services at Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, has joined Cushman & Wakefield as a director. She is located in the firm's Midtown Manhattan office. Santiago played a leadership role in devising and implementing marketing and leasing strategies for high-profile retail developments and served as a key liaison to C-level executives across multiple business platforms at BGC Partners and Cantor Fitzgerald. "With first-class credentials in the fields of real estate and economic development, Eva brings a deep understanding of the N.Y.C. retail sector," said Ron Lo Russo, president, N.Y. tri-state region. "She joins one of the region's top retail teams and will help Cushman & Wakefield build upon our record of success in retail." Prior experience includes work with The Blackstone Group's Equity Office portfolio in the areas of Times Square and Bryant Park, as well as service as director of economic development and business development for the Times Sq. Alliance. She was also executive director of the Montclair Economic Development Corp. in Montclair, N.J. and served as a senior financial analyst for mayor Bloomberg's office of management and budget. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin at Madison, she holds a bachelor of science degree in Education Policy. She also holds a master's degree in Public Policy, management and finance from The New School University, and was awarded an elite Woodrow Wilson Fellowship in association with the University of Michigan's School of Public Policy in Ann Arbor. She is a member of REBNY and ICSC. "We're continuing to add top-tier talent in New York and Eva is the latest example of this," said Suzy Reingold, COO, New York Tri-State Region. The firm recently released its market report for the fourth quarter of 2013. The report cited Manhattan's retail sector as an area of strength that has consistently outpaced national retail trends. Boosted by tourism as a key driver of retail traffic, the report found that the sector was steadily performing beyond expectations, with supporting fundamentals pointing to further sustainability. Long known for thought leadership, Cushman & Wakefield's flagship retail research report Main Streets Across the World recently celebrated its 25th year monitoring and analyzing the evolution of the industry and global retail trends, ranking the most expensive locations in the top 334 shopping destinations across 64 countries. Additionally, the firm's Global Cities Retail Guide, a guide designed to help real estate professionals better understand the business of international retail and food & beverage operators, tracks more than 105 cities and 44 countries worldwide. The web-based guide offers insights to local markets, including culture, demographics, customs, how business is done, leasing guidelines, where major shopping streets are, which type of retailers can be found in different submarkets and more. Whether it is luxury retail, shopping center leasing or urban high streets, Cushman & Wakefield's 900 global retail specialists leverage their vast local market knowledge and global perspective to help clients succeed. We have secured cross-border expansion for major retail brands growing internationally led by our teams with expertise in market entry strategy, leasing & sales transactions and valuation & advisory services. With over 500 preferred and exclusive relationships worldwide, C&W retail professionals represented clients in more than 7,700 transactions, representing nearly 63.4 million square feet valued at $15.62 billion in 2012.