Schanke joins Cohen Brothers as VP leasing

Erika Schanke has joined Cohen Brothers Realty Corp. as a VP leasing. Schanke, who was formerly in the Retail Brokerage Services division of Cushman & Wakefield, will focus on design center and retail leasing for Cohen Brothers' national real estate portfolio. In addition to over 10 million s/f of class A office space, Cohen owns the Decoration & Design (D&D) Building in Manhattan, the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood, the Design Center of the Americas in Dania Beach, Florida, and the Decorative Center of Houston. "We're confident that Erika's outstanding talents and experience, particularly in the retail sector, will prove a valuable resource for our company as we continue to lease up and expand our portfolio," said Cohen. While at Cushman & Wakefield, Schanke served both landlords and retailers nationwide, representing multiple urban and suburban retail developments as well as local and national retailers and restaurants in their regional and national rollout. She began her C&W career as a tenant rep in office transaction services. Prior to joining C&W, Schanke spent five years with Interpublic Group's McCann Erickson Advertising and Momentum Promotional Marketing companies in their New York and Atlanta offices, and two years as a licensed broker in Merrill Lynch's private client group in their headquarters located in New York's World Financial Center. Schanke earned her Bachelor's of Business Administration in Marketing and Finance from Florida Atlantic University in 1999. She is a member of the Atlanta Commercial Board of Realtors, The Young Council of Realtors, Urban Land Institute (ULI), the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), and is actively involved with Junior Achievement (JA). Signature Manhattan office properties owned and managed by Cohen Brothers include 623 Fifth Ave., 805 Third Ave., 750 Lexington Ave., 622 Third Ave., 135 East 57th St., 3 Park Ave., 979 Third Ave., 3 East 54th St. and 475 Park Ave. South.