Michael Abrams | Real Estate Consultant and Advisor | Flexspace Advisors | Let’s talk about flex

Transcript

DA: Welcome to TEN, the Tenant Experience Network. I’m your host, David Abrams. In this episode, we are connecting with Michael Abrams, Real Estate Consultant and Advisor at Flexspace Advisors. In this episode, we learn how Michael’s career journey began with a multidisciplinary background, working for several commercial real estate companies before venturing out on his own and securing a construction loan for his first project. In 2014, Michael started to track the Flex Space market and started to work for a regional Flex operator. This opened his eyes to the experience being offered in the office world, and he quickly recognized that this was going to be more than just a trend. Over the last several years, Michael has worked with many real estate partners to better understand the future of work and the tug of war between talent and employers. Michael draws on his personal life experiences to provide valued learning and expertise as he continues to advise others. Michael believes that Flex Space and working remotely is more meaningful and provides more benefits than working from home. Michael shares his thoughts on current CRE topics, such as reactivating buildings and their connection to people and community, and the increasing awareness of mental health and wellbeing. Michael lives, breathes, and sleeps, all things Flex, and could talk forever about his passion for the industry. We’re excited to share this podcast with you, so be sure to subscribe to TEN so you never miss an episode of the Tenant Experience Network. And now I’d like to welcome Michael to the show. I’m really glad you could be with us today.

MA: Thank you, David, I appreciate it.

DA: I’m looking forward to our conversation, and to kick things off, my favorite question, tell us about your journey to your current position role. How did you get started in the wonderful world of commercial real estate?

 

MA: And as you know, the journeys can be long depending on how long we have lived through the various economic cycles. So for me, I graduated University of Pennsylvania back in the 80s, pre-technology days, so it was just, it was a lot of fun. Being young and energetic, we were out to conquer the world, and I started out in real estate, came out of an economic recession. So for me, to start when the world was in turmoil kind of grounded me pretty quickly. So for me, I’d loved real estate, actually, I wanted to go into architecture, but in the 70s, the housing business and architecture and the economy was not doing so well. So I went after the interdisciplinary approach. I went into business and architecture and sociology and everything else. And so I worked for various companies, developers, landlords, understanding the business, understanding the creativity in buildings. It was just a lot of fun. And then about in the 90s, when the S&L crisis came about, which a lot of people are now comparing the S&L crisis to the current banking industry.

DA: Right.

MA: Which is great. And so I sat on, believe it or not, a Department of Commerce, the United States Federal Government, on new ways of attracting capital in the US. And at that point, it was called the Green Card Program, and it was to attract foreign capital into the US. Make a long story short, I started that program. I worked with great companies like Sunrise Retirement Homes, which went public. We did three deals with them, we did retirement homes. I even provided $10 million of capital to the Fuddruckers Restaurant Group. And I helped grow them throughout the country. So my experience in real estate has, I come from the landlord side, the developer side, after my experience with that, in 1994, I went off on my own. I felt like I had all this energy. I was an entrepreneur, I was solo. I acquired a building in downtown Baltimore, and I competed for an RFP by the GSA, the General Service Administration, and as the story goes, I called up my architect and I said, “I have good news and bad news.” He said, “Well, why don’t you start with the good news?” I said, “We won the award. “We were award awarded the deal by the GSA.” He said, “What’s the bad news?” “We now have to build it.” And so, it’s no different than in today’s world of entrepreneurs. You learn as you go. And signing that first construction loan and personally guaranteeing a big loan that you know you don’t have the money in the bank, but the lender kind of thinks you can do it, you know? And so, it was great. I’ve developed over the years, retail and office and apartments. After the Great Recession in ’08 and ’09, I saw the world changing, and the entrepreneurship in real estate was making it even greater challenging. So in about 2014 and ’15, I was reading about Flex, this new trend. And the irony is, in the early 90s, when I started on my own, where do you think that I put my office, I was in an executive suites location in Tyson’s Corner. I didn’t really think much of it. I thought it was great, I paid by the office. It was economical, it allowed me to grow. I brought in a partner, it was actually a lot of fun. And so fast forward to 2014, 2015, I started following Flex, and I started looking at different social platforms, from Twitter to Instagram. Instagram really wasn’t developed yet, or it wasn’t big, but LinkedIn was, and LinkedIn was the professional platform. So I started working for a regional Flex operator in the Washington DC area. And it really opened my eyes on the experience in the office world and work. And I realized at the time, “This was going to be more than a trend.” It just seemed like it made so much sense. And I say that because having been a developer and experienced the retail world, the retail world went through a complete transformation with e-commerce. We don’t necessarily go into stores today, but we’re still buying stuff. And now, here we are in 2023, we don’t necessarily go into the office, but we’re still working. It’s kind of the same thing. So when the pandemic hit, I totally embraced LinkedIn, and then I left Launch Workplaces where I worked in the DC market, and I wanted to expand my platform. I wanted to be able to experience what was going on throughout the entire country and the world. And coming from an urban planning, economist background, and in real estate, I wanted to be able to take that information a step further and to be able to understand both macro and micro worlds and apply that to the Flex world. And so for the last three years, I’ve probably worked with over two dozen Flex operators and landlords, and helping them understand this future of work that there’s this great debate about, and the tug of war between talent and employers. “Do they go into the office, do they work remotely?” And so I’ve really embraced it. I have spent enormous amount of time connecting with people, because I think my roots from my education to my growth and growing up was all about engagement. We can talk about business and we can talk about socializing, but it’s all about people. In any business, it doesn’t matter whether you’re Google or Nike or whatever industry you’re in, the success is still about the people. So to me, the Flex industry and the future of work, I find it energizing. I find there’s a lot of sharing, the data is overwhelming, as you know. And so for me, I feel like this was my destination, it just took me a while to get there.

DA: Okay, that’s awesome, and thanks for sharing that. So to that end, if this is sort of where you were meant to be, and certainly, you’ve had a lot of different connection points to commercial real estate, but now certainly a passion for Flex, why do you think you’ve been so uniquely suited to this opportunity, identifying this opportunity, what enabled you to bring something special to the space?

MA: So, great question. A lot of it has to do with our personal journey, where we’ve been before, because as we grow older, we’re picking up bits and pieces. We have experienced different things, which by the way, is one of the best things in our world, is everybody is on their own journey. And everybody picks up different things along the way, and everybody’s path is different, right? So as long as we can be open and engaging and be willing to learn from others, look, as we know, transforming the office environment and the office experience is not an easy task. I face it every day, there is this reluctance of the old school mentality that they have to have a long-term lease. But as we know, that’s not so anymore. And so there’s a lot of reluctance to it, I find, because of where I came from, meaning I took the risk, I learned what the real reward was, I also learned what failure is. I mean, the great recession, I was exposed holding a lot of money and lost a lot of money. And so you become very humble, and you learn through humility how to pick up the pieces and keep moving forward and learn from those experiences. And so it’s really those experiences that gives me a different perspective than a lot of other guys in the industry. And as you well know, for some people, they think Flex started with the pandemic, as you and I both know, Flex was accelerated with the pandemic. But we also know that a lot of, some of the great operators, in the business, they’ve never experienced a downturn. They’ve never experienced an economic recession. So for a lot of them, they’re kind of guessing, they really don’t know what’s happening from a macro sense, because it’s new to them. And look, even though people keep using the word recession, technically we still haven’t had one yet, because the economy is doing quite well. The labor market is still very, very tight. But there’s clearly signs that something is looming ahead.

DA: Yeah, listen, I just want to pick up on one point, you talked about all the experiences and some of those failures and how they have helped you. I interviewed Paul J. Massey recently, and he said, he contributes his success in part to making every mistake in the book, but never making the same mistake twice.

MA: Yep, amen to that.

DA: Amen to that. Listen, I think we can agree that commercial real estate has gone through one of the most turbulent periods of time we can ever remember. And commercial real estate, still the largest asset class in the world, is now experiencing still prolonged periods and low levels of occupancy. And so, to your point earlier about, it’s all about the people, buildings need to evolve to meet the needs of people going forward. So my team, we really believe that the workplace is now much, the workplace ecosystem is so much larger, and the physical workspace is just one part of that. There’s so many different options, coworking space, Flex space, a local cafe, your porch from maybe a vacation property. So we really have a unique opportunity to reimagine how buildings and how the physical workplace fits into this new, much larger opportunity. So I’m just curious, what are you seeing right now within the commercial real estate industry as it continues to respond to the emerging needs of its customers, the people who occupy space?

MA: Great question, David. What I find most interesting is, for the landlords who were intrigued and went a step further and leaned into Flex, and some of these groups, or some of the largest in the world, Hines, Tishman Speyer, and Brookfield have all been leaders in this. However, at the same time, these are the same office developers who, because of the challenges in the office market, have given buildings back to their lenders. So one could say, “Yeah, that’s great on one end, “but on the other hand, “they’re kind of suffering at the same time.” So, which side of the table are you on? So for me, what the office transformation is about, it’s about a better workplace experience. And so everyone asks the question, “Who’s driving the demand? “Is it coming from the landlords? “Is it coming from the operators?” No, frankly, it’s coming from the companies in the world that are demanding Flex, and they’re demanding Flex because the talent that they used to have control over before the pandemic, the talent’s like, “I’m not doing that long commute anymore.” So it’s really changed. People during the pandemic learned how to be productive through the use of technology, but it also gave them time back, because instead of commuting for work, all of a sudden, they had time for themselves. This quality of life from being outdoors and just enjoying life with family and friends, and having the ability to just run chores during the day. I realized that a lot of bosses don’t like this, but people tend to work more hours during the pandemic. And all we have heard over the last year or so is the burnout stage. So there’s a lot of different shifts going on, but when you start adding the workplace experience and give people the sense of purpose, “Why do I need to come in if I’m just going to drive an hour “to do the same thing that I could do in a remote location?” The one thing you will notice, I will not say work from home, because I don’t believe working remotely is about working from home, even though working from home is an option, I truly believe that people want to be with other people. I hear this constantly.

DA: Agreed.

MA: Yes, they do want to work in their private office, which Flex provides, but at the same time, they want the ability at their leisure and their option to integrate, collaborate, network with their peers. So what environment promotes that type of networking and collaboration? It’s Flex, I say this all the time. Flex saves developers money.

DA: And I think it’s Flex not only in terms of the Flex Space, but the flexibility in general, right. I think that it’s options, it’s the fact that there’s no one place anymore.

MA: It is.

DA: And Flex Space, just like I believe the building is at the core, maybe at the center, Flex Space is just another fundamentally a component of the different options that we have in which we can do work.

MA: Yep, yep, I will say this, so I have to interject. I have to say, I have one great thing about being in the business for so long is I have kids in the next generation. So we get to live through them. So, great example, during the pandemic, both my kids came down on March 13th of 2020. I live in DC, they both lived in New York City. They thought they were coming down for a weekend like everybody else.

DA: Right.

MA: “We’ll be back at work next week.” They stayed with me for three months. But my daughter moved out of New York City, relocated to Long Island, my son and his wife decided, since we can work remotely, that means we can live somewhere else. “Why don’t we go live in San Diego?” And so, the world has changed, I think, for the better. I think if you ask them, it opened their eyes to possibilities. And you know, you talk about the choice, they’re working remotely, they can work from anywhere, they travel, but they could not be happier being in an outdoor environment that gives them the freedom of choice. They can work when they want, they can explore life, explore a new environment, it’s exciting, it’s invigorating. And I find that because of those choices, it makes them more productive and more focused on their work.

DA: Right.

MA: That’s what I really love. But look, Flex is exciting. I get to work in cities that I normally would not go to, from Birmingham, Alabama, to Denver, Colorado, to Spokane, Washington, to Darien, Connecticut, to Clayton, Missouri, to Houston, Texas. I’ve kind of been all over the place. Every market, every city has its niche, its nuances, the demographics are different, the employment generators are different, the lifestyle is different, and yet they’re all unique. The challenges are still the same, but some of these operators, the ones that don’t get the spotlight, like the WeWorks of the world and the Industrious, to me, it’s those entrepreneurs. It takes me back to when I was an entrepreneur, not that I’m not today, but even so, the attitude, “I’m going to conquer the world.” But it’s really about they are engaging. They love being operators. They’re networkers pulling people together, creating friendships, creating networks, and they’re finding ways to monetize office space in ways that not even the larger groups have figured out yet.

DA: Right.

MA: Which, to me, is the most fascinating part because, you and I can talk about Flex, and it’s on a very macro level, but when we start drilling down, there’s such a difference to a Flex location that is solely focused on the enterprise groups, the large companies, versus the operations that focus on the small guys. Because as you and I both know, there’s so many more smaller guys out there, and they’re surviving, they’re thriving. They don’t play by the same playbook that the bigger boys play. And so they actually have greater flexibility and creativity than these bigger players have.

DA: So I’m curious, I believe for some time that building owners and operators need to be working more closely with their customer, their occupier, the tenant.

MA: Yeah.

DA: And helping them to really think about what collectively we need to do to attract and retain the best talent, to create experiences that will not bring people back just for the sake of being back, but bring people back to create and build great companies. You talked about this sort of smaller players, the larger players, but what are you seeing particularly, smaller buildings, are they beginning to think more creatively and are they prepared to make changes? The B&C class represents 80% of the market. Let’s part class A, it’s 20%, right? And they’re already doing a lot of this and have been, but how can the rest of the industry respond and work more closely with their tenants and create different use cases within these buildings to help everybody achieve the long-term goal, build great companies?

MA: You just nailed it, David, you nailed it. That’s the challenge. And it’s not about the physical building. That physical building can be anywhere in the United States. What’s going to make any of these places turn around and thrive? I love using the word reactivate. How do we reactivate buildings? Well, it’s not by a chair or creative designs, which by the way does help, but it’s the people, there’s nothing better, that feeling of community, when you walk into a space and someone greets you, and it’s not like, “Hi, there.” It’s more like, “How was your weekend?” Like you told that person before you left that you were doing something over the weekend, and how cool would it be if that person remembered that and asked you, “How was your event on Saturday night?” That feeling of appreciation, that feeling of being part of something, we never had that connection in office space. I mean, I can’t tell you, growing up, you graduate college, what did we do when we went to work? We literally, I had this discussion with somebody, I literally put on a suit and tie every day. And what did you do every day? I sat at my desk.

DA: Sat at you desk and worked.

MA: Why am I wearing a suit and tie? We didn’t engage, the engagement was your boss yelling you at you at something that you didn’t do. And so this evolution of, it’s not only work, it’s how we deal with one another. Think about this for a minute. 20 years ago, nobody talked about mental health. Now all of a sudden, it’s not only about that, but it’s, “If this is a person that’s working for you, “don’t you want to know what’s going on “in the rest of their life?” Don’t you want to be part of that? Whether it’s kids or dogs, there’s so many different connections that we have.

DA: This is my challenge with those that are really promoting remote-only.

MA: Yep.

DA: Again, to me, I think we have an opportunity, we have a moment in time where we can have the best of all worlds. It doesn’t have to be a mandate to come back. It doesn’t have to be, “We’re never coming back.” Because more often than not, those kinds of extreme positions are never great. They’re never healthy, they’re never optimal. So I think, we think a lot about buildings, about all aspects of them, but we also think about sort of their place within neighborhoods and communities and cities, and the opportunity for the physical workspace within buildings to also help create community, to help bring people together. And you’ve touched on that obviously, but to me, that’s an important outcome, it’s not only about the productivity, it’s not only about the work, it is about just the ways in which we as human beings interact with each other.

MA: Yep, I find that what people will label the secret sauce of Flex and co-working. It’s not necessarily like-minded people, because like-minded people can perceived as your peers in your industry.

DA: Right.

MA: But imagine working in a Flex environment where there’s hundreds of different companies in one premise, and you can learn about the guy that’s next door to you. And what if you could use his services? And so you start not only learning more about people, but you can work with one another. And so, we talk about this activation, and it’s about learning, yeah, media people with real estate people and insurance people and attorneys and different professional groups together under one premise. That alone is so unique and exciting. And then, go to some of these events. I spend so much time, I go to pitch competitions in Flex spaces. And people come out, the other night I went to one in the Washington DC region. There was 150 people there. The county executive was there. It’s vibrant, it’s exciting. I’ll say this, it’s one thing to read about it, it’s another thing to experience it. And what we’re finding more so today than ever before, people want to be together.

DA: Agreed.

MA: As you said, they want it on their terms, they want the flexibility of choice. And we’re finding that, I do have to say, being part of the Flex industry not only gives me a lot of energy and so much wisdom and hope for the future, because now we’re integrating social with professional. The big thing that we’re coming out now with co-working, there’s co-warehousing, there’s golf simulators, there’s wellness, there’s fitness, there’s culinary experiences. I mean, you look at groups like Convene, who has done a phenomenal job in their meeting and conference space, and they have a culinary niche, so does Industrious. I mean, there’s so many different groups out there that they’ve created this workplace experience that it’s so comforting and it’s so vibrant, it’s like when you walk into these spaces, you know right away you want to be part of that. And to me, that’s when you know it’s successful is when you feel that energy walking through the doors.

DA: We’ll talk more about experience after a short commercial break. We’ll be right back, Michael.

MA: Okay.

COMMERCIAL BREAK

DA: And now I’d like to welcome back to the show, Michael Abrams, and while we do have same last name, no relation that we know of, Real Estate Consultant and Advisor at Flex Space Advisors. Listen, technology’s playing such a huge role in helping building operators deliver better experience and create better experiences. We believe that workplace engagement now is uppermost on everyone’s mind and really presents an opportunity to do things differently. So I’m curious, again, through your lens of the Flex Space industry, and with a focus on meeting the evolving needs of people and buildings, now what technologies are you seeing that are gaining traction and are help contributing to better experience in buildings?

MA: Great question, David, one of the issues with the pandemic was all about health and safety and keeping the distance and making going to the office seamless. So we have seen this proliferation of technology. It not only has the office world transformed and accelerated through the pandemic, but technology has been parallel at just, I will say, even at a faster pace. Because we have seen not only aggregators, but we have seen apps, we have seen seamless ways to enter a building, to book a private office, to go to a conference room. What I find even incredible in today’s world, there’s a new company, I don’t have any allegiance to any company, but I have to give a hands out to Codi, they created timeshare private offices, which granted they’re only in San Francisco and New York City, but just thinking out of the box and thinking of ways to monetize space. Look, one of the best, I find, best revenue streams in Flex office, and we don’t talk about it much, virtual mail. David, can we just spend a minute talking about virtual mail and thinking about how companies generate revenues without that person physically coming into the space? I mean, is it not brilliant? It’s brilliant, I’m fascinated by it. To me, it’s the best thing. A lot of the little players have created just these entrepreneurial ideas, even wellness, wellness has become such a huge part of our life now, especially with an aging population, people that, whether they’re in all different types of classes, whether they do the Spartan Games or whether they’re in CrossFit or whatever you’re doing, why not integrate that into the day? Why not integrate different elements of your life into the day, whether it’s meditation, I mean, one thing we do know as human beings, there’s nothing worse than sitting in a chair for 8, 9, 10 hours a day. We know that, it’s the worst thing. So breaking up the day is even better.

DA: I think certainly that that issue has been highlighted by virtue of the pandemic. And I think we recognize now that there are different times and places and ways in which we need to work. And I think that technology can be an enabler and an equalizer to help bring these various parts together, and again, to your point, deliver a more frictionless experience across the board, whether we are in Flex Space, whether we’re at home, whether we’re at the office. That’s certainly what we think a lot about with the team at HILO in terms of how we can create better workplace experience, more connected communities, and just change the game. And I think it’s an exciting opportunity for the industry.

MA: It is, and for two people like us who were not necessarily in our prime from a physical standpoint, from an age standpoint, but look, I think the technology part, from the FinTech to the PropTech, from different Slack channels to the Zoom calls, the Google meetings, Microsoft meetings, it’s very important, if you are older, to stay engaged and embrace these technological features that keeps people connected, because it’s ways to stay connected not only on a professional level, but also a personal level. So if you have family scattered throughout the country, it’s amazing how we keep connected with them. We’re still able to do it. So it’s not necessarily a bad thing that we’re not physically together, but when you plan ahead, whether it’s from conferences, you notice how so many people are going back to the conferences. You know why, because we want to be together.

DA: Correct, correct, yeah.

MA: And there’s nothing wrong with that, it’s great. But to have to endure a long commute to work, and I can tell you, whether it’s Washington, DC, New York, San Francisco, Chicago, look, lot of these older, larger cities, it could take a person, especially if they work for a government, an hour and a half one way.

DA: Yeah, in those cities that I’m seeing, it’s really getting easier to get in and around.

MA: No, it isn’t, as a matter of fact, I’ll be the first to tell you, even in DC, if you’re driving the Beltway at six in the morning, you’re going to scratch your head and going, “Where’d all these people come from?”

DA: Yeah, well, Toronto is not much better, I can tell you that. Listen, we could talk forever about all of this. Let’s close out with our speed round, an opportunity to get to know you, Michael, a little bit better.

MA: Sure.

DA: On a personal level. When you’re not at work, what do you enjoy doing?

MA: I’m on my bicycle.

DA: Okay. Long distance, short distance, hills, straight?

MA: I’ve ridden across the country, I’ve done the Alps in the Tor de France, I’ve been in Italy, my bicycle has allowed me to experiencing things I’ve never thought was possible. To me, it’s that adrenaline rush, it’s that endurance, it’s the exercise, it’s clearing your head, it’s sorting things out. And there aren’t many fitness routines that gives you that opportunity.

DA: Well, we’ll definitely talk more about that offline. We both share that same passion. What’s your favorite drink of choice?

MA: I hate to go boring, but I’m going to say water.

DA: That’s a healthy choice.

MA: Yeah. That’s what happens when you’re an athlete.

DA: Right. Favorite movie or current TV series you’re watching?

MA: Who doesn’t love “Shawshank Redemption?”

DA: Great movie.

MA: Look, content is over abundance, look, I love “The Sopranos,” I love “Breaking Bad,” I love “Yellowstone.” Who doesn’t love Logan Roy on “Succession?” Things like that, but they’re great content.

DA: Yep, name one way in which technology has improved the way you live or work.

MA: Technology, FaceTime, I get to FaceTime with my kids. Even though it’s really not part of the pandemic, but technology and FaceTime gives me connections.

DA: Sure, fair enough. What’s your personal choice or days spent in person working with colleagues, and it could be in any type of space, versus working from anywhere, working remotely?

MA: Oh, I would definitely rather be with people directly.

DA: Okay.

MA: There’s just no question.

DA: Okay, fair enough. Michael, thank you very much for coming on the program today. Again, clearly too passionate real estate experts who you talked about all of this for a long time. This is only the beginning of the conversation. We’ll continue to connect and dialogue. The industry is going to continue to evolve, it’s going to continue to emerge from where we are today to where we’re going tomorrow. We don’t have what that script looks like yet, but it’s exciting to be a part of the journey. And I want to thank you for spending time with us on the program today.

MA: Thank you, David, I greatly appreciate it.

DA: All right, take care now.

MA: Bye.

DA: I want to thank Michael Abrams for joining me on this episode of TEN and for contributing to the global conversation around buildings being a part of a robust ecosystem, helping to build great companies, and that they are vital in the effort to cultivate and support great people and teams. The future of the workplace will likely take many forms, and we will continue to explore what that looks like together. Subscribe to TEN for more conversations with leading CRE industry professionals and experts who all have something to say about “Tenant Experience” and the future of the workplace. We love hearing from you. So if you enjoy this episode of TEN, please share, add your rating, and review us through your preferred podcast provider.

If you or someone you know would like to be a guest on a future episode, please reach out to me directly at david@hiloapp.com. And until our next episode, I wish you all continued success in building community where you work and live, thank you.

AI, data, and the future of sustainable real estate with Gary Chance | CEO | Nantum AI

Season 5 / Episode 12 / 37:17
In this episode, Gary shares how his team is utilizing the latest technology and data to write better algorithms that save real estate tenants and owners more money, energy, and ultimately, to provide a better indoor experience overall. If you’re interested in AI and the impact it’s having on the built world, this episode is for you.

AI, data, and the future of sustainable real estate with Gary Chance | CEO | Nantum AI

Season 5 / Episode 12 / 37:17
In this episode, Gary shares how his team is utilizing the latest technology and data to write better algorithms that save real estate tenants and owners more money, energy, and ultimately, to provide a better indoor experience overall. If you’re interested in AI and the impact it’s having on the built world, this episode is for you.