The state of retail featured at May Roundtable event

Daniel B. Hurwitz is the co-founder and CEO of Raider Hill Advisors. He has spent over 35 years navigating all aspects of the real estate industry and has developed a track record of transforming public and private businesses, formulating and executing prudent investment and operational strategies, engendering trust among institutional clients and investors while maximizing value for all stakeholders.

Prior to Raider Hill, Hurwitz held a variety of positions in the retail and real estate sectors dating back to 1986. Most recently, during a 16-year tenure at DDR Corp. (now known as SITE Centers), Hurwitz led numerous departments beginning with leasing and development in 1999 and culminating with the responsibility of reviving the company in the post-recession era as CEO commencing in 2010. Hurwitz also served as interim CEO of Brixmor Property Group from February 2016 through May 2016.

During his five-year tenure as CEO of DDR, Hurwitz led the aggressive execution of a strategic vision that resulted in the full transformation of key management positions, the complete upgrade of portfolio quality and its cash flow credit profile, the revival and stabilization of a distressed balance sheet, and the establishment of market credibility from the investment community. Based on the results, Hurwitz was named to the 2013 Institutional Investor Magazine All-America Team, voted on by sell-side analysts, as the Best CEO in the REIT Sector. Additionally, the strategy to repair the balance sheet was recognized by Moody’s, Standard and Poor’s, and Fitch by achieving consensus investment grade ratings in 2014.

Prior to joining DDR, Hurwitz served as senior vice president and director of real estate and corporate development for Boscov’s Department Store, Inc., where his efforts resulted in the doubling of store count and increased productivity. While at Boscov’s, in addition to the real estate division, Hurwitz was responsible for the store planning and design, construction, and facilities departments. Prior to Boscov’s, Hurwitz served in the leasing, development, property management and construction departments for the Shopco Group, a New York City-based developer and acquirer of regional and super regional shopping malls. 

Hurwitz is a graduate of Colgate University and the Wharton School of Business Management Program at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a frequent speaker at real estate industry functions and has repeatedly been a guest discussing retail and real estate trends on CNBC, Bloomberg TV and Fox Business.

Professionally, Hurwitz is a member of the board of directors of WeWork and serves as chair of the audit committee. He is also a member of the board of directors of Brixmor Property Group, and service provider Ideal Dental. Additionally, Hurwitz serves as an adviser to the board of directors of Edens and ShopCore Properties. Previously, Hurwitz served as the 2019-2020 chairman of ICSC. He was a member of the board of directors of General Growth Properties from 2013 to 2018, serving as lead director and chair of the special committee advising on the sale of the company to affiliates of Brookfield Asset Management. Additionally, Hurwitz previously served on the NAREIT Executive Board of Governors and Governance Committee, the board of directors of DDR Corp, CubeSmart, Sonae Sierra Brasil, and Boscov’s Department Store, Inc. 

Outside of the real estate sector, Hurwitz is chairman emeritus of the Colgate University board of trustees. In 2019, Colgate awarded Hurwitz an honorary doctor of humane letters degree, and he was also inducted into the Colgate Athletics Hall of Honor. Currently, Hurwitz serves on the board of trustees of Hopkins School, New Haven, Connecticut. Previously, Hurwitz served as vice chairman of the board of trustees of Hawken School, was a member of the board of directors of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a member of the visiting committee of the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University and chair of the leadership board of Cleveland Clinic Neurological Institute. In addition, Hurwitz has been a guest speaker at Case Western Reserve University, Colgate University, Columbia University, Cornell University, New York University, University of Florida, University of Wisconsin, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University.