Rex Burgher had a top-flight job with Benderson Development.

As the retail developer’s executive vice president, he relished working with the Benderson family and being part of their strategy sessions.

Then, after 23 years with Benderson Development, Burgher left in February. He has started his own company, concentrating on consulting and development projects in Western New York.

Some might look at his decision and wonder what he was thinking. Why give up a high-level position with the region’s largest retail developer and one of the largest privately owned development companies in North America, which owns and manages more than 25 million square feet of retail space, for a brand-new venture?

But the timing seemed perfect to Burgher. For years, he had mused about running his own business. Now was the moment to try it, with his wife and two children working with him, at the newly formed Burgher Realty Group.

“I truly feel I’m at the top of my game right now,” said Burgher, who is 53. “Ten years from now, I didn’t want to look back and say, ‘I should have taken a shot.’ ”

Even for those with the initiative to try, Buffalo might seem like a difficult development market to crack. It has dominant players, like Ciminelli Development and Uniland on the commercial side, and Benderson and Developers Diversified Realty on the retail side. Erie County’s population has fallen an estimated 3 percent since 2000, and the region doesn’t have the thriving construction market of some metro areas.

None of that has scared off some industry veterans from starting their own ventures. In fact, they say it is their intimate knowledge of the area, and the opportunities they see as untapped, that motivates them.

Michelle Mazzone, a former Ciminelli Development executive, began a real estate services firm in Cheektowaga with some former business partners.

At another new company, Gary R. Bichler and Christopher J. Hogan reunited to form R&P Oak Hill Development in 2006, and now have a staff of 18 people to handle their workload.

The businesses are different, but they are all relying on experience and contacts to try something new.

With his own venture, Burgher is focusing on business opportunities in the Buffalo area. He is quick to point out how plentiful those opportunities are.

“To me, there is tremendous opportunity,” he said. “You just have to work hard and go out and find it.”

Burgher left on good terms, but admits it was still difficult. He had built a career with Benderson, was at the center of countless deals and created close friendships, particularly with the Bendersons.

What excites him is not only the chance to run his own company in the Buffalo area, but to do so with his wife, Brooke, and his children, Brett and Caitlin.

Brett Burgher gave up a job with Cleveland-based Developers Diversified Realty, known as DDR. Caitlin Burgher is joining shortly, after she graduates from Niagara University. Brooke Burgher is serving as the new company’s chief financial officer.

Brett Burgher had been with DDR for three years, working in leasing. “It’s not the easiest thing to walk away from a job,” Brett Burgher said. But he loved coming back home, with the chance to build a new company alongside his father.

How does Burgher Realty Group see a way into the local market?

“There are a lot of retail tenants out there that aren’t in Buffalo yet,” Brett Burgher said.

Identifying those retailers is one thing; persuading them to open stores here is another. Rex Burgher admits it might take extra work to win them over, but he believes it can be done. He recalled how, several years ago, Nate Benderson urged him to bring apparel retailer Stein Mart into the Buffalo market.

Rex Burgher approached Stein Mart representatives, who said no. But over the next 12 months, he kept sending them information about the area, articles about the business community here, anything to help bolster his case. Stein Mart ended up opening a store on Transit Road in Amherst, and then added a second store, in Orchard Park.

“No. 1, you can’t accept ‘no’ for an answer,” Rex Burgher said. “No. 2, you have to stay persistent.”

Like some the other industry professionals-turned-entrepreneurs, Rex Burgher comes to his new venture with a track record and contacts. For that reason, he is confident about securing funding for projects.

“I have relationships with various lenders,” he said. “When you have the property and you have the tenant, it generally leads to potential lending and financing for certain projects.”

Experienced professionals who launch their own ventures are a different kind of entrepreneur. They have obvious advantages: connections with potential clients who know their work, and years of experience to guide their decisions.

But these types of entrepreneurs also face different risks from people starting fresh out of school, said Althea Luehrsen, executive director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership at the University at Buffalo’s School of Management. They often have families to support and mortgages to pay, raising the stakes of succeeding, she said.

Entrepreneurs with any amount of experience face a common challenge: handling responsibilities outside their expertise. “When they launch their own business, they’ve got an awful lot more on their plate,” Luehrsen said.

That adjustment, she said, can be a little tougher for a veteran businessperson who is used to someone else taking care of travel arrangements, resolving work place conflicts, or everyday office duties.

The development veterans who are now running their own businesses say they draw on experiences with their past employers when they are confronted with seemingly daunting tasks.

Mazzone, who co-founded American Capital Real Estate Corp. in early 2006, recalls two such projects she was involved with when she worked for Ciminelli Development: the Lafayette Court building downtown and the former AppleTree Mall in Cheektowaga.

Lafayette Court was about 60 percent vacant before Ciminelli added a fitness center, upgraded its eatery and put in a new business conference center. Within a year and a half, she said, the building was practically full, showing her about how small but meaningful improvements can attract tenants.

At AppleTree, Mazzone worked with James Dentinger, a Ciminelli executive who has since joined McGuire Development, on converting a faded shopping mall into a unique, thriving indoor business park. She saw how a property could bounce back through a radical change in use or identity.

Mazzone’s new company is working on finding tenants for the Main Place Tower, Main Place Mall and the Liberty Building, which combined consist of about 1 million square feet. Some of the office spaces have been sitting vacant for years, but Mazzone said she is excited by the challenge.

Forming the new company enabled Mazzone to reunite with Sam Iraci Jr. and James Comerford, whom she had worked with years earlier at Buffalo’s economic development agency.

“I also thought, ‘If I don’t do it now, I never will,’ ” she said. Mazzone’s brother, Thomas, is involved in the business, on the residential real estate side.

While tenant representation is part of her company’s services, Mazzone has been surprised by how many landlords have sought her out to work for them. That stemmed from her past positive dealings with them.

The leaders of R&P Oak Hill Development, Bichler and Hogan, are making inroads based on past business relationships. They are also working with Melissa Garman Baumgart, who represents the interests of the majority investor, Richard Garman.

Bichler, Hogan and Baumgart worked together at Garman’s ABCS Group when its companies included Buffalo Crushed Stone, ABC Paving and Gateway Trade Center.

Bichler spent about six years with ABCS before leaving in 1995 for a top position with LP Ciminelli and later for Christa Construction’s Buffalo branch.

Hogan, an engineer who has 27 years’ experience, left ABCS in 1998 after nine years. He worked for Paragon Construction Northeast, GPS Construction Services and LP Ciminelli.

Since starting R&P Oak Hill last May, the company has contracted about $40 million worth of construction value, Hogan said. The projects include work at Quaker Crossing in Orchard Park, a hospital conversion with Catholic Health System. It has been named construction manager for work at the site of Theodore Roosevelt’s inauguration.

Even though the company is relatively new, Bichler and Hogan say their own industry track records have helped open doors. “Most of this has been relationships, people we have worked with in the past,” Bichler said.

The familiarity also extends to their work force: Only about three of the people on staff haven’t worked with Hogan or Bichler or both of them before.

“I think we’re at a position to manage what we have in hand,” Hogan said.

mglynn@buffnews.com

'October Surprise' led developer to new path

Business First of Buffalo - April 13, 2007

by James Fink

Rex Burgher was making one of his many Sarasota to Buffalo flights when Mother Nature led to a personal epiphany.
For 23 years, Burgher was a loyal Benderson Development Co.  foot soldier, working his way up into an executive vice president and partner position handling a number of high-profile retail deals in Western New York and beyond.
The constant travel, especially the trips between Buffalo and Benderson's new headquarters in Florida were taking their toll on Burgher, 53, a self-described family man.
This particular trip took place on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2006. As Burgher left sunny and warm Sarasota, a freak snowstorm gripped significant portions of Western New York.
Burgher's flight was diverted to Rochester, where he rented a car and traveled west on the New York State Thruway. As he approached Clarence, he smacked up against the October surprise storm. While stuck on the Thruway, his rented car was rear-ended by another driver.
Frustrated, tired and angry, all Burgher wanted to do was to get to his Amherst home.
The epiphany
While stranded on the Thruway, Burgher befriended a visitor from Sri Lanka, who was Toronto-bound. The visitor was philosophical about the situation and ultimately calmed Burgher's frayed nerves.
But their conversation also cemented a notion that had been fermenting in Burgher's mind. Every now and then, Burgher had toyed with the notion of leaving the Benderson fold and going out on his own.
"I'm 53 years old and at the top of my game, I don't want to be in a situation 10 years from now where I'm sitting there thinking why didn't I take that shot," Burgher said.
After a fair amount of soul searching with himself, his family - especially his wife, Brooke - and even members of the Benderson family, Burgher decided to make the leap and start his own business.
Thus, in mid-February Burgher Realty Group LLC, was born.
"It was a very big move because Benderson was taking very good care of me," said Burgher, whose firm has a heavy focus on retail.
"This is something we talked about for years, so it wasn't a surprise," said Randy Benderson, Benderson president. "Rex was our 'go-to' person. He was so instrumental in so many things we did."
Burgher is the latest in a line of local real estate and economic development specialists who have branched out on their own, starting their own firms.
"It is a little bit difficult in the beginning," said Alan Hastings, Hastings Cohn Real Estate co-founder. "People have to learn where to find you."
Hastings and his partner, Paul Cohn, formed their business a decade ago after spending many years working for a number of top local firms.
Family project
Burgher's son, Brett, moved back from Cleveland where he was a regional leasing manager for Developers Diversified Realty Corp. One of Burgher's daughters, Caitlin, will be joining full time this May once she graduates from Niagara University. Brooke Burgher is the company's chief financial officer.
"It is very appealing to me to be working with Brett, Brooke and Caitlin," Burgher said.
Burgher's acquaintances say his family was the reason why he decided to leave Benderson and go off on his own.
"Rex is a family guy at heart," said Eric Recoon, Benderson vice president of leasing and development. "He's this incredibly talented guy, but family means so much to him."
In an ironic twist, Brett Burgher had been handling leasing at a number of shopping centers and plazas that DDR had acquired from Benderson in a 2004 deal. In effect, the son was responsible for leasing space his father built.
Of course, leaving Benderson was also one of the toughest decisions Burgher has had to make. Nathan Benderson, the company's founder, was both a father figure and mentor while Randy Benderson, the company's president, is like a brother, Burgher said.
The split was accepted reluctantly, but ultimately with their blessing.
"In a sense, we grew up together," Randy Benderson said. "Personally, I feel good and bad about Rex's decision, but he is doing it with our blessing."
Burgher had been a loyal employee and been considered, for all intents and purposes, a member of the Benderson family.
His track record with Benderson was nothing short of astounding. By the time he left, Burgher has completed 11.5 million square feet worth of deals for the company.
Burgher had worked with such tenants as Lowe's, Target, Tops Markets, PetSmart, Home Depot and Kohl's. He was the one who first brought Target to the Buffalo Niagara region. Burgher also brought Barnes and Noble to the area as well as A.C. Moore.
Burgher's expertise ran the gamut from site selection to site acquisition to anchor leasing. It is that same expertise he is bringing to his own firm, where he will be working with developers and as a real estate consultant for retailers.
Despite his enthusiasm, Burgher admits there are times when he misses being part of a larger, corporate environment.
"I miss the office camaraderie," he said. "I miss my friends and colleagues and I miss the strategy sessions we had at Benderson, but I don't miss the travel."

Burgher leaves Benderson to go solo

Sarasota Herald Tribune 2/12/07

Rex Burgher, who helped direct powerhouse Benderson Development Co.'s retail projects for nearly a quarter of a century, has left the locally-based company to start his own consulting firm.

Burgher Realty Group will provide consulting on leasing, site selection and development from its offices in Buffalo, N.Y., where Benderson was based for years before moving in early 2004 to southern Manatee County.

Eventually, Burgher plans to set up a shop in Naples as well.

"It wasn't the easiest decision in the world to make," said Burgher, 53. "The Bendersons are like family to me; Randy (Benderson, the company's president) is like a brother. I just didn't want to look back 10 years from now and say I wish I had given it a shot."

Burgher, who had worked at Benderson for 23 years, was vice president of retail development. While there, he leased more than 11 million square feet of shopping space, and led the company's outlet division until it was sold in 1997.

"I'm hoping to utilize the experience that I've gained over the years," Burgher said.

As for Benderson, which is developing the 276-acre University Town Center project at Interstate 75 and University Parkway among dozens of Southwest Florida projects, the company is promoting from within.

Burgher's duties are being absorbed by Shaun Benderson, Mark Chait, Eric Recoon and Mike Mundy.

Burgher's ties to Benderson may not be completely severed.

"We hope to continue working with him," Randy Benderson said. "We're very close. He's been planning this for several years now, and we've been talking to him about it for some time."

Like Benderson, which was created by family patriarch Nate Benderson more than five decades ago, Burgher Realty also will be a family affair.

Daughter Caitlin will join her father in the new business, and dad says at least one other Burgher offspring is interested in joining up, too.

kevin.mcquaid@heraldtribune.com

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