Tell us about McLoud & Co. It was founded in 1992 by Tom McLoud, who had been in commercial real estate for his entire career, working for Wal-mart Stores Inc. and Hy-Vee, and he ran the Leo Eisenberg Co. office here, which managed Corporate Centre. When (McLoud) started his own company, he maintained the Corporate Centre account. Jill McLoud is the owner of the company. We have five full-time employees. Of the five, three are full-time maintenance employees. We do property management, leasing and sales.
How much of the company’s business is in property management versus sales and leasing? That’s kind of hard to break down. Of the properties we manage, we handle leasing and sales for all but three, (which are) straight maintenance contracts. We have properties (for which) we do, basically, everything. We budget, we set up vendor and maintenance contracts, and once a month, we send a report, or if there is any major construction or major replacements, to get approval from the owners. We also have listings with other folks to lease or sell properties.
Besides Corporate Centre, what are some properties managed by McLoud & Co.? Sheid’s Plaza at Walnut Lawn and South Campbell, the Westlake Center on South Campbell, Battlefield Place at Battlefield and Fremont. … We have City Center in Nixa, Cedar Ridge Plaza in Branson and Rocky Branch Shopping Center in Searcy, Ark.
What was the transition like after McLoud’s death from a heart attack at age 56? Soon after Tom’s untimely death, his wife, Jill, decided that she still wanted the company to continue, so we got things in line to make sure that we could proceed. I was not a licensed broker at the time, so I had to become one, because as a real estate company, you have to have a licensed broker to do business in Missouri. I’m also licensed as a broker in Arkansas. It was difficult in the sense, too, that Tom was not only our boss, he was our friend. For a number of months, we were just trying to figure out where everything was. We contacted all of our owners, told them what was going on, and they stayed with us. I made sure I was in contact with the Missouri Real Estate Commission, telling them what our plans were, and they were very helpful in telling me what we had to do.
Had you considered obtaining a broker’s license before he died? It had come up, but not in a really serious conversation, about a succession plan, because Tom and I were essentially the same age. We were totally not expecting anything like this. I got my broker’s license as quickly as I could. My primary focus had been on the property management, and we still focus on that, but as the broker/manager, I’m involved in all facets on the company.
What are your goals for the company and how are you pursuing them? We would like to, cautiously, add properties for management and expand our listings where we can. We look around and research online, properties that may be a good fit for what we do, owners that may want management contracts. It’s just checking the overall look and shape of facilities. We have some out-of-market owners and some who are local.
How do you help business owners find the right spaces for their companies? A lot of times, they will have an idea of location. You have to find out what they’ve budgeted for leasing space. Sure, we would like to put them in spaces that we lease and manage, but we will put them where we think is best for them, whether it’s (a McLoud property) or not, if they use us as a buyer’s or tenant’s agent. We figure out what size they need and what type of business they are. In shopping centers, some have covenants that restrict similar types of business, so you have to figure that out. We have to walk them through the process, and for some who are not familiar with it, explain what a commercial lease entails. … Center city has picked up. Retail generally still goes pretty well in southeast, or even now, southwest Springfield, with the population expanding in that direction. [[In-content Ad]]
