Industry leaders form new retail brokerage powerhouse.

Newmark & Company Real Estate, Inc. and New Spectrum Realty Services, Inc. have announced the execution of a letter of intent for the formation of Newmark New Spectrum Retail Real Estate LLC. Newmark's retail brokerage business will be combined with the business of New Spectrum Realty and the new company will commence operations effective March 1, 2000.

Newmark New Spectrum Retail will specialize in the representation of retailers and owners of retail properties nationally. The firm will be the largest retail real estate services provider in the New York metropolitan area and one of the biggest in the United States.

The Newmark and New Spectrum firms, through their senior management, will own a majority and minority interest, respectively, of Newmark New Spectrum Retail Real Estate LLC. Robert L. Pressman will be the CEO and managing principal of Newmark New Spectrum Retail.

Newmark is a leading full service real estate firm that provides leasing, investment sales, management, consulting and financing services to clients nationally. New Spectrum is a highly respected retail brokerage firm that offers comprehensive brokerage and consulting services to property owners and retailers in the New York metropolitan area.

In May of this year, Newmark & Company and Pressman formed Newmark Retail Financial Advisors LLC, with Pressman as the CEO and managing principal. The firm advises and represents retailers, owners, lenders, creditors, debtors, and others in mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, investments, and financial and operational strategies affecting the retail industry nationally. Newmark Retail Financial Advisors represents clients on all retail financial matters including essential assets such as real estate, inventory and accounts receivable, as well as liability and risk management and operational assessment.

The combined firms of Newmark New Spectrum and Newmark Retail Financial Advisors will initially employ approximately 50 people in the representation of client transactions which total an estimated $1.5 billion annually. These professionals have extensive experience in commercial real estate brokerage, shopping centers, property valuations, retail operations and finance, retail asset and liability valuations, mergers and acquisitions, dispositions, restructuring and bankruptcy matters.

Barry Gosin, vice chairman and CEO of Newmark & Company Real Estate, Inc. said, "The formation of Newmark New Spectrum Retail will complement Newmark's existing business as one of the leading office leasing and management firms in the country. With the addition of New Spectrum, the synergies and depth of services that we can now offer to our office and retail clients are very exciting."

Stephen Asch, who founded New Spectrum Realty Services along with other founding principals Ben Fox and Gary Alterman, said "New Spectrum has established itself over the years as a recognized leader in retail brokerage in the New York metropolitan area. With the business combination of Newmark, Newmark New Spectrum Retail will be a dominant force nationally in retail brokerage."

One of the essential elements of the future retail business plan of the two retail groups, Newmark New Spectrum Retail Real Estate and Newmark Retail Financial Advisors, is to offer clients the opportunity of multiple services not typically offered by any one professional or real estate firm. The combined firm's clients will benefit from the retail expertise of their professionals in areas ranging from business development, operational assessment, real estate brokerage (involving property owners, retailers and lenders), mergers and acquisitions, Internet services (including alliances for planning, financing and strategy), restructuring, downsizing, expansion, redeployment of assets, and liability management. The multi-discipline expertise offered by the professionals at the two firms will be a major resource in assisting clients faced with a rapidly changing retailing environment, such as the expansion and control of product by major national firms and the Internet.

"Most retailers today are sophisticated enterprises with a clear need for the multiple retail services we offer," said Bob Pressman. "Given the competitive pressures from retail nationalization and the Internet, retailers are no longer simply rolling-out stores based on a real estate driven strategy. Today, retailers, owners, lenders and others need to assess the financial, real estate and operational ramifications of their business plan. We are capable of assisting our clients in achieving their goals profitably. One-dimensional retail real estate firms only offer one service. However, as we enter the new millennium, our vision is focused on offering the retailer, property owner, investor, lender and others with a vested interest, the full range of retail financial and real estate brokerage services they will need to compete successfully in the retail industry in the 21st Century."

Newmark & Company Real Estate, Inc. was founded in 1929, and (with its affiliates) has approximately 400 employees. Newmark and affiliates represent real estate clients nationally for leasing, sales, consulting, financing and property management transactions totaling over 50 million square feet.

New Spectrum Realty Services, Inc. was founded in 1987 and has approximately 35 employees and professionals in its New York City offices in Manhattan and Queens, where clients in Westchester and Rockland counties, Long Island and the boroughs outside of Manhattan are serviced.