Glimcher Realty Trust (NYSE: GRT), a premier real estate investment trust, is a recognized leader in the ownership, management, acquisition and development of malls, which includes enclosed and open-air regional malls, as well as community centers.
Based in Columbus, Ohio, Glimcher Realty Trust was formed in 1994 to continue and expand the business and operations of The Glimcher Company, which was founded by Herbert Glimcher, current GRT Chairman Emeritus & Trustee.
As a company, Glimcher Realty Trust is a nationally recognized innovator in the field of shopping center development, having been instrumental in the management, acquisition and development of over 100 shopping centers during the Company's combined 52-year history in real estate.
The Glimcher Company began as a lumber and building supply business in 1959, in Columbus, Ohio. In the early sixties, the Company met growing consumer demand, augmented by the growing economy, with the development of large discount stores, including Kmarts. By the mid-sixties, the Company began building strip shopping centers and fast food franchise stores including McDonald's in Columbus, Ohio. In the early 70's, they started building some of the early retail malls, but continued to develop strip shopping centers as well. In 1986, the Company celebrated the grand opening of its first enclosed regional mall, Indian Mound Mall in Newark/Heath, Ohio.
This launched a steady growth trend for the Company as it continued to develop new enclosed regional malls, opening six and acquiring one over the next eight years. By 1993, the Company's portfolio had grown to include 29 properties, including enclosed regional and super-regional malls, community centers and single tenant properties.
On January 20, 1994, Glimcher Realty Trust, a real estate investment trust, celebrated its initial public offering (IPO) and listing on the New York Stock Exchange. Simultaneously with the IPO, the Company acquired 46 properties, growing its total GLA to just over 11 million square feet. Located in 18 states, this acquisition included one regional mall, 33 community centers and 12 single tenant properties.
The Company had embarked on what would be a full decade of expansion via aggressive acquisition and development. Over the next ten years, Glimcher added 19 enclosed regional and super-regional malls to its portfolio. In the late 1990s, the Company implemented a strategic decision to divest of many of its community centers in order to primarily focus on regional malls, the core of its portfolio.
Glimcher owns and/or manages a total of 27 properties in 15 states aggregating approximately 21.5 million square feet of gross leasable area. Of the 27 properties, many of which are located in the country's top-growing metropolitan statistical areas, 24 are enclosed and open-air regional centers (19 wholly owned and five partially owned through joint ventures) and three are community centers (two wholly owned and one partially owned through a joint venture).
Glimcher Time Line (pdf, 44kb)