First Draft Live: America’s Shopping Hard. So Why Is Retail Still Sweating?

Ward Kampf is the forward-thinking President of Northwood Retail. Always seeking to be on the vanguard, Ward has an envelope-pushing intuition and trendsetting mindset that has propelled Northwood Retail’s portfolio to contain more than 85 first-to-market tenants and over 30 digitally native brands throughout its properties, which span from California to Texas to Tennessee, and the Carolinas.   Ward has spotted and opened early concept locations for brands such as RH, Dry Bar, Kendra Scott, Warby Parker, AWAY, lululemon, Vuori, Faherty, Mastro’s, and Sam Fox Restaurant Concepts. Ward is a creative force that’s been instrumental in shaping dynamic shopping centers and mixed-use assets, such as Domain NORTHSIDE in Austin, Texas; Freshfields Village in Kiawah, South Carolina; Scottdale Quarter in Scottsdale, Arizona; The RIM in San Antonio, Texas, and The Forum in Carlsbad, California, among others.  With more than 30 years of experience, Ward has been at the helm in senior leadership roles at Glimcher Realty Trust, Thomas Enterprises Inc., General Growth Properties, Columbia 27, and Gap Inc. before joining Northwood Retail in 2014.   From 1999-2001, Ward was at the forefront of the open-air movement, leading a special development project for Gap, Inc. to grow the brand and move its stores away from mall environments and into streetscape retail and lifestyle centers. While at Gap, Inc., Ward was exposed to the rise of e-commerce through planning for all of Gap’s brands. He was able to process the future of retail early on – the shift to streets and outdoor spaces while starting to hone his eye for direct-to-consumer concepts. Then, as the President of Thomas Enterprises, from 2005-2009, Ward developed and leased iconic open- air projects like The RIM in San Antonio, Texas; The Forum Carlsbad in Carlsbad, California; Peach Tree Parkway in Atlanta, Georgia, and Hamburg Pavilion in Lexington, Kentucky.   Championing placemaking and continually evolving shopping center environments with forward- thinking merchandise mixes, Ward helped conceive and create Scottsdale Quarter in Scottsdale, Arizona, while acquiring and repositioning assets like University Park Village in Fort Worth, Texas; The Malibu Lumber Yard in Malibu, California, and Arbor Hills in Ann Arbor, Michigan for Glimcher Realty Trust in his role as Senior Vice President of Leasing and Strategic Investments from 2009-2013.  While at Northwood Retail, Ward has devised, developed, and acquired assets like Domain NORTHSIDE in Austin, Texas; Hillside Village, Prestonwood Place, and The Shops at Park Lane in Dallas, Texas; Freshfields Village in Kiawah, South Carolina; The Waverly Place in Cary, North Carolina; Hillsdale Shopping Center in San Mateo, California, and Fifth + Broadway in Nashville, Tennessee. Additionally, since 1996, Ward has served as a partner in Charger, LLC, where he worked with Farallon Capital Management to purchase The Goldman Portfolio – one of the most significant and transformative real estate purchases in the history of Oklahoma City.   Ward lives with his family in Dallas, Texas, the home of his alma mater Southern Methodist University, where he graduated with a BBA in Business.