National Real Estate Development Manager

Ace Hardware; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 138,000 - 176,000; Full time

Job summary

Ace Hardware seeks a National Real Estate Development Manager to lead real estate strategy and development, sourcing and evaluating prime retail sites, and negotiating terms to drive nationwide growth for Ace retailers.

You will coordinate with New Business leadership, Market Development Managers, brokers, landlords, and developers to build a robust national pipeline, perform rigorous site analyses, and deliver data-driven recommendations to support store openings.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Real Estate, Finance, Urban Planning, Economics, or a related field.
• Minimum of seven years of commercial retail real estate experience, with demonstrated experience in site selection, commercial leasing, landlord negotiations, retail development, and market analysis.
• Expertise in market analysis, retail site selection, lease negotiation, deal structuring, occupancy-cost and deal-economics analysis, comparative site analysis, financial modeling, ROI assessment, site productivity forecasts, pipeline reporting, CRM discipline, and location intelligence and reporting tools such as Sitewise and Salesforce.
• Ability to build and manage national relationships with brokers, landlords, developers, REITs, shopping center owners, and real estate disposition firms, and to influence without authority across New Business Leadership, Market Development Managers, retailers, Legal, Finance, Retail Operations, and external partners.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, including the ability to prepare clear site recommendation packages and present findings to senior leadership and retailers.
• Ability to travel extensively throughout the United States, with 40–60% national travel.
• Demonstrated ability to build, manage, and measure a national real estate pipeline; establish broker- and market-level performance metrics; identify gaps and bottlenecks; and use data, accountability, and cross-functional influence to increase the quantity, quality, and velocity of qualified sites advancing toward new store development.
• Strong strategic thinking, real estate negotiation, retail site selection, business acumen, financial analysis, relationship-building, presentation, and communication skills, with the ability to influence without authority.

Responsibilities

• Own the national strategy and execution for proactively sourcing qualified real estate opportunities that increase the number, quality, and velocity of sites available for Ace Hardware new store development.
• Lead site selection and market analysis using Market First Strategy, demographic, traffic, psychographic, competitive, retail performance, and location intelligence data to evaluate urban, suburban, rural, infill, redevelopment, and new construction opportunities.
• Partner with New Business leadership and Market Development Manager leadership to translate Ace growth priorities into actionable broker assignments, market searches, and real estate deployment strategies.
• Establish, manage, and continuously evaluate Ace Hardware's national network of local tenant representation brokers, including broker selection, onboarding, market coverage, performance expectations, accountability, communication cadence, relationship management, and replacement of underperforming brokers.
• Develop and maintain a national real estate pipeline and inventory of potential store locations, proactively identifying second-generation retail locations, grocery-anchored centers, redevelopment projects, urban infill opportunities, new construction projects, retail vacancies, major retailer closures, bankruptcies, portfolio dispositions, and emerging development opportunities.
• Coordinate cross-functionally with New Business Leadership, Legal, Finance, Retail Operations, Sitewise, Salesforce, external brokers, and consultants to support the transition from site identification through lease execution and activation, maintain pipeline visibility and reporting accuracy, and identify bottlenecks, stalled searches, broker performance issues, landlord delays, and other barriers affecting speed-to-site.
• Ownership of developing and executing correction action plans to improve site flow and speed-to-site.
• Prepare and present financial, site, and decision-support analyses to senior leadership, MDMs, and retailers, including occupancy cost assessments, comparative site analyses, deal economics, site productivity forecasts, ROI considerations, and fact-based recommendations that help independent business owners evaluate real estate risk and investment decisions.
• Own or heavily influence national real estate process standardization for broker engagement, site submissions, market tours, comparative site analysis, LOIs, site recommendation packages, retailer decision support, and cross-functional handoffs to create consistent execution across MDMs, brokers, and priority markets.
• Support lease negotiation and deal structuring through the local tenant broker network, including LOIs, lease negotiations, renewals, purchase agreements, ground leases, and build-to-suit opportunities.
• Evaluates and recommends terms related to base rent, tenant improvement allowances, free rent, CAM charges, renewal options, exclusivity, signage rights, and co‑tenancy provisions.
• Develop a national landlord and developer account strategy by identifying high-value national and regional ownership groups, REITs, developers, shopping center owners, and disposition firms, then creating intentional engagement plans to generate portfolio-wide and off‑market opportunities, making Ace Hardware a top national retail tenant of choice.

Skills

Market analysis

Site selection

Lease negotiation

Deal structuring

Financial modeling

ROI assessment

Location intelligence

Presentation skills

Cross-functional influence

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Real Estate, Finance, Urban Planning, Economics, or related field

Tools

Sitewise

Salesforce

Job description

About This Role

The National Real Estate Development Manager serves as Ace Hardware's primary growth leader and subject matter expert for real estate strategy and development, partnering with New Business leadership, Market Development Managers, prospective and existing retailers, brokers, landlords, and developers to proactively source, evaluate, negotiate, and secure high-quality retail locations.

The role exists to increase the number, quality, and velocity of qualified sites entering the New Business pipeline, improve site quality, reduce location and occupancy risk, accelerate new store growth, and help Ace retailers open better stores, in better locations, under better economic terms.

What You’ll Do

Own the national strategy and execution for proactively sourcing qualified real estate opportunities that increase the number, quality, and velocity of sites available for Ace Hardware new store development.

Lead site selection and market analysis using Market First Strategy, demographic, traffic, psychographic, competitive, retail performance, and location intelligence data to evaluate urban, suburban, rural, infill, redevelopment, and new construction opportunities.

Partner formally with New Business leadership and Market Development Manager leadership to translate Ace growth priorities into actionable broker assignments, market searches, and real estate deployment strategies, including identifying markets where real estate availability is limiting growth and developing intervention plans.

Establish, manage, and continuously evaluate Ace Hardware's national network of local tenant representation brokers, including broker selection, onboarding, market coverage, performance expectations, accountability, communication cadence, relationship management, and replacement of underperforming brokers.

Develop and maintain a national real estate pipeline and inventory of potential store locations, proactively identifying second-generation retail locations, grocery-anchored centers, redevelopment projects, urban infill opportunities, new construction projects, retail vacancies, major retailer closures, bankruptcies, portfolio dispositions, and emerging development opportunities before an MDM or retailer request exists.

Coordinate cross-functionally with New Business Leadership, Legal, Finance, Retail Operations, Sitewise, Salesforce, external brokers, and consultants to support the transition from site identification through lease execution and activation, maintain pipeline visibility and reporting accuracy, and identify bottlenecks, stalled searches, broker performance issues, landlord delays, and other barriers affecting speed-to-site.

Ownership of developing and executing correction action plans to improve site flow and speed-to-site.

Prepare and present financial, site, and decision-support analyses to senior leadership, MDMs, and retailers, including occupancy cost assessments, comparative site analyses, deal economics, site productivity forecasts, ROI considerations, and fact-based recommendations that help independent business owners evaluate real estate risk and investment decisions.

Own or heavily influence national real estate process standardization for broker engagement, site submissions, market tours, comparative site analysis, LOIs, site recommendation packages, retailer decision support, and cross-functional handoffs to create consistent execution across MDMs, brokers, and priority markets.

Support lease negotiation and deal structuring through the local tenant broker network, including LOIs, lease negotiations, renewals, purchase agreements, ground leases, and build-to-suit opportunities.

Evaluates and recommends terms related to base rent, tenant improvement allowances, free rent, CAM charges, renewal options, exclusivity, signage rights, and co‑tenancy provisions.

Develop a national landlord and developer account strategy by identifying high-value national and regional ownership groups, REITs, developers, shopping center owners, and disposition firms, then creating intentional engagement plans to generate portfolio-wide and off‑market opportunities, making Ace Hardware a top national retail tenant of choice.

Who You Are

You are a strategic, results-oriented real estate leader who combines market insight, financial expertise, and strong relationships to develop, execute, and scale the Ace Real Estate Strategy, positioning Ace Hardware as a leading national retail tenant of choice. You build trust quickly, communicate clearly, and lead with integrity and teamwork to solve problems, accelerate growth, and bring Ace Helpful to neighbors in need. The position requires a combination of retail real estate expertise, market analytics, financial analysis, negotiation capability, and cross-functional influence. Requirements and preferred qualifications below are taken from the source job description.

Required Skills

Bachelor’s degree in Business, Real Estate, Finance, Urban Planning, Economics, or a related field.

Minimum of seven years of commercial retail real estate experience, with demonstrated experience in site selection, commercial leasing, landlord negotiations, retail development, and market analysis.

Expertise in market analysis, retail site selection, lease negotiation, deal structuring, occupancy-cost and deal-economics analysis, comparative site analysis, financial modeling, ROI assessment, site productivity forecasts, pipeline reporting, CRM discipline, and location intelligence and reporting tools such as Sitewise and Salesforce.

Ability to build and manage national relationships with brokers, landlords, developers, REITs, shopping center owners, and real estate disposition firms, and to influence without authority across New Business Leadership, Market Development Managers, retailers, Legal, Finance, Retail Operations, and external partners.

Excellent communication and presentation skills, including the ability to prepare clear site recommendation packages and present findings to senior leadership and retailers.

Ability to travel extensively throughout the United States, with 40–60% national travel.

Demonstrated ability to build, manage, and measure a national real estate pipeline; establish broker- and market-level performance metrics; identify gaps and bottlenecks; and use data, accountability, and cross-functional influence to increase the quantity, quality, and velocity of qualified sites advancing toward new store development.

Strong strategic thinking, real estate negotiation, retail site selection, business acumen, financial analysis, relationship-building, presentation, and communication skills, with the ability to influence without authority.

Preferred Skills

Ten+ years of retail real estate experience preferred, including experience supporting multi-unit retail expansion or a background in home improvement retail, hardware retail, franchise development, commercial brokerage, or tenant representation.

Preferred Designations: CCIM, SIOR, CPM, or a related professional designation.

Compensation Details: $137700 - $175600 Per Year

Why should you join our team?

We live our values - W.E.L.I.G.H.T (Winning, Excellence, Love, Integrity, Gratitude, Humility, and Teamwork). Gratitude. Humility. Love. You don’t often see values like these in most corporate statements, but Ace is different. These things are important to us. They represent our commitment to the company, our employees, to Ace retailers and to the Ace brand. In addition to providing our employees a great culture, Ace also offers competitive benefits_ that address life’s necessities and perks, many of which expand and improve year after year, including: Incentive opportunities, based on role/grade level (company growth over the past 5 years resulted in incentives being paid out at an average of 122% of your target opportunity!) Generous 401(k) retirement savings plan with a fully vested matching contribution the first year in addition to quarterly contributions and annual discretionary contribution (once eligibility requirements have been met). Over the past 5 years, company contributions (matching, quarterly & discretionary) for fully eligible employees have averaged 10% of total eligible compensation Comprehensive health coverage (medical, dental, vision and disability – up to 26 weeks short-term disability and long-term disability) & life insurance benefits for you and your dependents 21 days of vacation immediately available (prorated in the first year) and up to 6 paid holidays depending on the month of hire Company Car, phone and fuel card are provided for field-based positions Your career at Ace is more than just a job. It’s a chance to be part of something meaningful. We help locally-owned businesses thrive and make an impact in their communities – and we support our employees in doing the same by offering an annual Ace Cares Week, 20 hours off work per year to volunteer at an organization of your choice, opportunities to help Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and the Ace Helpful Fund through the Ace Foundation Ace invests in every employee we hire, with a key focus on development and coaching. We offer on-site classes, facilitator-led courses, and a generous tuition assistance program, plus a performance management approach that goes beyond the typical annual review We know the work environment matters. That’s why Ace holds frequent campus events like Employee Appreciation Week, vendor demos, cookouts, and merchandise sales We bring them to you! Services such as mobile spas, auto maintenance, car wash and detailing, dry cleaning, dentists, eye doctors, flu shots, recycling and more! Employee discounts on Ace merchandise (including top brands like Weber, Traeger, Yeti, Craftsman, DeWalt and more), travel, fitness, computers and thousands more Birth/Adoption bonding paid time off Adoption cost reimbursement Employee Assistance Program (EAP) – access to free visits to therapists and lawyers, guidance on financial matters, elder and childcare, and assistance with tickets to entertainment events Identity theft protection _ Benefits are provided in compliance with applicable policies.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Ace Hardware Corporation is committed to a policy of promoting equal employment opportunities. The company recognizes the importance of diversity and leveraging the skills and talents of all people to the mutual advantage of each individual and the organization. The company is committed to the prevention of employment discrimination related to race, religion, color, sex (including sexual harassment), gender identity, national origin, age, marital status, disability and military or veteran status, sexual orientation or any other action covered by federal or applicable state/local laws.

Disclaimer

The pay range for this position starts as listed in the job posting, but could be higher based on education and experience. Please note, compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each opening. We take into consideration the minimum requirements outlined in the job description, such as an individual’s education, training and experience, the position’s work location, required travel (if any), and external market conditions when determining the final salary for potential new hires. Be aware that salary estimates published via alternate online job boards may not be a true representation of the actual pay range offered for this position. Please refer to the Ace position description for the accurate starting pay range information and feel free to discuss this with a Talent Acquisition professional if you are chosen to move forward with an interview. This written “Position Description” is not intended to cover all aspects of the position listed. It is meant to cover the basic/general essential job functions of a particular position. Ace Hardware Corporation reserves the right to change job duties, including essential job functions, according to business necessity. It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability. Ace Hardware is the largest retailer-owned hardware cooperative in the world with over 5,800 locally owned and operated hardware stores in approximately 60 countries. Headquartered in Oak Brook, Ill., Ace and its subsidiaries operate an expansive network of distribution centers in the U.S. and have distribution capabilities in Ningbo, China; and Cuautitlán Izcalli, Mexico. Since 1924, Ace has become a part of local communities around the world and known as the place with the helpful hardware folks. For more information, visit acehardware.com or newsroom.acehardware.com.