RKF OPENS CHICAGO OFFICE AS THE RETAIL LEASING, INVESTMENT SALES AND CONSULTING SERVICES FIRM CONTINUES EXPANSION INTO KEY URBAN U.S. MARKETS

-RKF Announces Seventh Office Nationally-

NEW YORK, NY – May 7, 2012 – (RealEstateRama) — RKF, the country’s leading independent real estate firm specializing in retail leasing, investment sales and consulting services, has announced the opening of a Chicago office as part of its ongoing expansion into key urban markets nationwide. This is the firm’s seventh office; others include its New York headquarters, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Northern New Jersey, and San Francisco.

“The opening of our Chicago office is a crucial part of our national strategy to expand RKF’s on-the-ground presence in key urban markets in the U.S.,” said RKF Chairman & CEO Robert Futterman. “We have long been active in the market through our work with retail clients, and over the years have been introduced to many of the city’s landlords as well. RKF is an entrepreneurial firm and we are always looking for strategic growth opportunities that enable us to better serve our clients.”

Anthony Campagni, managing director, is the first to join the firm’s Chicago office. In addition, the firm is in talks with a number of other prominent retail leasing specialists and expects to add multiple brokers in Chicago in the coming weeks.

No stranger to Chicago, RKF has been responsible for bringing many high-profile retail tenants to the city and its highly trafficked suburban markets. The firm represented Topshop, the London-based international fashion-forward apparel retailer, in its 50,000-square-foot lease at 830 N. Michigan Ave. for its second store in the U.S. RKF has also been involved in leasing several sites on behalf of Intermix, Kiehl’s, Oliver Peoples and many others, in trade areas throughout the city, including the Gold Coast, Michigan Avenue, the Loop, Lincoln Park, and Bucktown.

Nationally, RKF has completed more than 20 million square feet of retail leasing and sales transactions with an aggregate value in excess of $20 billion. It is recognized for its influence and expertise in transforming urban and key suburban retail markets, as well as for providing creative, innovative and strategic real estate solutions. RKF’s seasoned team has been credited with pioneering the development and revitalization of some of the most significant retail corridors in the U.S. RKF’s impact can be seen across Manhattan, including in the transformations of Times Square, Union Square, Herald Square, the Meatpacking District and SoHo, as well as in select areas in New York’s outer boroughs and suburban markets. As RKF’s retailer and ownership clients began to enter markets outside of New York, they increasingly turned to the firm for representation in these cities as well. As a result, RKF has strategically extended its presence beyond its New York City headquarters.

In 2007, RKF established its Southern California location in Santa Monica and has since doubled its business in the market, which, like Chicago, has an urban-suburban retail mix. Last year, RKF opened a Miami office to cater to the reemergence of South Florida retail and in less than a year, has become an important player in the market with a four-person team.

Futterman added, “When expanding into new markets, we look for brokers who share our approach and passion for urban retail real estate. Anthony Campagni is an extremely talented and respected broker whose vision for RKF’s future aligns with ours and whose experience complements our own. When our paths crossed again recently, we knew the time was right to pull the trigger.”

Campagni joins RKF from Baum Realty Group and specializes in retail-tenant and landlord representation. He began his career in retail real estate with Garrick-Aug Associates in New York, the same firm at which Robert Futterman and many members of the executive team of RKF got their start. He is joined by Associate Elan Rasansky, who was also previously with Baum Realty Group.

“When I started in this business nine years ago in New York, I recognized RKF as a market leader and a firm doing things differently,” said Campagni. “I watched RKF grow, first in New York and then nationally, and admired the way it has conducted business and has developed into an incredibly successful, high-energy, retail real estate specialist. I am excited to join RKF and provide owners and tenants alike with the benefits afforded by a firm with national and global reach through brokers and offices in the cities that matter most to our clients. I look forward to helping expand RKF’s presence in the city with Chicago’s top talent.”

RKF’s Chicago office is located at 875 North Michigan Ave. and can be reached at 312.698.8880 or .

About RKF

The country’s leading independent real estate firm specializing in retail leasing, investment sales and consulting services, RKF serves a broad spectrum of domestic and global clients in services ranging from national tenant and owner representation to advisory, consulting and disposition. With approximately $20 billion in aggregate real estate transactions to its credit, RKF has been responsible for identifying scores of real estate opportunities throughout the United States for leading American and international chains, retailers, developers and institutional clients. RKF is headquartered in New York with offices in Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Northern New Jersey, and San Francisco. www.rkf.com

RKF is located at 521 Fifth Avenue, Floor 7, New York, New York 10175, T: 212.599.3700.