#354 - Don Tepman (@StripMallGuy) - Strip Malls, Creating Value, Leasing Strategy, X/Twitter, Charlie Munger

The Fort - An Entrepreneurship Podcast

Don Tepman runs a real estate fund that focuses on buying neighborhood strip centers throughout the United States and also runs the 'StripMallGuy' account on X and LinkedIn. Mr. Tepman started his career in 2002 and led his first strip center purchase in 2006. He has completed 40 purchases and raised over $150M in LP capital.

We discuss:

• Don’s career and mentors
• What makes a successful strip mall acquisition
• Building @stripmallguy and the future of the brand

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Links

StripMallGuy on X

Resquared

Topics

(00:00:00) - Intro

(00:04:56) - Don’s upbringing and career background

(00:08:40) - The dynamics of suburban retail

(00:12:42) - Don’s mentor & learnings

(00:21:25) - Restaurants in strip centers

(00:26:35) - Tenant mixes

(00:30:20) - TI

(00:35:41) - Where do folks waste money on exteriors?

(00:37:18) - Drive-thrus

(00:38:36) - Don’s hold period strategy

(00:42:39) - Why do you stick to smaller deals?

(00:45:26) - What is your approach to entering a new market?

(00:53:02) - Why does Price per foot matter so much?

(00:53:44) - Leasing

(00:59:41) - Taxes and insurance

(01:01:19) - StripMallGuy

(01:08:45) - Working a deal through the system

(01:12:44) - Thoughts on the market

(01:18:22) - Luxury retail

(01:19:53) - Meeting Charlie Munger

(01:27:08) - Plans for SMG in the future

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