Taylor Reid '19: How She Pivoted into Commercial Real Estate
Taylor always had her eye on commercial real estate. As an undergraduate at San Diego State University, she majored in management, minored in finance and joined the real estate society because she had an inkling that her future might entail a career in real estate. Taylor had not yet made the right connections to tap into the San Diego real estate market, so as a senior, in 2013, she attended a career fair which led to her first job at a national private label grocery store chain. ALDI, founded by the Albrecht family in Germany in 1961, later opened its first U.S. store in Iowa in 1976 and currently has more than 2,000 stores across 36 states with over 25,000 employees.
Taylor was brought on as a district manager and to assist in opening ALDI’s first West Coast division in California. At that time, ALDI was primarily operating in the mid-West and South. Taylor began her career at ALDI with participation in a 12-month training program in Atlanta, Georgia. Through the program, Taylor learned about, and acted in, each company position from bottom to top, including roles as a cashier, shift manager, store manager and product picker within ALDI’s warehouse.
“ALDI strives to run the most efficient and productive operation as possible to save money so that they may pass those cost savings onto their customers,” says Taylor. “They believe the best measure to obtain that goal is through the education and training of their employees. The training program allowed me to learn each role and segment of the company and how to effectively lead my team and drive store success as a district manager.”
After completing her training program in 2015, Taylor returned to California to assist in opening the new division, headquartered in Moreno Valley.
“The goal was to make a big splash in the market and open 30 stores in three months,” says Taylor. “The division needed to hire and train hundreds of store and warehouse employees, develop a logistics strategy for the mass grand openings plan and ensure the stores were built, stocked and ready for the public come opening day. It is safe to say we had our hands full.”
The first store Taylor opened was located in La Quinta, California. The property, on which the store is located, was previously an auto dealership which was demolished and turned into a three-parcel site.
“It was exciting to track the development of the store, from demolition of the old car lot through ground up construction of the building,” says Taylor. “ALDI operated its parcel under a ground lease and was responsible for managing the property as a whole. As the district manager, I assumed the role of property manager, overseeing the daily management of the property, responding to tenant needs and handling the day-to-day maintenance of the property. This is when I started to become interested in commercial real estate—and I really enjoyed that part of the role.”
As Taylor’s career with ALDI progressed, alongside the store expansion plan, she continued to support new store development and oversaw the tenant improvement process of her second store in Palm Desert, California.
In 2017, Taylor began contemplating a hard pivot into commercial real estate as a career. She began applying to real estate companies but had no luck landing a position. She had been in an operations role with boots on the ground at ALDI, but did not know how to transition into commercial real estate or even what role in the industry was she was best suited for.
“I guess people didn’t think my experience as a grocery store district manager transitioned to working in real estate,” says Taylor. “In a capacity, I was already acting as a property manager and had assisted with some construction project management, but I just wasn’t getting any bites.”
This is when Taylor realized she needed some tangible experience to make her competitive with other qualified job candidates. She began contemplating her options, which included the possibility of pursuing a graduate degree in commercial real estate. She began researching programs across the nation.
“USD’s MSRE program was one of the top searches and seemed to be very highly regarded,” says Taylor. “I saw several mentions of undergraduate and graduate programs winning several prestigious awards. Here I had lived in San Diego for almost my whole life, completed my undergraduate degree at SDSU and I never knew such a jewel existed—the USD campus was absolutely breathtaking. I had been working long hours at ALDI, but managed to find time to study and take the GMAT. I applied to USD’s MSRE program and got in.”
Taylor started USD’s MSRE program in 2017 and was immediately impressed by the vast number of relationship-building activities and student support offered through the Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate (mentorships, conferences, travel abroad, company and project site visits, etc.). She recalls meeting several well-respected real estate professionals early on, many of which were USD alumni.
“I was so impressed with USD’s program,” says Taylor. “I attended all of the pre-MSRE events and was very inspired by stories from alumni like Jamas Gwilliam ‘06 MSRE, Austin Dias ’16 MSRE and Michelle Muñiz ’16 MSRE, who were some of the first people I met.”
Taylor opted to enroll as a full-time student so she could fully immerse herself in the program. Taylor recalls that the first two weeks of the program were intimidating at times, but also very rewarding. As Taylor navigated her first semester in USD’s MSRE program, she began to appreciate what a well-rounded experience she was gaining inside the classroom and in her outside networking efforts.
Taylor also began applying for internships. She listed the MSRE program on her resume and instantly began getting calls.
“It became evident that this degree was helping to open doors for me and to getting a job in commercial real estate.”
In 2017, Taylor accepted an internship position with the Port of San Diego’s Real Estate Department. She began working at the Port of San Diego with no official commercial real estate background, but it quickly became apparent that she was making a positive impact in her role.
After only a few months, the Port of San Diego offered Taylor a full-time position as an asset manager. In this new role, she oversaw a diverse portfolio of real estate assets located along San Diego bay’s Embarcadero and on Harbor Island, which included the San Diego Airport. She was also responsible for overseeing a number of redevelopment projects.
“I couldn’t believe that I had made my pivot into a real estate position after only four months in USD’s real estate program and had landed this amazing position,” says Taylor. “No doubt the relationships I had started to build through the program helped open doors for me to that great opportunity.”
During the second semester, Taylor transitioned to a part-time student in the MSRE program which enabled her to work full-time at the Port of San Diego.
“There was definitely a bit of a learning curve, but even the short amount of time in the program really set me up for
success—I was able to connect with several MSRE alumni, who were working at the Port of San Diego as well, who offered me guidance in my new role,” says Taylor.
As an MSRE student, Taylor was the ‘scholarship queen,’ earning approximately $26,000 in real estate scholarships.
“I highly encourage USD real estate students to apply for every scholarship available through the BMC,” says Taylor.
The scholarship which was particularly meaningful to Taylor was the Khalid Mohammed Memorial Scholarship, created by Michelle Muniz ‘16 MSRE to honor her late uncle.
“I was honored to be the first woman to be awarded this scholarship,” says Taylor. “I got a wonderful plaque, which hangs at home in my office next to my MSRE diploma. Michelle invited me to her office where I learned what the scholarship meant to her, honoring women in real estate. She asked that I pass along the wisdom I learn to other women.”
Taylor completed her MSRE degree from USD in 2019 and left her position at the Port of San Diego in 2021. In order to gain experience in development, she spent three months working as an unofficial intern for her mentor Sean Jones ’10 MSRE, principal of Responsible Real Estate, who also previously worked at the Port of San Diego as the program manager of redevelopment.
“Sean is a development master,” says Taylor. “He is always up-to-date on all new regulations and zoning changes,” says Taylor. “He has, and continues building, his real estate empire from the ground up. He is so easy to talk to, has been an incredible mentor and is someone that I really admire. I don’t know if I would have made such a meaningful connection without the MSRE program.”
“What I noticed in Taylor early on was that she has an insatiable curiosity and desire to learn about real estate, and she is never afraid to ask questions in pursuit of gaining more knowledge and understanding about our industry,” says Sean. “I believe her success thus far stems from that, in addition to being very well organized, competitive and possessing incredible attention to detail. Her career in real estate has a long runway.”
In October 2021, Taylor was retained by Pacifica Companies as associate director of asset management and development. In this role, she oversees a portfolio of commercial assets in San Diego County and the Northeastern part of the U.S.
“I have been spending a lot of my time lately working on the predevelopment of a 150,000 SF power center near Philadelphia, which I am overseeing with Akhil Israni ’11, '13 MSRE,” says Taylor. “The property previously held a hotel which recently went out of business, so the community is really excited to see the site get redeveloped and activated with a new use. The parcel is located along a prime retail corridor and we are almost 100 percent preleased. We are also developing several mixed-use and multifamily projects in San Diego within various transit-oriented communities.”
While more and more women are entering into commercial real estate as a career, some barriers still exist.
“Nine times out of 10, being a woman in asset management feels pretty normal, but it’s that 10 percent of the time that you may feel slightly out of our comfort zone and a little intimidated,” says Taylor.
Taylor recalled what leading lease negotiations with a government entity is like.
“When you’re the only woman on the call, with a handful of established attorneys a large hourly staff payroll, there is definitely a sense of pressure to perform well and prove that you deserve a seat at the table,” says Taylor.
In Taylor’s current role, she works with development teams to build retail shopping centers and multi-family apartment buildings.
“I’m new to this side of construction and I have a lot to learn, but it’s my responsibility to make sure we come out on budget and on schedule,” says Taylor. “It’s no secret that development and construction is a male dominated industry. When I’m on the phone with general contractors, who most of the time have been in the industry for decades, I’ve learned that I need to have strong voice and well prepared and knowledgeable on the topic of discussion. You really have to be a creative thinker, good problem-solver, quick on your toes and understand the art of negotiating in this industry. I learned a lot in the MSRE program about how and when to be assertive and when to consult with other real estate professionals who know more than me to help seal the deal and get the job done.”
Taylor also learned quickly that golf is a must-do in the commercial real estate industry. She has taken up the sport and began lessons from a local golf pro to stay on top of her game so she is always ready to make a deal on or off the course.
Taylor attributes much of her success to USD’s MSRE program. Her eyes brightened as she reminisced about the fun activities she participated in during the MSRE program.
“The highlights of my time in the MSRE program include making so many lifelong friends and connections, and taking full advantage of all of the discounts offered to get involved in the real estate organizations—there are just so many incentives to get out and build relationships, which was key for me,” says Taylor. “This is a very tight knit community and the relationships I have built while in this program were critical to my success.”
Taylor quickly got involved with NAIOP and its Developing Leaders Program, ULI, ICSC and secured a mentorship through the Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate with Jim Reynolds, managing partner at Silvergate Development.
“Jim and Ian Gil were doing a lot of projects in San Diego and their practices to build naturally occurring affordable housing were really inspiring,” says Taylor. “We have a serious housing shortage in San Diego and they are making a real difference in building these mixed-income housing projects. I got to tour most of their development projects, usually in different phases of construction and two USD MSRE alumni [Tommy Edmonds ’16 MSRE and Rodney Bruce ’16 MSRE, ’19 MBA], were also working there. They all took me under their wings and showed me the ropes.”
Her favorite project was the 'Haven' project in La Mesa, a nunnery which was converted into apartments. It had historical elements, which had to be preserved as part of the redevelopment project.
While in the MSRE program, Taylor visited Hong Kong and Macau. She also traveled to Cannes, France for the annual MIPIM conference, where she served, with three other MSRE students, as official bloggers and 'Tweeters’ for the event.
"Being a blogger was a lot harder than I expected—we did a lot of writing and had to remain fully attentive throughout each session to get good sound bites for the stories,” recalls Taylor. “Then, you had to run to a sitting area and quickly write an article, rush off to the next session and repeat the task; it was a great experience.”
Taylor recalls that the MSRE team of bloggers were able to experience more than just writing on their trip— they got to mingle at an event aboard the Deutsche Bank yacht.
In her personal time, Taylor loves to travel. Her favorite city in the world is Paris, where she studied abroad as an undergraduate. She hopes to travel to New Zealand, which makes sense when she shared that as a wine connoisseur, her favorite varietal is Sauvignon Blanc. Taylor is also a dog lover. She currently has two lab mixes she rescued from the Bahamas named Carson and Bailey. She and her husband plan to adopt a pug over the next few months who they have already named Kevin.
Taylor maximized her experience in the MSRE program to the fullest and she strongly encourages current and prospective MSRE students to do the same.
“Take advantage of every opportunity that is afforded to you—go to the events, go on the site visits, go on the overseas trips, meet people in person and take advantage of it all,” says Taylor. “Anytime someone invited me to do something MSRE-related I made it a priority to attend. We get so bogged down with day-to-day-life but it is so important to get out and just do it, you’ll be happy you did.”
Taylor’s definition of success is “feeling like you are providing value to your company and making yourself irreplaceable—I try to aim for that goal every day.”