Seritage Growth Properties

Edward Lampert, the former Sears CEO and hedge fund manager, has been Chairman and the largest shareholder since the REIT's 2015 formation. Andrea Olshan serves as CEO and President, having assumed the role in 2021. The board includes a mix of independent directors, but Lampert's ownership stake and the firm's origins in Sears Holdings mean his influence on major strategic decisions remains significant.

Sears was the original anchor tenant on master leases covering the 266 initial properties, but the exposure has been dramatically reduced through lease recaptures, retenanting, and property sales. The master lease was restructured multiple times as Sears entered and exited bankruptcy, and Seritage has actively terminated leases to regain control of properties. By 2023, Sears had ceased to be the dominant rent payer.

Seritage does not source deals in the conventional sense — its pipeline was entirely captive at formation. Opportunities arise from within its own portfolio by identifying which former Sears boxes can be redeveloped into higher-value uses. The firm evaluates each site for zoning upside, local demand for retail, office, or residential, and partner interest. No external sourcing team or acquisition program exists.

Seritage is a publicly traded real estate investment trust listed on the NYSE. It is not a family office, though Lampert's ESL Investments provides a private capital connection. The structure imposes REIT distribution requirements, quarterly reporting, and SEC governance obligations that make it fundamentally different from a private family office vehicle.

The firm invests in repositioning existing retail assets — essentially value-add real estate investing on existing properties. It does not invest in startups, venture capital, or ground-up development in the traditional sense. Capital is allocated to demolition, construction, and tenant improvements to convert single-tenant boxes into multi-tenant mixed-use properties.

The firm has no stated interest in industrial, data centers, self-storage, or hospitality as standalone asset classes. Its mandate has always centered on retail-led mixed-use redevelopment, though office and residential components appear as adjuncts. It has not pursued pure-play office towers or multifamily development on sites that lack a retail anchor lineage.

Seritage has historically pursued joint ventures with developers on large redevelopment sites, sharing costs and upside rather than building entirely on-balance-sheet. Examples include partnerships at regional mall locations where a local developer brings entitlements expertise. These structures allow Seritage to preserve liquidity while maintaining an equity interest in the completed project.