Director of Real Estate

Director of Real Estate

Location: Company Headquarters, Houston, Texas

Reports to: Chief Retail Officer

The Role

The Director of Real Estate is a senior development leader responsible for advancing the retail growth strategy across new store development, relocations, and remodel initiatives.

Based in Houston, this role leads the execution of the development pipeline — transforming strategy into openings.

You will oversee projects from site identification through entitlement, construction partnership, and opening — ensuring disciplined capital deployment and predictable milestone progression.

This is a leadership role for a hands-on operator who thrives in a growth environment and knows how to move projects forward in complex retail ecosystems.

What You Will Own

1. Development Pipeline Execution

• Manage a portfolio of NTI builds, relocations, and remodel projects.
• Advance projects through defined stage gates from site control to opening.
• Partner with Finance to support underwriting and capital approval packages.
• Maintain 12–24 month forward visibility on active projects.

You are accountable for project progression — not just activity.

1. Market Intelligence & Site Strategy

• Identify coverage gaps and trade area opportunities.
• Evaluate demographic trends, traffic patterns, and competitive positioning.
• Work closely with brokers to source high-quality development opportunities.
• Support multi-year market planning efforts.

The Director translates growth strategy into viable, finance-ready opportunities.

1. Cross-Functional Project Leadership

• Coordinate with construction, operations, fuel, marketing, and legal teams.
• Drive alignment from feasibility through opening.
• Ensure design and development standards are upheld.
• Anticipate risk and proactively surface solutions.

You serve as the connective tissue between strategy and execution.

1. Remodel Program Leadership

• Prioritize remodel projects aligned to ROI thresholds.
• Partner with operations to define scope and value creation.
• Track performance of remodeled locations versus projections.
• Help evolve remodel strategy through field insight.

Remodels are not maintenance — they are performance investments.

1. Broker & External Partner Management

• Build and manage broker relationships.
• Negotiate letters of intent and support contract structuring.
• Navigate entitlement processes and local regulatory requirements.
• Represent the company professionally in market-facing settings.

What Success Looks Like

• Projects consistently advance through stage gates on predictable timelines.
• Strong pipeline quality with disciplined underwriting.
• Clear visibility into upcoming capital needs and project risks.
• Productive broker relationships generating viable opportunities.
• High confidence from leadership in execution reliability.

What You Bring

• 7–10 years of experience in retail real estate, development, or construction.
• Experience in convenience, fuel, or high-volume retail preferred.
• Demonstrated experience advancing ground-up or complex retail projects.
• Working knowledge of entitlements and permitting processes.
• Financial fluency — ability to understand IRR, payback, and capital prioritization.
• Strong communication and cross-functional leadership skills.

The Profile

You are:

• Structured and proactive.
• Commercially minded.
• Comfortable navigating ambiguity.
• Skilled at balancing persistence with collaboration.
• Motivated by seeing projects move from dirt to doors open.

Growth Path

This role is designed as a key leadership position within the development organization, with the opportunity to scale scope as the retail footprint grows.