Struggles Presented by NCBI

From Setbacks to Success: Debbie Metzger’s Journey in Retail Lease Advising

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In this episode of Struggles, presented by NCBI, Brian Butkowski sits down with Debbie Metzger, founder of Metzger Retail Lease Advisors. Debbie shares her remarkable journey through decades in the retail real estate industry, from working with major Cleveland developers to launching her own firm after a sudden career setback.

She reveals:

● How unexpected job losses led her to entrepreneurship
● The unique way she helps small businesses and franchisees navigate intimidating retail leases
● Real client success stories, including first-time business owners and complex negotiations
● Why she believes in educating clients rather than billing for every minute

Whether you’re a retail tenant, franchisee, broker, or landlord, you’ll learn how to approach lease negotiations with confidence—and why having the right advisor can make all the difference.

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(Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai. Go Unlimited to remove this message.) I decided I would take a job with Scott Wolstein, a great developer in Cleveland. Great, great job. He owned nine shopping centers in Puerto Rico, and it was a great experience, however, he passed away unexpectedly, and there were really no jobs to apply for. In this episode of Struggles, presented by NCBI, we sit down with Debbie Metzger of Metzger Retail Advisors. Debbie opens up about the challenges of building a business in a competitive industry, and how her experiences shaped the way she serves her clients today. From early career decisions to navigating tough moments in business ownership, this conversation dives into what it really takes to keep moving forward when the path isn't easy. Welcome to another episode of Struggles presented by NCBI, the podcast where we navigate challenges together. I'm sitting with Debbie Metzger of Metzger Retail Lease Advisors. How are you doing, Debbie? Good, how are you? Good, glad to have you today. Thank you for having me. Absolutely. So I have a few questions. I want to start off first and foremost, probably with one that I think is always a great starting point. Where did you come from? What are some things that happened in your past to get you to where you are today with your company? And if there's any struggles that you could share with us to let us know what it was to get you to where you are today, I'd appreciate that. Well, I started out in high school, taking all business courses and thought if I was a secretary and did the best I could, I could move up to any company and go from there. And that's exactly what I did. I went to the Richard Jacobs Group. They hired me as a secretary and promoted me to a lease negotiator within like a year. The Indians owner was really good to me and I spent many years there, 17. Then I went to Forest City after Richard Jacobs sold his shopping centers. So I went to Forest City for another 16 years. And then when Forest City sold their shopping centers, I went to QIC, an Australian owned company. And then they decided to pull out of the U.S. market after three years. And so I decided I would take a job with Scott Wilstein, a great developer in Cleveland. Great, great job. He owned nine shopping centers in Puerto Rico and it was a great experience. However, he passed away unexpectedly and there were really no jobs to apply for the last couple of years because of the economy. So I decided to start Metzger Retail Lease Advisors. And our goal is to help people, small businesses, get their leases done and educate them on what they mean. Sure. So you said, you know, one of the struggles obviously would be that there weren't jobs available. Can you expound on that as to, again, maybe where your past and your expertise has given you that opportunity to actually, you know, do what you do that's outside of what the norms would be for a company such as yours or Jacobs Company or QIC, whatever those companies were. So, you know, I got to this point because there were no jobs available. I've done thousands of leases, so I decided to go out on my own. I thought that was the best way to proceed. And it's been a great experience helping small businesses, franchisees, you know, do their retail leases. It can be very intimidating doing a retail lease. It's a big document and I help them. I streamline the process, try to educate them about what the provisions in their lease mean, and try to just give them the attention that maybe a big law firm would give them. Understood, because you've told me in the past that law firms are typically where people would go to or lawyers would be where people would go to to get these leases negotiated. Yes. Could you tell me just a little bit more about some of the value that you might provide that may be a little different than that? Yeah, I think when you're a small business trying to find an attorney to do a retail lease can be quite intimidating. I have a project manager as well, so we can take you from the process of a letter of intent or maybe at the point where you get that big landlord lease and we can help you throughout the whole negotiation process. What I try to concentrate on is educating my clients because a lease is a very intimidating document and I like to make a streamlined approach, be a less intimidating way to explain what the provisions of their lease mean so that, you know, they can make the best decisions for their company going forward and feel like they know what the lease means. We also, you know, I provide a lot of conversations where I don't charge for every minute. I want to educate my clients and, you know, make sure that they feel comfortable going forward with their lease and that they know what it means. Bomb Image appreciates the opportunity to sponsor this podcast. Bomb Image provides brand firepower, precision targeted brand messaging and visual identities, empowering small teams in the professional services space to attract their most rewarding and profitable customers. We work hand in hand with our client partners, implementing our unique set of processes, focusing on listening, raw objectivity and accountability to help them present a more impactful brand story. Our passion is inspiring clients to create their Bomb Image. Sure, and that's one thing that you've often told to me is that you don't have to charge for every minute of every conversation. You want to make sure that your clients understand things appropriately so that they're comfortable with knowing what they do. And again, one of the value adds that you bring to the table when you're working with your clients. And I guess that's a great transition for a question to who would be or who would you look at to be your ideal client? My ideal clients are actually any retail tenant, but I do hone in on the franchisees, the smaller businesses, one owner businesses where, you know, they might not be as sophisticated as a bigger tenant. And this way I can educate them on what the provisions of their lease mean, make sure that they're negotiating a lease that works for them as well as the other party. You want to bring both parties together so both parties win. And, you know, I've worked for, you know, the greatest developers in Cleveland, so I'm uniquely qualified to bring both parties together so everybody kind of walks away feeling that they have a fair lease. So, you know, I spent many times late at night talking to clients about, you know, just their concerns and I don't send them a bill for that conversation because, you know, you just, I want to save tenants money. It's a tough environment right now. Absolutely. And even going to that tough environment conversation, I think that when you said that everybody can win, sometimes it's difficult to make things happen. Again, the broker might be looking from one side and then the tenant from the other and bridging that gap is definitely something that I think is important and to make sure that actually business gets done. Can you expound a little bit more on that? Is there something more you could say to that? You know, I like to work with brokers. I can help them cement their deals. My spa lady in Seattle, Washington, I really got her because she just couldn't afford to pay another $10,000, $12,000 for a lease. So the broker recommended me. Sure. And I helped cement the deal for him and her. So that works good for both parties. I do like working with brokers. I can help them make the deal. I can appreciate that for sure. Are there any other stories you could tell me about, again, maybe one of the people that you helped, again, you don't need to give the names, but is there some story that you could say that was a real success for what you've been able to do and help somebody, you know, get their lease signed, sealed, and delivered? Well, you know, my client in October opened up a golf simulator operation not too far from here, and he had never opened up a retail location, never had a retail business before. Sure. And he really appreciated that myself and my project manager, Bill Rauh, were able to bring him from all the way from the first, you know, the moment he got that lease all the way to opening because getting permits in a city can be time consuming. They can hold up your opening and put you in violation of your lease. So we were able to make sure he got the permits in time, and he had to get approval for his use from the city of Westlake. We were helping him get that. So, you know, it opened up very successfully on the day that the Ohio State Championship game was on. Gotcha. And he's done really well. So we were happy. He was a great client to deal with. That's incredible. And I guess another question that spawns for me is, so a first-time person doing a lease, that actually probably would be a good client for you or an ideal client for you? Yes. Okay. Yes, because we can educate them. They've never done it before. I think that's the key is obviously getting people to understand and know and really truly get in depth with, hey, this is why I'm doing these things and asking the appropriate questions to make sure they're comfortable. And again, you don't have to charge for every single minute or every conversation. I mean, you want to make sure that, again, the end game is making sure the lease actually happens so you can actually make sure that happens. Well, we also want to be there for them after the lease is executed. They might want to amend their lease for some reason. Gotcha. They might want to relocate or when the renewal comes up and they're negotiating with the landlord. So we want to be there for them throughout the whole term of their lease. So if they have any questions, they get a document from the landlord, like an estoppel. You know, I've had clients call me and say, what does this mean? And I help them get through it and say, you know, you're fine. You can sign that. It's just a clarification document. So we do like more than just the initial lease negotiations. We can help you throughout the lease term. And if you have a question on your lease during the term that you're not really sure what it meant and you have to talk to the landlord about it, give us a call. We can help you interpret that provision and know, give you education on how to deal with the landlord on it. Absolutely. I love that, that you're never going to leave somebody hanging. You're here to help. And that's ultimately what Metzger Retail Lease Advisors does is help somebody make sure that lease is executed and then all the way through. Where would be the best place to reach out to you if someone wanted to get a hold of you? Well, you can reach out to me at metzgerretailleaseadvisors.com. You can also look up myself on LinkedIn. My profile's on there, my contact information on there. And if you're on the website, you want to check about our services, you can fill out a form on the website and get a hold of us that way. So we're pretty approachable and responsive. Awesome. Well- I do want to say one other thing though. Go for that. We will help landlords. If you have overflow work that you can't keep up with, we have worked with major landlords, as you know, for many, many years. So we're uniquely qualified to help any landlords out too that might just need some overflow work done. Absolutely. Great to hear. So thank you very much, Debbie. Thank you, Brian. Appreciate it. Thanks for tuning in to this episode of Struggles presented by NCBI, where we navigate challenges together. Don't forget to subscribe, listen, and share this podcast with others who might benefit. We'd love to hear about the struggles you're facing or have overcome, and we'd be thrilled to have you as a guest on a future episode. Let's continue this journey together.