Director of Real Estate & Store Portfolio Management

AKIRA•Chicago, IL

30d•$100,000 - $140,000•Onsite

About The Position

AKIRA is an expanding fast-fashion retailer with 40+ locations and an aggressive plan to grow to 100+ stores over the next several years. We are seeking a Director of Real Estate who will fully own our national store portfolio-strategy, renewals, site selection, negotiations, analytics, and landlord relationships. This role centralizes work historically divided among ownership and third-party brokers (Savills) and provides AKIRA with a single accountable leader to manage a large and increasingly complex portfolio. This is a high-impact role that directly influences AKIRA's profitability, growth velocity, and long-term footprint.

Requirements

5+ years in retail real estate, ideally with a multi-unit specialty retailer (50–200 stores).
Strong experience managing high-velocity renewals, lease negotiations, and multi-market expansion.
Advanced financial modeling skills (occupancy cost %, NPV of lease, break-even impact, EBITDA uplift).
Demonstrated success negotiating rent reductions, TI, abatements, and early termination strategies.
Competency in reading redlines, coordinating with legal, and managing lease execution processes.
Highly organized with ability to manage 50+ concurrent timelines and lease events.
Data-oriented and comfortable using scoring frameworks, GIS, and demographic tools.