Late last year, Midwest Real Estate News ran its first Commercial Hall of Fame issue, honoring the top professionals in commercial real estate. Since then, we’ve been highlighting the careers of these industry stars on our Web site. This week, we take a look at the career of NAI DESCO’s Mark Schnuck.
Mark Schnuck Position: President and Chief Executive Officer Company: The DESCO Group, NAI DESCO Commercial and DESCO Southwest Location: St. Louis
Mark Schnuck boasts all the credentials that you’d expect from a commercial real estate veteran accomplished enough to make Midwest Real Estate News’ first Hall of Fame list: He has the long career, the boatload of industry and community honors and he heads a real estate firm that is dominating in its market.
All this makes Schnuck, president and chief executive officer of The DESCO Group in St. Louis, a natural for this prestigious list.
Just ask his peers. They have no problems offering praise for the work that Schnuck has turned in during his career.
“Mark is one of the true professionals in this business,” said one nominator. “I haven’t met anyone who knows more about real estate than Mark does. He’s had a great career because he does everything the right way.”
This is reflected in the success of the brokerage he operates. The company has been successful enough to extend its reach past St. Louis, as DESCO is the parent company of NAI DESCO, a full-service brokerage firm, and DESCO Southwest, a development firm in Arizona.
This success is no surprise to those who work with Schnuck. They’ve watched him rise through the ranks since starting in the real estate business.
Prior to the formation of The DESCO Group in 1993, Schnuck served in a variety of positions at Schnuck Markets, Inc., handling duties that include market research, distribution and real estate.
He became Schnucks’ senior real estate officer in 1989. In this position, he was responsible for market research, property management and the leasing and development of commercial, industrial and retail property.
Like most real estate professionals on this list, Schnuck has managed to achieve that difficult balance of building a busy real estate career and serving his community. For instance, he is a past chairman and current member of both the St. Louis Zoo Commission and the St. Louis Zoo Foundation Board of Trustees.
And that’s just the beginning of his commitment to his community. He is also a former chairman and current member of the Salvation Army Advisory Board; Secretary of the Greater St. Louis Community Foundation Board and Executive Committee; and past chairman of the Fair St. Louis Foundation.
Schnuck’s professional memberships include the International Council of Shopping Centers and the Urban Land Institute .
You don’t build a career, or make an impact on the community, like this and not attract attention. It’s little surprise, then, that Schnuck has earned several honors during his career.
He was the 2007 recipient of the John H. Poekler Levee Stone Award for the DESCO Group’s contribution to revitalizing St. Louis’ downtown. Schnuck’s work on that project included two high-profile developments: the redevelopment of the historic Old Post Office building and of the Ninth Street Garage, which now services the Old Post Office district and the new Culinaria – A Schnucks Market.
Finally, in 2010, the entire Schnuck family received the St. Louis Citizen’s of the Year Award.
