A&G’s Power Play: Why a Veteran Hire Signals a New CRE Game

NEW YORK, NY – July 21, 2026

In the world of commercial real estate, personnel changes are routine. But occasionally, a single appointment sends a clear signal about a firm’s strategy and its reading of the market. The announcement that A&G Real Estate Partners has tapped industry veteran Andrew Jacobs to lead its real estate sales division is one of those moments. This isn't just about filling a leadership role; it's a calculated move to weaponize sales expertise within an advisory-first model, positioning the firm to capitalize on the profound dislocations and opportunities shaping today's property landscape.

A Calculated Move in a Bifurcated Market

To understand the significance of Jacobs' appointment, one must first appreciate the complex terrain A&G navigates. The commercial real estate market is not a monolith; it's a fractured landscape of winners and losers. The office sector continues to grapple with the normalization of hybrid work, leading to rising vacancies and a painful repricing of assets, particularly for Class B and C properties. This has created a pipeline of distressed situations that require sophisticated handling.

Conversely, the retail sector is demonstrating surprising resilience. A long-term scarcity of new construction has tightened supply, and value-oriented retailers are aggressively expanding, creating fierce competition for well-located spaces. A&G has been at the forefront of this trend, observing how savvy operators leverage lease auctions from distressed portfolios to fuel their growth. The industrial market, after a period of super-charged development, is now stabilizing, with demand beginning to outpace new supply—a sign of a maturing and healthier ecosystem.

It is in this bifurcated environment that A&G has honed its reputation as a specialist in maximizing value for both healthy and distressed companies. The firm’s recent track record speaks volumes. In 2025 alone, its portfolio-optimization team impacted 71.5 million square feet of real estate. They were instrumental in The Container Store’s successful emergence from Chapter 11, securing an incredible $109 million in occupancy cost savings. Their management of Rite Aid Corp.’s bankruptcy filing was a masterclass in value extraction, attracting over 1,700 interested parties and generating $95 million in proceeds from the sale of 50 properties and numerous leases to operators like Dollar Tree, Five Below, and Burlington. Bringing in a sales heavyweight like Jacobs is a direct move to amplify this proven capability.

Bolstering the Sales Engine

Andrew Jacobs is not merely an experienced executive; he is a proven dealmaker with a specific and highly relevant skill set. With over 15 years in the trenches of New York real estate and a career total of over $1.6 billion in closed transactions, his track record is formidable. His tenure at firms like Colliers, Newmark, and the highly regarded Robert K. Futterman & Associates saw him specialize in the disposition of privately held real estate assets—a core focus for many of A&G's clients.

His portfolio of past successes demonstrates a capacity to execute complex, high-stakes transactions across diverse asset classes. The $182.5 million leasehold sale of the Wharton Commerce Center, a one-million-square-foot industrial portfolio, and the $98 million sale of a New York City retail portfolio for NYREIT are not everyday deals. They require deep market intelligence, strategic positioning, and the trust of institutional owners. This is precisely the expertise A&G needs to lead its sales division.

In the press release, Co-Founder and Co-CEO Emilio Amendola noted, “Andrew has spent his career helping owners navigate complex sales decisions and capital markets opportunities.” This is more than just corporate praise; it’s a precise description of the role Jacobs will play. A&G's advisory teams identify the strategic path forward for a client's portfolio; Jacobs' division is now tasked with executing the monetization strategy at the highest possible value. His deep experience in the middle-market, where many of these complex ownership structures reside, makes him a perfect fit for A&G’s client base.

The Art of the Deal in Distressed Assets

Where the hire becomes particularly potent is in its application to A&G’s distressed asset advisory services. For companies navigating restructuring or bankruptcy, real estate is often both their biggest liability and their most valuable hidden asset. Unlocking that value requires a seamless integration of strategic advisory and sales execution.

Jacobs' arrival fortifies the latter half of that equation. While A&G’s optimization teams renegotiate leases and identify non-core properties for disposal, Jacobs’ team will build and run the process to turn those assets into cash. His background is not just in sales, but in investment sales and capital markets—a crucial distinction. It implies an understanding of how to structure deals, attract the right kind of capital, and create competitive tension to maximize proceeds, whether through a traditional sale or a structured auction.

This synergy transforms A&G’s offering from a series of services into a cohesive, end-to-end solution. They can now guide a distressed retailer through Chapter 11, optimize its lease portfolio, and then have a top-tier sales division, led by Jacobs, market the shed properties and leases to a waiting pool of opportunistic buyers and expanding chains. This integrated approach minimizes friction and maximizes recovery for the client and its creditors, a powerful competitive advantage in the turnaround and restructuring industry.

A Forward-Looking Partnership

Jacobs himself highlighted the alignment, stating, “A&G stood out to me as the firm focuses intently on problem-solving and long-term client partnerships.” This suggests his move is not just about leading a sales team, but about embedding a capital markets perspective within A&G’s advisory-centric culture. The goal is to connect more owners, investors, and operators to the firm's full suite of capabilities.

By bringing Jacobs in-house, A&G is making a clear statement: in a market defined by complexity, specialized, integrated expertise is the ultimate currency. The firm is building a system that can not only diagnose a problem and prescribe a solution but can also execute the most critical part of the cure—the transaction. This strategic enhancement prepares A&G to not only navigate the current market’s challenges but to proactively seize the opportunities that will emerge as capital flows back into the market and assets continue to change hands.