By Briana Iverson

In the wake of the COVID-19 Shelter in Place order and the global shutdown of consumer demand, business activity and supply chain has created an unprecedented shock to the business community, leaving businesses scrambling to gather advice on how to handle such an unforeseen event. In an effort to help companies navigate through uncharted waters, last week our very own Hughes Marino Executive Vice President David Marino led an informative CFO Leadership Council webinar, alongside 3D Systems Executive Vice President and CFO Todd Booth, to provide their valuable insights and perspectives to business and finance executives across the country.

David covered a variety of commercial real estate and economic topics during the two-hour webinar, including the following:

• How landlords and tenants are taking action
• What market changes can be expected
• Lessons from past recessions
• The risks and pitfalls of subleasing, and how the rise in sublease inventory will affect both tenants and landlords in the coming months
• The future of coworking space, and what tenants need to do if they are currently leasing from a sublessor
• The perfect storm of three conditions to be met in order to restructure a lease
• Anticipated changes of the new normal in the workplace

The webinar also conducted audience polls on the current situations of their businesses and opinions on the economy, where we learned the challenges that businesses are currently facing as they are navigating these unprecedented times. Below are the insightful results:

1. What is your company size?

• Under 50 – 41%
• 50-100 – 18%
• 100-250 – 24%
• 250-500 – 8%
• Over 400 – 9%

2. Did you pay rent for April?

• Yes – 82%
• No – 18%

3. If you did not pay rent for April, did you get agreement from your landlord in advance, or did you do this by other means?

• Landlord agreed to deferment – 41%
• Took advantage of local law/ordinance change – 5%
• Provided notice to landlord but landlord did not agree, and did it anyway – 45%
• Did not pay rent and am in technical default of the lease – 9%

4. My facility is integral to my business operations, and we have been damaged by not being able to use it.

• Yes – 36%
• No – 64%

5. Revenues for this lock out period are being affected by the COVID-19 situation in the following:

• No effect at all – 17%
• Down by 25% – 33%
• Down by 50% to 75% – 34%
• Down by 100%–no ability to generate revenue – 12%
• Revenue increasing – 4%

The discussion concluded with an informative question and answer session, where business leaders had the unique opportunity to get advice from David, a 30+ year veteran of the commercial real estate industry who has successfully weathered three prior recessions and has helped business owners overcome challenges.

Through this economic crisis we have seen companies and organizations across the country step up and do their part to help others, which has been truly inspiring. By hosting regular seminars for its members on topics focused on economic updates, recruiting and real estate, The CFO Leadership Council aims to empower and educate their members across the country. Due to recent hardships caused by the pandemic, they opened this exclusive webinar to businesses across the country, regardless of membership, in hopes to help spread valuable information and help businesses navigate this uncertain time.

David and everyone at Hughes Marino is truly committed to helping businesses succeed, and now even more than ever, it is critical to work with trustworthy companies who put your best interests first. For more information on what steps your company can take to help mitigate damage during this crisis, reach out to us at any time at info@hughesmarino.com or 1-844-662-6635 and we will be more than happy to help. We are all in this together!