Professional Background
Daniel J. Mitchell is a commercial real estate professional having over 55 years of experience with leadership roles at retailers expanding in the UK, Canada and the US resulting in over 30 million square feet of retail transactions. His initial experience was in quick-service restaurants at McDonald’s and Wendy’s where, in his management roles, he was responsible for over 300 restaurant openings. Corporate Big Box retail was the next challenge with responsibility for real estate, design and construction at Highland Superstores, Silo and Melville Corporation. At Melville, a Fortune 100 company, he directed the Linens ‘n Things program, Big Box Self Development and served on the Marshalls Real Estate Committee. Following corporate life, Mitchell became Senior Vice President at Katz and Associates along with a dual role as EVP of Development at Katz. There he represented many national brands including Linens ‘n Things, Galyan’s Trading Company (now Dick’s Sporting Goods), Cost Plus World Market, Shoe Carnival, Party City and many more while co-developing over 1.5 million square feet of highly successful shopping centers.
After forty years as a real estate road warrior around the country, Mitchell moved to San Antonio where he became EVP of Weitzman. Mitchell’s wealth of market knowledge across North America eventually led to co-founding FranSite with David Nicholson, where Mitchell continues to oversee operations as FranSite’s president. Since its formation twelve years ago, FranSite has become the outsourced real estate department for numerous franchise brands “Connecting Great Site to Great Franchises” with ongoing success in street, strip and mall venues. Clients have included CycleBar, @ the LB, Fueled Collective, Shred 415, Basketball Training Systems, BodyBar, Bishop’s and Nekter Juice Bar. Current clients include Salons by JC, D1 Sports Training, Barre 3, HOTWORX, Conquer Padel, Blue Sage Longevity Lab, Golf Envy and Candy Cloud, with many additional brands in pre- development status. A critical element of FranSite’s success has been the development of a local broker team that now numbers over 150 highly skilled and experienced brokers covering markets across the U.S. and Canada. This has allowed for consistent national oversight with knowledgeable boots on the ground targeting the best possible outcomes for both franchisor and franchisee.
Organizations
Mitchell is a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers and the International Franchise Association.
Education
Mitchell received a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master of Business Administration degree from Michigan State University.