The Focus Real Estate Advisors team brings a diverse set of perspectives, decades of experience, and rigorously high standards to the execution of our services.
In 2019, Clay Mote teamed up with long-time friend, Brett Robinson, and joined RetailUnion Partners. He began his real estate career at the Weitzman Group where he was rookie of the year in 1996. He left Weitzman in April 2000 and partnered with Mike Geisler and Ken Reimer as they started Venture Commercial Real Estate. Throughout his career, Clay has been involved in large-scale rollouts and tenant representation assignments, as the master broker for Gander Mountain in eight states, Orchard Supply in Florida, and with his current client, Northern Tool, across the United States for more than 10 years. In addition, Clay has been successful in large and junior box dispositions for Albertsons, Office Depot, Toys-R-Us and over 10 Sears Department and Auto stores throughout Texas. Clay spends his free time traveling with family and friends.
Baylor University, Bachelor’s in Finance and Real Estate
Bryan brings over 26 years of real estate experience in brokerage, asset management, site selection, strategic market planning and commercial real estate appraisal to Focus Real Estate Advisors. His focus is tenant representation, specializing in the implementation of retailers’ market strategies for expansion in DFW and nationally for retail clients including Dutch Bros Coffee, Starbucks, rue21, Payless Shoe Source, GNC, Foot Locker, Sola Salon Studios and Sprouts. Prior to working in commercial real estate, Bryan spent 10 years in corporate real estate with Radio Shack, Payless Shoe Source and FedEx Kinko’s. His experience also includes commercial real estate appraisal of a wide variety of income-producing properties including office buildings, retail centers, multi-family, industrial warehouses, residential subdivisions, and vacant land. Bryan is known for his strategic market planning processes, which he learned on the corporate side of the business. Bryan’s core strength is seeing the big picture and planning a client’s experience comprehensively for the entire market, rather than looking at one isolated location at a time. He understands the client’s needs and tailors a plan specific to the retailer and the market. Bryan has been an integral part in putting together strategic market plans and rollouts for many clients including Dutch Bros. Coffee, Bojangles, Driver’s Edge, Sola Salon Studios, Sprouts Farmers Market and Sleep Experts.
Larry Leon joined Retail Union in 2021 as a specialist in entertainment and hospitality real estate. He is the national master broker for Pinstripes; Bistro, Bowling and Bocce, and also nationally represents Supercharged Entertainment, the largest entertainment venue of its kind in the U.S.
Larry has over 40 years of experience in commercial real estate, ranging from the disposition of retail portfolios to sales of shopping centers, along with project leasing and tenant representation. Larry created the first retail tenant representation advisory firm in DFW and was a founding partner in United Commercial Realty. He later became a partner at Venture Commercial Real Estate, where he founded Venturetainment, specializing in Location Based Entertainment (LBE’s), and is considered one of the national authorities in that field. One of his favorite pastimes is “Ideation” and brainstorming inventive groundbreaking ideas which assist his clients in their success. A high point of Larry’s career was bringing Nebraska Furniture Mart to North Texas. The Berkshire Hathaway-owned retailer purchased 433 acres in The Colony for its fourth and largest store (1.9 million square feet), and includes the Grandscape retail, restaurant, and entertainment complex. Larry and his team provided an enormous amount of research and information to the client, requiring a team effort to do the assemblage and entice NFM to the area.
Todd Griffiths joined RetailUnion as a Senior Vice President in 2020 and was promoted to Partner in January 2022. He is a seasoned professional with a diverse background in both the restaurant industry and commercial real estate. With over 25 years of experience managing operations and openings of numerous restaurants, ranging from casual to fine dining, Todd brings a wealth of expertise to his role as Partner. Todd mainly focuses on tenant representation with restaurant and entertainment groups throughout the country. Notable clients include Pins Mechanical Co, Agave Bandido, Terry Black’s BB-Q, Back Yard Social, Wagamama, NOTO, Ruins Bar, Lava Cantina, and many others. Todd’s extensive knowledge and understanding of the industry make him an invaluable asset to his clients and a valuable contributor to RetailUnion.
Jim made a pivotal career transition in 2004 upon graduating from The University of Texas in Arlington. With a solid background in HVAC contracting, he embraced the realm of commercial brokerage at Venture Commercial. Drawing inspiration from his mother's success as a commercial broker, he immersed himself in the field, diligently refining his market expertise and cultivating robust relationships with brokerage firms, landlords, and developers. In 2019, Jim embarked on a new chapter in his career by joining RetailUnion as a partner. Throughout his 19-year career, he has fostered an impressive clientele comprising prominent national, regional, and local tenants such as Sprouts, Starbucks, T-Mobile, Dutch Bros Coffee, Bojangles, Foot Locker, Chilis, 7-Eleven, Arby's, Taco Bueno, Wingstop, Drybar, among others. Recognized for his unwavering tenacity in identifying prime trade areas and staying ahead of the curve in retail development, Jim has consistently earned recognition as one of DCEO magazine's foremost heavy hitters over the past decade.
University of North Texas, Bachelor’s in Real Estate
Gabi joined RetailUnion as a Vice President in 2023. She began her career in 2016 with Venture Commercial Real Estate, focusing on project leasing, including experience in ground-up development, high-profile urban core assets, neighborhood retail, and mixed-use projects. Before joining RetailUnion, Gabi was a Real Estate Manager for Brilliant Earth and focused on retail store growth across the United States. With a local and national background, Gabi has gained knowledge and insight to curate a unique experience for both the Landlord and Tenant. Gabi has worked with many landlords, including but not limited to Brixmor Property Group, Asana Partners, 42 Real Estate, Crescent Communities, ShopCore, Triten Real Estate Partners, and PREP Property Group. Her client list includes Dry Bar, Relive Health, Scenthound, Whiskey Hatchet, and other specialty retail and F&B.
Kim joined RetailUnion in January of 2022 as Director of Tenant Services. Her focus is on a broad range of tenant representation with an emphasis on entertainment and restaurant clients. Kim has over 20 years’ experience in the healthcare, nutrition and wellness arenas. She has a BA in Marketing from Purdue University and a nutrition certification (FNTP) from the Nutrition Therapy Association. In her time away from the office, Kim meets with nutrition clients, enjoys cooking and fitness, and spending time with her husband and pets.
John joined RetailUnion in 2025 as a Partner. He began his real estate career in 2007 with Judge Fite Commercial, working Landlord and Tenant representation and land sales. In 2011, John switched sides of the business after being recruited by Spirit Halloween as the Senior Manager of Real Estate. His territory was the entire country and he helped Spirit grow from 800 locations per year to 1,400 locations per year. John also spent time in-house as the Director of Real Estate at Tuesday Morning, managing the growth and repositioning of the stores in the Central U.S. In 2017, John returned to brokerage with The Weitzman Group as Vice President of Portfolio Leasing. He was responsible for overseeing the leasing team for the JV Portfolio, formerly Cencor. John then took a master broker role representing Altitude Trampoline Park nationally. He played an integral role in the national placement strategy and site selection process for the franchisees, identifying over 500 big box locations throughout the country. John's passion is National Master Broker work and fractional SVP work for expanding brands. He has played a role in the national roll out of Launch Family Entertainment, BODYBAR Pilates, Dickey's BBQ, Geico Insurance, and many others. At this point in his career, John has seen almost every big box vacancy in the country-a fact he is not sure if he is supposed to be proud of or slightly embarrassed.
Jake Cornelius joined RetailUnion as an Associate in August of 2019. In his time here, his focus has been on Tenant Representation for national, regional, and local tenants. Born and raised in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex, Jake provides his own unique perspective on the market. His area of focus is the DFW Metroplex, as well as East, West, and Central Texas. In his free time, he enjoys golfing, skiing, traveling, and spending time with his wife Lauren and their daughter.
