Behind The Bash: Inside The Genesis Of Bisnow's ICSC RECon Party

Many of the participants at this year’s Bisnow Beltway Bash may not know it, but the event actually began as a twinkle in the eyes of Bill Miller and Alex Walker (above, with Alex on the left) of Miller Walker Retail Real Estate a little over two years ago.

Bill and Alex were flying back from ICSC RECon 2014, lamenting the fact that there was no regional event for players in the DC area, the way there is for Maryland, DC and other nearby states. Bill had moderated panels for Bisnow events in DC for several years at that point, and slowly it dawned on him...

“I realized I knew exactly the person to put something like that together: Mark Bisnow,” Bill says, referring to Bisnow’s founder. “He wasn’t sure about it at first, but it was just such a slam dunk. He eventually came around.”

Bill spent the next few months helping Mark sign on sponsors and get the word out to potential attendees. When RECon rolled around last year and Bisnow held its first Beltway Bash, Bill says both he and Mark were thrilled by how well it went. 

“Some were a bit skeptical at first, but this is what Bisnow does better than anyone else, and it went off without a hitch,” Bill says. “It drew a real 'who's who' from the DC area's retail community and a great time was had by all.”

And the rest, as they say, is history.

We're thrilled Miller Walker Retail Real Estate has joined us as a founding partner—what else would they be?—of our Bisnow Beltway Bash, to be held on May 23, at 5:30pm at the Wynn's Intrigue Nightclub at ICSC RECon. We hope you'll join us. Register here!