Article submitted by Carmen R. Austin, MBA, CCIM, Associate Broker for Saurage Rotenberg Commercial Real Estate

Written by Jennifer Norbut October 2011, Commercial Real Estate Investment Magazine

Despite the retail market’s slow trek toward recovery, Carmen R. Austin, CCIM, associate broker at Saurage Rotenberg Commercial Real Estate in Baton Rouge, La., sees a lot of opportunity in this struggling sector. Infused with this year’s International Council of Shopping Centers’ annual meeting and participation in the 2011 Jay W. Levine Leadership Development  Academy, Austin, who described herself as having an “entrepreneurial spirit”, shared some of her enthusiasm for retail’s recovery with Commercial Investment Real Estate. For more insights on retail in small markets see “Retail Tenanting Techniques” on page 22 of this issue.

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Carmen has been a practicing commercial real estate broker since 2001. She is a graduate of the Louisiana State University (LSU) E.J. Ourso College of Business and the LSU Flores Masters of Business Administration (MBA) Program with a specialization in Entrepreneurship and Real Estate Finance.  Her experience includes past employment as Regional Director of Leasing at Commercial Properties Realty Trust the for-profit arm of the Baton Rouge Area Foundation. Carmen’s affiliations include Louisiana REALTORS®,Greater Baton Rouge Association of REALTORS® Commercial Investment DivisionInternational Council of Shopping CentersCommercial Real Estate WomenCertified Commercial Investment Member InstituteNational Association of REALTORS®, and Urban Land Institute. She is also an active volunteer on the board of directors for the Baton Rouge GalleryLSU MBA Alumni AssociationJunior Achievement of Baton Rouge, and the Junior League of Baton Rouge.  Carmen currently serves as the 2010 President of the Louisiana CCIM Chapter

Saurage Rotenberg Commercial Real Estate is a member of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber of Commerce (BRAC); the West Baton Rouge Chamber of Commerce; the Baton Rouge Growth Coalition; the Baton Rouge Better Business Bureau; the Louisiana Commercial Data Base (LACDB); and the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC). Several agents, on an individual basis, are members of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors® (SIOR), the Certified Commercial Investment Member Institute (CCIM); the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR); and the Greater Baton Rouge Association of REALTORS® Commercial Investment Division (CID).