Mall Titan David Simon Dies at 64

David Simon, long-time leader of mall titan Simon Property Group, died on Sunday, his company announced. He was 64.

Simon died two years after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He was surrounded by his family, including the son set to take over one of the largest retail businesses in the country.

Simon played every major role for his company, from chair of the board to chief executive officer to president. The top post at the company will be filled by his son, Eli, who is being appointed as chief executive officer and president while retaining his chief operating officer position.

Larry Glasscock, meanwhile, will become non-executive chair of the board.

“David Simon was, quite simply, the finest leader in the history of the retail real estate industry,” Glasscock said in a statement. “His extraordinary intellect, his relentless drive for excellence, and his unmatched strategic vision transformed a privately held family business into an esteemed global institution — creating billions of dollars in value for shareholders along the way.”

The real estate titan graduated from Indiana University’s famed Kelley School of Business and Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business. Simon joined Melvin Simon & Associates in 1990 as chief financial officer, jumping into the family business after working as an investment banker at First Boston Corporation and Wasserstein Perella & Co.

Three years later, he helped lead the company’s historic initial public offering. He became chief executive officer of the company in 1995 at just 33 years old, emerging as one of the youngest to lead a publicly traded company in the country.

Simon was responsible for a handful of major acquisitions, including the additions of DeBartolo Realty Corporation, Corporate Property Investors, Chelsea Property Group, the Mills Corporation and Taubman Centers.

At the time of his death, his company counted ownership or interests in more than 250 properties across the world, spanning more than 200 million square feet. The Simon Malls and Simon Premium Outlets are branded properties known worldwide and the company is the largest controller of retail space in the world, according to the Wall Street Journal.

In the fourth quarter, the Indianapolis-based real estate investment trust posted real estate funds from operations of $1.328 billion. More than 1,300 leases were signed during the final months of the year.

Simon also served on the board of Apollo Global Management and was the chair of the supervisory board of Paris-based retail company Klépierre before he recently stepped down. His family’s net worth was estimated at $11.6 billion in 2024, according to Forbes.

Simon is survived by his wife, Jackie, five children and seven grandchildren.