Austin Firm Riverside Launches Retail Brokerage Division

Austin-based firm Riverside launched a new retail brokerage division.

The commercial real estate company formerly known as Riverside Resources tapped leasing agent Travis Robertson to lead the new division as Austin’s retail pipeline swells to meet sustained demand, the Austin Business Journal reported.

Founded in 1990, Riverside’s marquee projects include Sixth & Blanco, an ultra-luxury condo project in Austin’s Clarksville neighborhood. The company also developed the Downtown Austin office projects Centro as well as 3rd and Colorado.

The new division gives Riverside the ability to handle more deals internally and offer brokerage services itself. Riverside will continue to engage brokers from other firms for certain projects, the publication reported.

Robertson, who’s joining Riverside from JLL, has a client roster that includes electric auto maker Rivian and financial services company Charles Schwab. Over the course of his career, Robertson has closed more than 500 transactions totaling 2.4 million square feet, according to a Riverside press release.

Robertson’s career began at the Austin office of Dallas-based CRE firm Weitzman Group. He also worked at The Retail Connection as one of the firm’s first Central Texas brokers, according to the publication.

“Market forces” prompted the launch, a Riverside representative wrote. Due to underbuilding, Austin ended 2025 with the lowest retail vacancy rates in the Texas Triangle, according to a Weitzman report. Retail vacancy has remained below 3.5 percent for four consecutive years, the publication reported, and population growth is expected to keep demand for shopping space high.

In turn, Austin developers are expected to open about 1.5 million square feet of retail space by the end of this year, based on a Weitzman estimate of projects of at least 25,000 square feet. A CoStar report found that Austin’s retail construction pipeline, which includes more than 3 million square feet of space underway, ranks third nationally behind Dallas and Houston.

— Isaiah Mitchell