Marcus Corp Moving Headquarters
Company finds new home four blocks north, next to one of its hotels.
Marcus Corp’s Saint Kate The Arts Hotel and the Associated Bank River Center. 2019 file photo by Jeramey Jannene.
The Marcus Corp. is on the move. The company is relocating its corporate headquarters to the Associated Bank River Center tower at 111 E. Kilbourn Ave.
The company will lease 52,000 square feet of space in the 28-story tower. Approximately 200 employees will be based at the office.
“For more than 70 years, The Marcus Corporation has called downtown Milwaukee home,” said CEO Greg Marcus in a statement. “Through our businesses, our philanthropy, our community service, and our workplace, we remain deeply committed to contributing to the vibrancy of our hometown. We like to say we are in the ‘people getting together’ business. I’m thrilled our new offices will do just that for our associates as we work to build great careers and make a difference for those we serve.”
Marcus was expected to move following the outcome of a foreclosure suit against the prior owner of its current home, the 35-story 100 East tower. Alongside Gruber Law Offices, the company is one of the last remaining tenants in the mostly-vacant building. In late August, a partnership of developers Johnny Vassallo, Joe Klein and Klein Development purchased the building with plans to redevelop the tower into approximately 350 apartments.
The move sees the Marcus company moving four blocks north, from the corner of N. Water Street and E. Wisconsin Avenue to E. Kilbourn Avenue and N. Water Street.
Marcus reports owning 79 movie theaters in 17 states and 15 hotels in eight states. One of those hotels, the Saint Kate The Arts Hotel, is directly connected to the company’s new home. It’s also across the street from the Marcus Performing Arts Center, which the Marcus family has long sponsored.
Associated Bank acquired the 370,000-square-foot River Center, then the Milwaukee Center, in 2016 for $60.5 million and set out on a multi-million dollar rehabilitation that saw the bank finish relocating its employees to the building in 2022. It opened new restaurants and a bar in the common spaces earlier this year.
“After six years of thoughtful renovation and investment, the Associated Bank River Center today brings together leading Milwaukee arts, finance, business, cuisine and tourism communities under one roof,” said Associated president and CEO Andy Harmening. “Like The Marcus Corporation, we have been doing business in Milwaukee for decades, and we are continuing to deepen our investment in this city… With the River Center, we wanted to provide a gathering space that intersects work, play and stay for locals and visitors alike in the heart of downtown. As a result, we’re delighted to welcome The Marcus Corporation and its employees to our world-class facility.”
Eppstein Uhen Architects is leading the design of the new office. RINKA has worked with Associated Bank on the redesign of the office tower.
CBRE served as an advisor to Marcus on the lease. Colliers International represented Associated.
Marcus once planned to move even further north on N. Water Street, building a mixed-use complex that would have housed its headquarters, a movie theater complex and other components. But the company formally scrapped the long dormant plan in March, listing the riverfront site for sale for $7 million.
The publicly-traded company, with a market capitalization of approximately $480 million, reports 3,400 Wisconsin employees and 7,800 across the country.
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