Cushman & Wakefield Fetes John C. Cushman on 50th Anniversary

NEW YORK CITY—Cushman & Wakefield is honoring its co-chairman John C. Cushman III on his numerous accomplishments during his 50 years with the company.

The real estate veteran, who says that real estate was in his blood from an early age, has among his many accomplishments over the years the distinction of negotiating the largest office lease on record−the world headquarters of Merrill Lynch & Co. involving four million square feet (initial occupancy) at the World Financial Center in New York City.

His 50th anniversary with Cushman & Wakefield fell officially on Sunday, Sept. 1.

“John's leadership, experience and passion for real estate are monumental and widely acknowledged throughout the entire global real estate industry,” said Carlo Sant'Albano, executive chairman of Cushman & Wakefield. “Through his tireless work over the decades in both the business and non-profit arenas, John has left an indelible mark on the industry and his country. He embodies Cushman & Wakefield's entrepreneurial culture.”

In 1967, Cushman moved to Los Angeles to open C&W's office in Southern California. He and his twin brother, Louis B. Cushman, started their own firm in 1978, Cushman Realty Corp. That firm grew from two offices to operations in 11 US cities. In 2001 Cushman Realty merged with C&W, which was founded in 1917 by John Cushman's grandfather, J. Clydesdale Cushman, and Bernard Wakefield (John Cushman's great uncle).

“Needless to say, real estate was in my blood and the topic of much dinner time conversation while growing up,” Cushman says. “I learned in college that the harder you work, the luckier you get. This age old principle inspired me to climb a lot of stairs while canvassing Manhattan skyscrapers in the 1960s… and it has inspired me ever since in helping to build Cushman & Wakefield's globally recognized brand which in my opinion is second to none.”

In addition to his board of directors responsibilities, Cushman continues to remain personally engaged in significant transactions in major markets worldwide, company officials say. Cushman also serves on the board of directors for Callaway Golf Company and iCRETE LLC (co-chairman). He also is chairman and director of Zaca Mesa Winery in Santa Barbara County, CA. In total, he has served on the boards of 14 public corporations.

Cushman recently completed a two-year term as national president of the Boy Scouts of America and president of the Boy Scouts of America Foundation. He currently serves as a member of the Boy Scout's National Executive Board. In 2004, he was appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the California Commission on Jobs and Economic Growth, and later was appointed to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's Los Angeles Economy and Jobs Committee.

He was a director of the National Park Foundation for six years. He also served as a director of the Real Estate Roundtable, and is currently a trustee of the Urban Land Institute. He also serves as Trustee Emeritus of Colgate University, an honorary member of the Board of Fellows of Claremont University Center. He formerly was a director of the Claremont Graduate School, a member of the Colorado University Boulder College of Business Advisory Board, and a member of the Advisory Council of the University of Southern California LUSK Center for Real Estate. In May 2008 he received an honorary doctorate degree from Colgate University.

“I've always believed that the cornerstone of any business career is about giving back to the community. At Cushman & Wakefield, I've been very fortunate to find passion on both the business and volunteer side of life and this has been the ultimate reward for me,” Cushman says.