Ms. Karen Corsaro This is Me

 Web References

1. 1. SiteStuff- Commercial property operations and management site

   www.sitestuff.com/Home/0,3026, - [Cached]

   Published on: 9/14/2000   Last Visited: 9/14/2000

   there be nothing that we do that be not directly driving FFO, said Karen Corsaro, co-chairman of Simon Brand Ventures (SBV). We have FFO burned into our minds, definitely. Launched last year by the mall giant Simon DeBartolo Group, SBV is an attempt to organize and centralize all the company's revenue-enhancing activities within a single strategic business unit. SBV's many experiments and prototypes include an attempt to aggregate the buying power of the company's merchant population to achieve discounts on goods and services ; a shopper-loyalty program that rewards customers for patronizing Simon malls ; a plan to equip malls with 3, 000-square-foot computer learning centers offering free instruction and mentoring in the use of the Internet and other technology ; and a joint-venture with VISA to develop point-of-sale technology and to underwrite a portion of the mall's advertising.

2. 2. DMX Press Release: SATELLITE-DELIVERED MULTIMEDIA TECHNOLOGY ENHANCES MALL SHOPPING EXPERIENCE

   www.dmxmusic.com/coinfo/press/ - [Cached]

   Published on: 1/18/1999   Last Visited: 12/31/2001

   "Our national alliance with MallNet by DMX has enabled Simon to provide our retail tenants with access to bundled music and communication services that serve to further enhance the shopping experience for their customers," said Karen Corsaro, president of Simon Brand Ventures, a strategic business initiative of Simon Property Group. "By offering MallNet services to our retail tenants, we offer them the ability to provide an entertaining atmosphere as well as added convenience for their customers."
   
   Simon Brand Ventures, the nation's largest mall developer, formed an alliance with DMX in June 1998. The alliance allowed MallNet by DMX to deliver bundled music and communication services to Simon retail tenants as well as to install its music services in the common areas of all Simon malls.
   
   In addition to Simon, MallNet has partnered with other leading mall developers to bring the latest multimedia offerings to retailers, paving the way for the future of traditional mall shopping.

3. 3. Develpoers Retool

   www.icsc.org/srch/sct/current/ - [Cached]

   Published on: 10/1/1998   Last Visited: 1/30/2001

   What Simon Brand Ventures is really all about is creating more value within our properties, and convenience is a big part of that, said Karen Corsaro, president of Simon Brand Ventures, adding that the company is looking at technology to take the concept one step further.
   
   It doesn't make sense that everything is represented in a physical store space, so we've tried to use technology as a means of broadening the basket of goods and services in our malls, she explained. If we can do that, we think the end result is that the customers can accomplish more in a single visit that they might otherwise be able to..
   
   Simon recently formed a strategic alliance with New York-based Cybersmith to roll out 3, 500-square-foot cafe-like meeting places equipped with an average of 40 computer workstations and interactive kiosks. The plan is to test three pilot locations, two of which will open late this year, before a possible national rollout sometime in 1999.
   
   We think this platform is going to give us a way to represent choices to the consumer that are difficult to represent in a physical space, she said, adding that customers will be able to customize their own CDs, or take part in a 15-minute orientation program on how to buy a car on the Internet.
   ...
   Initiatives like these might be viewed as a reaction to the looming threat of Internet shopping and the convenience it offers, but Ms. Corsaro said she believes that malls don't necessarily have to be left behind. As technology becomes more capable of being a true commerce medium, it's more than appropriate that it should be made available in the place where the largest amount of commerce is done today..
   
   Taken as a whole, it appears that today's developers have taken a 180-degree turn, and have finally made peace with the modern-day time crunch.
   
   Ideally, we all want the customer to spend the day and to be in every part of our malls, but today's customer doesn't necessarily have the time, Mr. Glimcher said. It's important that we recognize that.