Neil Mitchenall, the founding director of well known retail and leisure adviser Lunson Mitchenall, has died.
In a statement Lunson Mitchenall said: "It is with great sadness that Lunson Mitchenall announces that Neil Mitchenall, one of its founding directors, has passed away after a short battle with cancer. The LM team would like to share its deepest sympathies with Neil’s family and friends."
Mitchenall founded LM with David Lunson in 1980 and has been a key figure in the UK retail sector over the course of a 50-year career. He was a pioneer in the shopping centre development and leasing market, advising on over 40 major schemes and projects across the country totalling over 30 million square feet. His legacy can be seen at major destinations including Lakeside, The Bullring, Cribbs Causeway, White Rose, Cabot Circus and Braehead.
He was also at the forefront of innovative shopping centre design and leasing, including championing the introduction of turnover leases. He worked on numerous major international projects in locations including Beirut, India, Abu Dhabi and Buenos Aires. He travelled extensively to see best-in-class developments across the world and became chair of the International Council of Shopping Centers Awards Panel.
After standing down as chairman in 2010, he remained active in the market as a consultant to LM. Throughout his career, he held a number of industry positions and accolades including president of British Council of Shopping Centres and chairman of the Association of Town Centre Management. He also became a non-executive director of Evans of Leeds and Silverstone Holdings.
LM added: "His enthusiasm, passion and zest for life has energised LM for over four decades and its company culture is testament to his collaborative spirit and genuine love for what he did. Throughout his career Neil showed great respect to everyone he met and worked with, he was generous with his time and will be missed by all those who had the pleasure of dealing with him."
The esteem in which Mitchenall is held has been as tributes from leading retail advisers and investors have poured in on social media.
Nick Tribe, owner at Quidnet Capital, posted: "A true gentleman and what he didn’t know about retail wasn’t worth knowing."
Andrew Criss, a partner at Jackson Criss, wrote that "Neil set and raised the bar for anyone advising in the retail and shopping centre industry" while Mark Garmon-Jones, head of shopping centre investment and retail investment at Savills UK, described Mitchenall as a "retail great".