His relaxed manner is surprising, given the 'perfect storm' he's heading into: the presidency of the BCSC and a big new role at work have arrived both at the same time.

When he accepted an invitation to become junior vice-president of the BCSC three years ago, putting himself on the launch pad towards the presidency, he had no way of knowing that when his year in office arrived he would just be taking on new responsibilities in his business life.

For at the beginning of 2006 Cushman & Wakefield appointed Strachan as global head of retail. The move is part of a strategy of appointing champions for six distinct business areas. Two of the global heads are London-based, with another four in New York, where the business has its headquarters even though it is ultimately Japanese-owned.

But Strachan is nothing if not unflappable, and he looks to be juggling the two roles with aplomb.

Technically, being head of retail at one of the big three global brokerages makes Strachan one of the most powerful men in retail worldwide. In the UK alone he manages 100 professionals, with 400 in Europe and many times that worldwide.

Achieving a consistency of service across different locations with different business cultures is a challenge that all the global brokerage practices face, but Strachan believes that's what clients expect. "Retailers looking at new markets need research and they need transactional advice," he says. "Some, like Wal-Mart, always do it themselves. But more of our clients are looking for us to serve them right around the world."

He's under no illusions about the difficulties involved. "It took us 20 years to establish consistence across Europe," he says. "You need people, data, teams and above all experience."

But now Strachan's task is to create a global platform. "We've already got retail people in China and India," he says. And India clearly fascinates him. He points out there are 1 billion people with only 178 shopping centres. Only 1 per cent of total spend goes through organized retail. But all that is changing. "In India the rules on Foreign Direct Investment are changing and they're becoming more welcoming towards international brands," he says. "They're precisely the people we represent."

And there is still work to be done in the USA, where Cushman & Wakefield was not known for its retail expertise, prior to its acquisition of Healey & Baker. "They had a big appraisal business, but not brokerage," Strachan remembers. "They encouraged us to help develop a retail business in the US and now we have four brokerage teams in New York alone, and they're the best in the market. Our objective now is to replicate that in all the major markets."

Attention to Detail

Despite his global perspective Strachan's as happy talking about his own pitch -- London's West End -- as he is discussing the expansion strategies of multinational giants.

For instance he talks with evident fascination about the way the West End is evolving, illustrated by Abercrombie & Fitch's decision to take a store in an off-pitch location between Bond Street and Regent Street for its first UK store.

And this combination of a wider perspective and attention to detail looks likely to be reflected in his approach to the BCSC presidency.

Strachan says he doesn't want his year as president to be dominated by one single topic -- although partnership is high on his agenda -- but a number of themes are already emerging which he plans to bring together in time for the BCSC Conference in November and the annual dinner in December.

One key priority will be to broaden the BCSC's membership. Member numbers have grown rapidly to reach 1,750 but Strachan wants to reach out beyond the strict confines of the shopping centre sector.

"We need to convince the retailers' property people that we're relevant to their companies, and then get them to participate," he says. "At the moment they're about 50 out of 1,750. There should be at least 200."

The public sector -- at both central and local government levels -- is also a target. "As retail-led regeneration becomes one of the main things our industry does, the involvement of public sector people becomes crucial," he says.

And this is reflected in the appointment of Charlie Parker as conference chairman. "Although he's now moved on from Liverpool City Council into consultancy, he's wonderfully connected in central and local government," Strachan says.

Beyond this, the reach of BCSC could widen even further if Strachan has his way. "It's an old hobby horse of mine, but when I say 'shopping centre' I mean a place where people go shopping -- it could just as easily be the high street or a retail park," he says. "We want to reach out to more of the people involved in retail parks and extend our reach into all areas of shopping."

And he points out that the leading investors -- like British Land, Land Securities and Hammerson -- no longer draw a distinction between shopping centres and retail parks. "They are all involved in both," he says.

A new research programme

So how will Strachan measure the success of this expansion strategy for the BCSC? "We hope to take the membership over 2,000 and we'll be looking to top Belfast's 2,300 delegates when we take the conference to Manchester," he says.

Another focal point of Strachan's year in office will be a new research programme. This will take the form of a series of projects investigating specific areas of concern for shopping centre owners and operators from the power of brands over consumer behaviour to planning and lease law. The first strand is already under way: Strachan's Cushman & Wakefield colleague Yvonne Court is looking at the impact of e-commerce on mainstream retail.

"I'm more convinced than ever that, in the medium-to-long term, shopping centres are going to have to provide a better and more memorable experience," Strachan says. "Convenience will no longer be a sufficient reason to get people out to shop. The net will always be more convenient with more choice and keener prices."

"We need to create a place people like to be in: people will buy more online if they don't enjoy the shopping experience," he asserts. "Birmingham and Manchester have already done it, and Liverpool and Leeds will. They're edgy, exciting -- a great experience."

But he concedes: "Unfortunately you can't say that about many smaller centres and these are the places the industry's got to sort out."

This will be the focus of another BCSC research project. "We'll focus on the nuts and bolts of regeneration in small centres," he says. "And we'll ask why has it happened in some cases and not in others."

As an example he points to Boston, where Centros Miller developed a very successful centre despite the fact that rents are only around £50 Zone A. Yet he points out that there are plenty of towns with rents of £80 zone A where new development hasn't happened.

Strachan wonders if the reason isn't something that has so far eluded researchers. "We're going to have to look at the whole development process," he says. "Although we're a very closely researched market -- much more so than in Europe -- does the snapshot we have of demographics actually tell us enough?" he asks. "Is it dynamic enough to truly reflect consumer behaviour?"

This willingness to ask difficult questions characterises Strachan's approach, and he insists it will be reflected in the autumn conference. "The conference will be forward-looking," he says. "We want to attract speakers that can address retailing its widest sense.

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