About

Louis B. Cushman is Vice Chair of Cushman & Wakefield, Inc., the third the largest commercial real estate services firm in the world, with approximately 52,000 employees in 416 offices (246 in the Americas, 110 in EMEA and 60 in APAC) in more than 60 countries on six continents.

Cushman & Wakefield was founded in New York City in 1917 by the late J. Clydesdale Cushman and the late Bernard Wakefield, Mr. Cushman's grandfather and great uncle, respectively, who married sisters.

During his 59-year career in commercial real estate, Mr. Cushman has been involved in: major office leases; build-to-suits; land purchases, assemblages and sales; building sales and acquisitions; surplus property/space dispositions; and strategic planning and consulting assignments throughout the United States and internationally.  His specialty is office leasing, more specifically representing tenants.

Mr. Cushman began his real estate career in New York City in 1965 with his father (who was Executive Vice President of Cushman & Wakefield before leaving in 1964 to start his own firm) at J.C. Cushman, Inc.  He joined Cushman & Wakefield as Vice President in New York City in 1967, working out of its Wall Street office, and relocated from New York in 1971 to open and head up its office in Houston.

With his twin brother, John C. Cushman, III, Mr. Cushman left Cushman & Wakefield in 1978 to co-found Cushman Realty Corporation as Chairman of the Board, a privately-held commercial real estate brokerage.  Cushman Realty had a total of 197 employees, 93 of them brokers, in 11 offices across the U.S. prior to merging with Cushman & Wakefield in 2001.

In 2015, Cushman & Wakefield was acquired by DTZ, later renamed Cushman & Wakefield, with the headquarters subsequently relocated from New York City to Chicago.  Mr. Cushman served on the Board of Directors and the Global Advisory Board of Cushman & Wakefield, Inc.

Mr. Cushman is a graduate of Amherst College, Amherst, MA, with a BA degree in economics, 1959-1963, as well as the University of Michigan, with an MBA degree, specializing in Finance, Real Estate and Marketing, 1963-1965.

A 13th generation Mayflower descendant, Mr. Cushman is married, has two children and two grandchildren, and resides in Houston, Texas.

Affiliations

• Founding member and first President (1983-1984) of the Houston Office Leasing Brokers Association (HOLBA), 1983 to present.
• One of only 66 office leasing brokers nationwide installed as a charter member (Active Office) of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SOIR), 1986 to present. 
• In a 50/50 joint venture with The Orvis Company, served as founding Chairman of the Board of Orvis/Cushman & Wakefield Ranch and Recreational Properties, LLC, based in Colorado Springs, CO, an international brokerage in the marketing and sale of investment-quality ranch and recreational properties, with an emphasis on land use conservation and stewardship, 2005-2010.
• Board of Directors of Green Bank, N.A. (formerly Redstone Bank, N.A., now Veritex Community Bank) in Houston, 2007-2010.
• Former owner, along with John Cushman, of Cushman Winery Corporation (Zaca Mesa Winery) in Santa Barbara County, California, 1988-2020; sold ownership position in 2020.

Community Involvement

Current and previous community involvement includes:

• Alley Theatre – Executive Committee; Board of Directors; Vice President, Facilities; “Staging the Future” Campaign Steering Committee.
• Boy Scouts of America, Sam Houston Area Council – Board of Directors; Advisory Board; Eagle Scout.
• Houston Economic Development Council Inc. – Chairman and Co-Chairman, Fund Drive, Commercial Real Estate Brokerage Division.
• Houston Methodist Hospital Foundation – Lifetime Cornerstone Member of the Society for Leading Medicine; President’s Leadership Council; Immunology Council.
• Institute of International Education – Southern Regional Advisory Board for 25 years; Chairman of the Board; and member of the national Board of Trustees, of which presently an Honorary Trustee.
• The Menil Foundation – Menil Council; Finance Committee; and Real Estate Committee.
• The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston – Three 3-year terms on the Board of Trustees; Executive Committee; Chairman of the Building & Grounds Committee; Prints and Drawings Subcommittee; 20th Century Committee.

Awards & Recognition

• Honored in 2005 by the Houston Association of Realtors Commercial Division and the Houston Business Journal as one of four inaugural inductees into the “Heavy Hitters Hall of Fame”, recognizing “exemplary individuals who have had a lasting impact on the Houston commercial real estate community and role models who have helped shape the future of the profession”.
• #1 producing office broker worldwide at Cushman & Wakefield, 2007.
• “Office Broker of the Year” – Houston Chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Parks (NAIOP), 2007.
• "Hall of Fame," NAIOP, 2020.
• Landmark Lifetime Achievement Award, Houston Business Journal, 2022. 

Assignments