Gambling Man: Stan Thomas in Vegas

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CALVIN COOLIDGE SAID the business of America is business, and when the business of America wants to meet to do a lot of business, there’s only one place to go — Las Vegas. Its incessant ching-a-ling-ling provides the perfect backdrop to the International Conference of Shopping Centers, which gathers the world’s largest developers, financial institutions and myriad public agencies for the chance to meet up and get down to business.

The Las Vegas ICSC houses hundreds of companies that, to a great degree, power our $13 trillion economy. In the ICSC it’s common for people to say to someone they just met, “I need a $100 million bridge loan,” with nary a blink.

During the ICSC Stan Thomas moves from table to table, overseeing deals and projects, luring potential lessees to his buildings. The Thomas Enterprises booth is a freeway of people who constantly drop by to talk deals (“Mr. Thomas, these are the Marriott people.”) But it’s also the only way to have a chance to meet the man who might have as much to say about the way Sacramento looks in 25 years as did John Sutter in 1849.

“He basically works all the time,” says Bill Brown, a former VP under Thomas who has left to run his own firm, Forum Development, which does projects with Thomas Enterprises. “His way of relaxing or taking time off is to fly his jets.” There are three company jets and two helicopters, all used for business, so Thomas or his employees can be at any spot in the country in hours. After Las Vegas, Thomas flew to his cattle ranch outside Jackson, Wyo.

Development deals take time, with delicate relationships built bit by bit to gain trust. Barry DiRaimondo, president of Legacy Partners commercial real-estate firm, notes, “Talking to the press does no good. It can only hurt.” Thomas Enterprises prefers to let its work do the talking.

“First rate. A visionary.” Carlsbad City Manager Ray Pacette describes Thomas, adding “And I have never met him personally.” Thomas Enterprises turned a rundown parcel in that city into The Forum shops, which Pacette calls “a top-notch commercial center. I know because my wife and I go there every weekend. “It’s their standards of excellence,” Pacette continues. “They take on difficult challenges. They don’t appear to pursue the expedient at the expense or quality of the vision of the project. He’s not paying me a dime, but I know communities, and we’d love to have more Thomas projects in town.”

“There are three rules to the company,” says Thomas Enterprises’ COO Bruce Williams, as he lingers outside the Thomas Enterprises booth in Las Vegas. “No. 1 is that no one borrows a corporate jet without approval of the boss. No. 2 is that no one talks to the press.” The third? “No more Chinese restaurants.”

Fourth and Long

“I won’t hire anyone who hasn’t been beat up and put in the ditch,” Thomas says during an interview. “Because I know it’s going to get rough, and I want to know if you’re going to stay there and fight. That’s why we call ourselves ‘Fourth Quarter Properties.’ We will win the fourth quarter. We will crawl on our back to do it. We are not going to quit.”

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