North Texas Developer Expands into Austin

By Cody Baird, Austin Business Journal, December 7, 2022

M2G Ventures Has Handled Large-Scale Redevelopments in Dallas, Fort Worth

Austin and the wider Central Texas region remain attractive destinations for real estate developers.

M2G Ventures LLC, a women-owned real estate investment and development company based in Fort Worth, is expanding into Austin, according to a Dec. 6 announcement.

The company has named Brett Zimmerman as principal of the new office. He said M2G’s acquisition strategy in Austin will be based around industrial and mixed-use assets.

“Brett’s strategic hiring expands M2G Ventures to the Austin and Central Texas markets where he will manage all investment activities including sourcing, structuring, and capitalizing new opportunities,” stated Jessica Miller Essl, co-founder of M2G. “Combining the creation of a local team while also sharing the M2G culture is important to us as we actively seek opportunities for the acquisition and development of industrial and mixed-use assets that positively impact the community and stakeholders.”

M2G is still on the lookout for office space in Austin to support its growing team, said Zimmerman, who previously worked for Pennybacker Capital.

M2G currently has 22 total “core” team members, executives said, and is looking to hire strategically in Austin.

Founded in 2014, M2G has doubled the size of its overall team and tripled its leadership team in the past two years, with more than a half-dozen executive-level positions overseeing the Dallas-Forth Worth and Austin markets.

M2G already has some connections to the Austin area. It partnered with Austin-based Pennybacker to redevelop 250,000 square feet of 1960s-era warehouses in Dallas into Proto Park. The warehouses at Proto Park were redeveloped as showroom space for users needing less than 50,000 square feet and is now 81% leased, according to the announcement.

Past M2G developments include Fort Worth’s 645,000-square-foot North Quarter 35, a ground-up, four-building development totaling 645,000 square feet that is entirely leased as of Q3, according to the announcement. The company also redeveloped six acres of mid-century warehouses in Fort Worth into The Foundry District, a 98,000-square-foot mixed-use development with food and beverage tenants, offices and the largest outdoor art gallery in Texas.