Listen to Our BlogsAllies Commercial Realty Connects with Midwest CRE Leaders at SIOR and CCIM Events in Chicago
Last Updated: 1st September, 2026
Allies Commercial Realty recently joined commercial real estate professionals from across the Midwest in Chicago for two industry events focused on market knowledge, professional relationships, and collaboration. Adam Stephenson participated in the 2026 SIOR Great Lakes Region Networking Event, held August 17 through 19, followed by the CCIM Illinois Chapter’s Dealmakers on Deck Summer Boat Cruise on August 18. Together, the events provided an opportunity to exchange ideas with brokers, investors, developers, and other commercial real estate agencies working across markets throughout the region.
Connecting Across the Great Lakes Commercial Real Estate Community
Commercial real estate decisions are increasingly influenced by trends that extend beyond a single city or state. For a brokerage serving companies and property owners in Indiana, maintaining relationships with professionals in surrounding markets helps create a broader understanding of capital, leasing, investment, and development activity.
That made the SIOR Great Lakes Region Networking Event a valuable opportunity to connect with professionals from Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The three-day Chicago program brought together industrial and commercial real estate leaders for market discussions, education, and relationship building.
Programming included discussions on adaptive reuse, the evolution of office acquisition and leasing, current industrial acquisition and leasing strategies, and tax considerations affecting commercial real estate transactions. Attendees also participated in networking events throughout Chicago, including a behind-the-scenes visit to Soldier Field.
For Allies, participating in organizations such as SIOR provides an opportunity to maintain relationships beyond Central Indiana while learning how professionals in other markets are approaching changing property and capital market conditions.
Continuing the Conversation with CCIM Illinois
The Chicago visit continued with the Illinois CCIM Chapter’s Dealmakers on Deck: Summer Boat Cruise, held at DuSable Harbor on Lake Michigan.
The annual event brought members of the commercial real estate community together aboard the Anita Dee II for an evening of professional connections and conversation with the Chicago skyline in the background. The 2026 cruise also featured Dan Spiegel, SIOR, Head of Global Operations for Coldwell Banker Commercial, as an architectural guide.
Events like the CCIM boat cruise create a different setting for building professional relationships. Formal education and market analysis are important parts of CRE, but trusted relationships across companies and markets can also become valuable when clients need information, introductions, or expertise outside a broker’s immediate geography.
Thank You to Simon Enwia, CCIM
Allies Commercial Realty would especially like to thank Simon Enwia, CCIM, for inviting Adam & Claudia Stephenson to participate in the CCIM Illinois event and for helping strengthen the connection between commercial real estate professionals in Indiana and Chicago.
Simon is CEO and Designated Managing Broker of SENW and currently serves in leadership with the CCIM Illinois Chapter. In February 2026, the chapter announced Simon as its 2027 President-Elect, recognizing his continued involvement in education, mentorship, and industry leadership.
We appreciate Simon’s invitation and hospitality and look forward to continuing the relationship with him and the broader CCIM Illinois community.
Why Regional CRE Relationships Matter
Although Allies Commercial Realty is based in Indianapolis, our clients’ real estate decisions do not always stop at state lines. Companies expand into new markets, investors evaluate opportunities across multiple states, and property owners increasingly interact with capital and tenants from outside Indiana.
Maintaining relationships with professionals throughout the Midwest helps broaden the network of market knowledge and expertise available when those needs arise.
Participation in SIOR and CCIM events also gives the Allies team opportunities to hear how marketing professionals are approaching industrial, office, retail, investment, development, and transaction challenges. That perspective supports the consultative approach we bring back to our work with many Indianapolis businesses and property owners.
We appreciate the SIOR Great Lakes Region and CCIM Illinois Chapter for bringing the community together in Chicago, and we look forward to continuing the conversations and relationships developed during the trip.
These Relationships Are How We Work Deals in Any City
The connections built at events like these are what let us represent clients well
beyond Indianapolis. Through the SIOR and CCIM networks, we coordinate transactions
in all 50 states while you keep one point of contact here at home.
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