Simon Property Group Appoints New Management Team at Roosevelt Field

Simon Property Group, a leading global retail real estate company, has appointed two of its veteran Long Island professionals to lead the management team at Roosevelt Field, the region’s most popular shopping destination. 

Deborah Weber of Freeport has been named general manager, and Nancy Gilbert of Wantagh will serve as director of marketing and business development.

“We are thrilled to welcome Deborah Weber and Nancy Gilbert into their new positions at Roosevelt Field,” said Robert T. Guerra, regional vice president for Simon Property Group’s Northeast region.  “Their proven track record for excellence and commanding work ethics will serve them well as they lead the team of Simon’s most premier center in the region.  It is an exciting time for Roosevelt Field and I look forward to the great contributions they will make for the property and Simon Property Group.”

Weber and Gilbert will bring their wealth of experience, 25 years combined with Simon Property Group, to their positions at Roosevelt Field, which is currently in the beginning stages of an expansion and renovation of the property that will add a new Dining District (opening January 2015) and Long Island’s first Neiman Marcus store (opening February 2016).

Previously, they served in similar roles at Simon’s Walt Whitman Shops in Huntington Station, which last year completed an elegant and upscale renovation and redevelopment of the center. Weber quarterbacked the two-year effort which added 70,000 square-feet of signature stores and restaurants, while Gilbert spearheaded a marketing program and grand re-opening that celebrated the center’s dynamic mix of upscale merchants and further solidified its place as a desirable location for consumers and advertisers alike.

A native of Garden City, Weber began her career with Simon Property Group in 1998, where she managed and supervised the 1998 expansion of Walt Whitman Shops, which added Saks Fifth Avenue and Lord & Taylor. Prior to joining Simon, Weber spent 25 years with Bloomingdale’s, holding positions in human resources, operations, administration, public relations and marketing.  In her new post at Roosevelt Field, Weber will be an instrumental leader on the center’s expansion and renovation that will introduce a new Dining District and Neiman Marcus store.  She will also oversee the property’s operations, security, marketing and budget functions as well as maintain positive retailer to landlord relations in an effort to further advance the initiatives of the center.     

Weber has been a driving force in the support of The Simon Youth Foundation, a national, not for profit organization dedicated to the education of at-risk youth, creating a regional program that raises one million dollars annually. She has served her community as a member of the Board of Education for Freeport Public Schools, Village of Freeport Commissioner of Parks and Recreation, on the Mayor’s Task Force on Drugs, member of the LI Arts Council and ABLI, and dedicated lobbyist for NY State Aid to Education. She received the Walt Whitman Birthplace Award in 2013 and was named Woman of the Year 2002 by Soroptimist, a global volunteer organization working to improve the lives of women and girls.

A graduate of State University of New York at Cortland, Weber and her husband Chris have two children and live in Freeport.

A member of the Simon Property Group team since 2005, Gilbert spent the past several years at Walt Whitman Shops, where she developed and executed strategic sales and marketing plans, with special emphasis on community-based events. Prior to joining Simon, Gilbert held a regional role for a property developer where she reviewed marketing budgets and plans and oversaw event promotions, sponsorships and advertising.  She also held similar positions with mall shopping centers in Hicksville and Brooklyn.

In her new role, she will draw on her extensive corporate marketing and retail management experience in the Long Island marketplace to position and promote Roosevelt Field as one of the company’s premier, shopping destinations with consumers, sponsors and advertisers and further advance the mall’s image as an ideal venue for the local community. Her day-to-day responsibilities will include managing mall communication initiatives and overseeing advertising, sales, marketing programs and public relations.  Among her key goals will be to implement marketing programs and oversee public relations initiatives surrounding Roosevelt Field’s Dining District expansion and addition of Neiman Marcus.

Gilbert earned a bachelor of science degree from the State University of New York at Oneonta and is affiliated with the International Council of Shopping Centers, New York/New Jersey Council of Shopping Centers, Public Relations Professionals of Long Island, International Association of Business Communicators and several area chambers of commerce.

Gilbert and her husband Tim have two children and live in Wantagh.