John Bucksbaum (born 1957) is the founder and chairman of Bucksbaum Retail Properties, LLC. He was formerly chairman and chief executive officer of

GGP Inc. GGP Inc. (an initialism of General Growth Properties) was an American Commercial property, commercial real estate company and the second-largest shopping mall operator in the United States. It was founded by brothers Martin Bucksbaum, Martin, Ma ...

, which was a publicly traded real estate investment trust that invested in shopping centers.

Early life and education

Bucksbaum was born circa 1957. His father,

Matthew Bucksbaum Matthew Bucksbaum (February 20, 1926 – November 24, 2013) was an American businessman and philanthropist. Matthew and his brothers Martin and Maurice co-founded General Growth Properties (). Early life and education Bucksbaum was born to a Je ...

, and two uncles, Martin Bucksbaum and Maurice Bucksbaum, co-founded General Growth Properties, later known as GGP Inc. Bucksbaum graduated from the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private university, private research university in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1864, it is the oldest independent private university in the Mountain States, Rocky Mountain Region of the United States. It is ...

Career

Bucksbaum worked only for his father's company and started out sweeping the mall floors and cutting the grass as a kid. In 1999, Bucksbaum succeeded his father as the chairman and chief executive officer of GGP. He served as CEO until 2008, when he was asked to resign as the company was facing

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

. At that time, GGP owned 200 malls in 44 states. Bucksbaum remained chairman until 2010. In April 2012, Bucksbaum founded Bucksbaum Retail Properties, a real estate development company. By 2014, the company was developing 4 properties in Chicago, including New City. With Steiner + Associates, he developed Liberty Center, a mall in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Personal life

Bucksbaum is married to Jacolyn (Jackie) Bucksbaum. They reside in

Lincoln Park, Chicago Lincoln Park is a designated community area on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. Lying to the west of Lincoln Park, Chicago's largest park, it is one of the most affluent neighborhoods in Chicago. History In 1824, the United States ...

and have 2 sons. They founded the Jacolyn and John Bucksbaum Foundation, which focuses on early childhood development, Jewish education, sports, and arts and civic organizations in Aspen and Chicago. Bucksbaum is on the board of the

Field Museum The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educational ...

and the

Chicago International Film Festival The Chicago International Film Festival is an annual film festival held every fall. Founded in 1964 by Michael Kutza, it is the longest-running competitive film festival in North America. Its logo is a stark, black and white close up of the comp ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bucksbaum, John Living people 1957 births Businesspeople from Chicago University of Iowa alumni American real estate businesspeople American chief executives American chairpersons of corporations American company founders American philanthropists Bucksbaum family