Jason Baxter Promoted to CEO

Dear Fort Community,

I am thrilled to announce that I’ve transitioned my role as CEO to my partner of 7 years, Jason Baxter, who has served as our President & COO for the last 3 years. I will now serve Fort as Founder & Executive Chairman, which is in line with the responsibilities that I currently perform. This will allow me to have the greatest impact on our team, investors, partners, and all stakeholders.

Behind the scenes, we’ve been working on this transition plan for over two years. We’ve talked to exceptional businesspeople who are vested in Fort’s success on how best to create a transition that provides clarity to everyone involved. The goal is for Jason and me to both be able to play to our strengths and that’s what this transition allows us to do. Jason and I have been operating in our current roles for the last 18 months—we just haven’t changed titles to match them until now.

So, nothing is changing.

It’s important for me to reiterate that there would be no Fort, as we know it today, if Jason were not here. Period. Jason has been the steady hand that has led our team to executing on some of our largest initiatives. He has also been behind some of the biggest, strategic needle-movers over the last several years. Jason shows up every day to serve our team and grow this business. He has dedicated seven years of his life to this business and is just as invested (both personally and financially) in the success of this company.

My entire life’s work in business has been dedicated to Fort. It’s been 17 years since I purchased my first rental property, and I love this company with my entire being. In my role as Executive Chairman, I will continue to work on growing our business and relationships. I will also always be thinking about how to best invest our and our LP’s dollars. As we sit today, we’re executing like never before on a thesis we are deeply convicted in—Class B Industrial & Flex Properties in Texas. We will continue to acquire great industrial real estate and operate it with excellence so that we can provide exceptional returns to our investors and stakeholders.

Fort has never been in a better position than it is today, and I believe that this transition makes us even stronger as we move forward. My ownership and accountability to Fort remains unchanged. Our first 17 years have been incredible, and we’re only getting started.

All my best,

Chris Powers
Founder & Executive Chairman