'Windham is booming,' and new owners of a shopping center are responding

Rendering / Courtesy CWS Architecture The aesthetic upgrade on one building is 95% complete and planning will start on the second building’s aesthetic upgrade in the spring of 2026.

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By Laurie Schreiber

Tenants were quick to take leases at the North Windham Shopping Center, at 765 Roosevelt Trail in the Cumberland County town of Windham, after renovations and updates.

“A great success story; all spaces leased out fairly quickly,” said Juliana Tonini with EME Commercial Real Estate and the property’s leasing agent. “Windham is booming.”

The owners and landlords are brothers Mark Giguere and Eric Giguere, who self-financed the property purchase and renovations, which totaled $6.3 million.

“There is no question the region can and will support additional businesses,” the Gigueres wrote in an email interview with Mainebiz. “Build it and they will come.”

The town, which brands itself as “the gateway to the Sebago Lakes Region,” has been working on a number of improvement projects that include sewer system modernization, improvements to the Route 302 corridor, improved greenspace for outdoor recreational activities and increased pedestrian and bike access, which in turn have resulted in private investments such as new housing.

Market opportunity

The brothers are Westbrook natives. Eric has 20-plus years working in finance with Sappi and Fairchild Semiconductor. He became a Planet Fitness franchisee in 2007, purchasing his first location in Windham, followed by another in Biddeford. In 2016, he bought 759 Roosevelt Trail in North Windham to move his Planet Fitness franchise into the building. He sold the Planet Fitness franchises in 2023 to concentrate on commercial real estate ventures.

Mark has 13 years in the retail automobile business in Maine. He opened a reinsurance agency in 2010 focused in the automotive sector. In 2014 he expanded his reinsurance business by starting a second agency focusing on the credit union sector. He built the agencies territory’s spanning 14 states. Mark sold both businesses in 2021 to a New York private equity group.

Photo / Courtesy North Windham Shopping Center

Mark Giguere

The brothers bought 765 Roosevelt Trail in Windham in June 2023, attracted by the market opportunity.

“The Lakes Region is woefully underserved in retail shopping and restaurant commercial space,” they wrote. “The 60,000 people of the Lakes Region are forced to drive up to an hour to have their retail/entertainment needs met.”

Renovations

The two buildings represent 58,000 square feet of retail commercial space.

“Upon purchasing the plaza, we recognized nearly half of the available square footage would be turning over within 18 months,” they said.

They contracted with CWS Architects in Scarborough and Great Falls Construction in Gorham as the design and build team.

“Our goal from the outset was to modernize the two buildings,” they said. “With the building as visible as they are from route 302, we felt the buildings lacked a contemporary look that would drive people to the businesses within the plaza.”

Renovations included a new roof, removing dated overhangs that obstructed sight lines into the business, energy-efficient windows and doors to increase visibility, a new exterior façade, sidewalk trimming to help the flow of traffic and new HVAC units.

Photo / Courtesy North Windham Shopping Center

The goal from the outset was to modernize the two buildings, which “lacked a contemporary look that would drive people to the businesses within the plaza.”

The aesthetic upgrade on one building is 95% complete and planning will start on the second building’s aesthetic upgrade in the spring of 2026.

“As the renovation was underway the inquiries for space were nonstop,” the brothers wrote. “We filled the available units within 45 days of vacancy. It allowed us to pick and choose the business we felt had great synergies with the existing businesses in the plaza.”

The tenants are at various phases of their interior build-outs and the last opening date is expected in February.

Tenants

Two tenants — the U.S. Postal Service and Windham Jewelers — have been at the center for 40 years. Additional tenants at the time of the purchase included US Cellular, Miracle Ear, State Farm Insurance and more.

Recent additions include Cormier’s Dog House, serving Chicago hotdogs; Big Swing Golf with five golf simulators; Blended, with co-working spaces, conference rooms, private offices and a smoothie bar; the Maine Dance Center, a dance school relocating from Raymond; and Pinnacle Men’s Health.

Tenant attraction has been through word-of-mouth.

“We’re pretty visible in the community,” Eric said in a follow-up phone interview. “A lot of people knew me from being a Planet Fitness franchisee. So, a lot of word-of-mouth. One of the bigger spaces we just leased, it was a deal that happened on the golf course.”

Once tenant build-outs are completed, all of the spaces will be full, he said.

“We believe Windham’s future is bright,” the brothers said. “The infrastructure investments the town is making, to include town sewer and bypass roads, will continue to support a growing, vibrant center for commerce. We look forward to playing a role in that process, not only on this project but future projects as well.”

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