RISE Commercial District has won the 2026 Global Recognition Award for its innovative, tenant-focused approach to small-bay commercial spaces. Operating 14 campuses across the Midwest, the company delivers flexible, all-inclusive facilities, measurable growth, and community-oriented impact for over 1,500 businesses.
— RISE Commercial District, the Indianapolis-based operator of flexible commercial campuses across the Midwest, has been awarded the 2026 Global Recognition Award, recognizing its demonstrably effective approach to solving one of real estate’s most persistent structural problems: the shortage of right-sized, professionally managed premises for small and growing enterprises. The award, conferred by Global Recognition Awards, evaluated the company against criteria encompassing leadership, service, innovation, and mentoring, applying the Rasch model as a linear measurement framework to ensure consistent and objective comparisons across a diverse field of applicants.
The recognition places RISE Commercial District alongside organizations that have translated operational discipline into measurable community outcomes. Founded by Jim Sapp, the company has grown from a single repurposed lumberyard in Indianapolis into a 14-campus network covering Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Each campus serves organizations requiring between 200 and 3,000 square feet of warehouse, office, flex, or storage space, specifically targeting a segment of the market that falls between self-storage units and traditional industrial warehouses.
Growth Backed by Measurable Results
RISE Commercial District signed 638 leases totaling 533,774 square feet in 2024, and mature locations sustained occupancy levels of 94 to 96 percent, figures that exceed published standards for small-bay industrial and flex assets and reflect a structural undersupply in smaller units that continues to define the industrial sector into 2026. The company’s placement at number 1,455 on the 2025 Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in America, including number 7 in Indiana and number 35 in the real estate category, confirms that its framework has converted persistent demand into durable, multi-year expansion rather than short-lived gains.
The company’s expansion strategy integrates advanced customer relationship management automation with conversion-rate optimization and performance media. This approach has doubled the volume of qualified leads without a proportional increase in marketing expenditure. RISE Commercial District has also maintained a presence on the Indianapolis Business Journal Fast 25 list for five consecutive years, a record that demonstrates sustained high performance across multiple reporting periods rather than a single exceptional year. Under Jim Sapp’s leadership, new locations are selected based on occupancy and inquiry patterns drawn from existing facilities, with construction already underway for properties that will extend the current 14-campus network into additional Midwest markets.
Tenant-Centered Services and Broader Community Value
RISE Commercial District’s all-inclusive rental structure consolidates utilities, maintenance, cleaning, landscaping, IT services, and climate control into a single monthly charge, removing unpredictable costs and the administrative burden of managing multiple vendor relationships, particularly for enterprises entering leased premises for the first time. Campuses are equipped with turnkey build-outs, space-planning consultations, and drive-up access with overhead doors that ease the movement of goods and equipment, enabling tenants to configure units for light production, inventory storage, or office work and to adjust layouts as their needs evolve without facing costly relocations.
Beyond the physical facilities, Chief Revenue Officer Pat Rodgers hosts the Build Boldly podcast, which reaches audiences in 15 countries and delivers practical frameworks on workflow design, systems implementation, and scaling strategies with direct application for tenants and other emerging enterprises. Alongside regular webinars and hands-on consulting sessions, these initiatives have produced reported improvements in time-to-market, process reliability, and readiness for expansion. From its founding to the present day, RISE Commercial District has served more than 1,500 businesses, startups, local service providers, trades, and e-commerce operators, all of whom benefit from belonging to a campus where neighboring tenants share comparable development ambitions and exchange knowledge informally.
Final Words
The award outcome affirms what the company’s performance data has indicated across several consecutive years: that a disciplined, mission-focused operator can address structural inefficiencies in real estate while generating the kind of community-level impact that contributes to regional economic development. The Rasch model’s linear measurement framework ensured that RISE Commercial District’s aggregated scores across leadership, service, innovation, and mentoring were assessed on a single, objective scale, lending credibility to results that reflect replicable, durable practices rather than circumstantial gains.
“RISE Commercial District has shown world-class execution in changing how growing enterprises access critical infrastructure,” said Alex Sterling, spokesperson for Global Recognition Awards. “Its approach combines innovation, measurable community impact, and scalable systems that set new standards for the industry.” These remarks reflect a broader market reality: small-bay industrial and flexible units are expected to remain in high demand through 2026, as enterprises across the Midwest continue to prioritize adaptability, short-term commitment structures, and proximity to their customers.
About Global Recognition Awards
Global Recognition Awards is an international organization that recognizes outstanding companies and individuals who have significantly contributed to their industry.
Contact Info:
Name: Alexander Sterling
Email: Send Email
Organization: Global Recognition Awards
Website: https://globalrecognitionawards.org
Release ID: 89184018
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