Our Team
At The Niki Group, we believe that the dedication and integrity of our team is the foundation for creating value and achieving long-term success. In our pursuit of excellence, The Niki Group remains committed to employee development, engagement and promoting from within.
Executive Team
David Trakman
CEO
David is responsible for directing Niki Group’s business, portfolio management, acquisitions and overall growth. David’s legal background and tireless detailed involvement are essential to the executive team’s cumulative ability to make good informed decisions, move quickly, and ensure successful closings. David undertakes a very hands-on approach to projects and sees through many transactions, if beneficial. In his career, David has overseen in excess of $3 billion of transactions. David’s strong work ethic, coupled with his value of fairness, have been the foundation of his approach to all his relationships. David obtained his law and commerce degrees in 1994 and then worked as an attorney for a medium size law firm before immigrating to the U.S. in 1999.
Genevieve Hedrick
President and COO
As President and COO, Genevieve oversees all aspects of Niki Group’s operations including transactions, portfolio management, strategic planning, human resources, and executing on the company’s strategy. She has been with Niki Group for over 20 years, assumed the role of COO in 2015, and in 2021, assumed the additional role as President. She has personally closed in excess of $2.5 billion in transactions and her attention to detail and transactional knowledge ensure execution. Genevieve holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Management with a specialization in Accounting. Genevieve is a results-oriented and pragmatic team leader, adept at implementing solutions that are scalable for the company’s continued growth.
Kirk Ehrhart
CFO
Kirk Ehrhart received his Bachelor of Accountancy and certificate in Real Estate Finance, Investments, and Development from the University of San Diego. Kirk acquired his CPA designation in 2014 and began his accounting career performing tax accounting for a top 10 public accounting company. Prior to joining Niki Group in 2017, Kirk’s last position was at a non-profit performing key accounting and finance responsibilities for reporting to 2,000+ current and prospective donors.
Brian Pidgeon
Principal and Executive Chairman
Brian has been indirectly involved with Niki Group since 2013 and has been an active investor in the financial and real estate markets for over 25 years. Brian joined the Niki Group to grow the company and its investor network. Brian’s knowledge, perspective and experience compliments David and Genevieve’s prowess on real estate and business decisions. Brian started his career as a CPA at Kenneth Leventhal & Company before joining his father in business to build Fashion Furniture Rental. Fashion grew to be California’s premier furniture rental company, with over 100 employees and annual revenues in excess of $25 million. Brian graduated Magna Cum Laude from Yale University where he received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics and received a Masters in Professional Accounting from the University of Texas, Austin.
Operations Team
Melody Hindoyan
Project Administrator
Melody supports construction and leasing operations, coordinates project timelines and communication across teams. She works closely with Cory and Emma on development and leasing efforts, helping track progress, documentation and ensuring smooth execution. Before joining The Niki Group, Melody worked in property and facilities management for both residential and commercial portfolios. She earned her Bachelor of Science in International Business from the University of California, San Diego.
Monica Border
Property Administrator
Monica handles most aspects of property management of the directly owned properties in the portfolio. Monica works closely with Courtney as they coordinate with tenants and vendors to ensure that our properties are managed extremely well. Before joining The Niki Group, Monica worked in the high-tech industry overseeing materials procurement and production planning. Monica graduated with a liberal arts degree from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Krista Castberg
Director of Operations
Krista manages securing loans for new property acquisitions as well as extensions and modifications for existing properties. She works closely with Genevieve to evaluate specific needs for each property based on current and future strategic plans. Prior to joining The Niki Group, Krista spent sixteen years working in accounting at Hocking International Laboratories.
Alyson Crutchfield
In-House Counsel
Alyson works directly with Matthew on acquisitions and leasing. Alyson also assists in all areas of compliance, documentation of investments, and other transactions. Alyson received her Juris Doctor from the University of San Diego School of Law in 2021 and is a member of the California State Bar. Before joining The Niki Group, Alyson served as a law clerk at the Energy Policy Initiatives Clinic and as a judicial extern to the Honorable Judge Karen Crawford of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.
Lindsey Gillis
Administrative Assistant
Lindsey assists David and Genevieve with their duties and takes care of multiple facets of our group management. Prior to joining The Niki Group, Lindsey worked as a legal assistant for a residential property law firm. Lindsey obtained her Bachelors of Science in Criminal Justice as well as her Master of Legal Studies from Arizona State University.
Cory Goodman
Vice President
Cory oversees construction for new developments and existing properties, managing budgets, schedules, and value-add initiatives. He brings nearly a decade of real estate and construction experience from his time at FBM and his tenure at Rite Aid, where he held multiple leadership roles. Cory holds an MBA in Finance from Pepperdine University and dual bachelor’s degrees in Civil Engineering and Architecture from Lehigh University.
Jennifer Hale
Lease Administration Manager
Jennifer manages all aspects of insurance for TNG portfolio providing risk mitigation services to promote the financial protection of all assets. This includes managing compliance of the ownership insurance obligations and well as the Tenant insurance responsibilities including, but not limited to, liability, property, builder’s risk and flood coverage types.
Raymond Payne
Acquisitions & Project Manager
Ray reviews and performs due diligence on potential acquisitions, assists with shopping center optimization and leasing, and manages select single tenant development projects. Ray is an attorney with a background in the drug store and supermarket industry. He was formerly the Group VP of Real Estate for Rite Aid.
Sarah Tomerlin
Transaction Manager
Sarah manages property dispositions and assists with 1031 exchanges. She works closely with Genevieve to ensure well-executed transactions and management of internal investment strategies. Before joining The Niki Group, Sarah graduated from Claremont Graduate University with a master’s degree in Islamic Studies and Trinity University with degrees in Religion, and Sociology.
Emma Wright
Asset Manager
Emma is actively involved and assists in negotiations and the execution of value-add and ground-up development project initiatives. Emma also manages leasing efforts across the portfolio and in this regard works closely with David, Genevieve and Ray. Prior to joining The Niki Group, Emma was a Business Manager for an Interior Design Firm where she gained experience in project and team management.
Accounting Team
Andrew Bagsic
Equity Controller
Andrew serves as the Equity Controller, overseeing equity accounting and financial reporting functions. He works closely with Kirk Ehrhart to support the firm’s investment structures and partnership allocations. Before joining The Niki Group, Andrew was a Tax Manager at KPMG, where he advised public and private real estate clients on complex tax and partnership matters.
John Hall
Tax Accountant
John manages and coordinates the federal and state tax filing obligations for all entities under the Niki umbrella. Additionally, John supports operations in 1031 exchange planning and ensures proper compliance and reporting. John also works closely with Kirk in investor tax reporting, overall tax planning and tax research. Prior to The Niki Group, John worked for a boutique real estate CPA firm where he prepared partnership, trust and high net worth individual returns. John holds a Master of Science in Taxation from Golden Gate University and is currently sitting for the CPA exams.
Steven Hanenburg
Accounts Payable Specialist
Steven manages accounts payable and assists Courtney in overseeing the company’s expenses. Additionally, he works with the accounting department to complete monthly bank reconciliations and ensure cash accuracy. Steven has a background in public accounting as an Audit Associate and graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration: Financial Services.
Heather Ihara
AR Specialist
Heather oversees Accounts Receivable and works closely with Courtney to ensure accurate billing. Heather’s main focus and priority is managing and policing with Aly and Gena (when needed) our rent collections. Prior to joining The Niki Group, Heather worked as an accountant at a law firm performing all accounts payable, accounts receivable records and payroll duties.
Courtney Laturno
Property Controller
Courtney oversees Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, and Property Accounting while also handling all CAM Accounting for the portfolio and working closely with Kirk. Before joining The Niki Group, Courtney worked in accounting in the healthcare industry and earned a degree in Finance at California State University, Fullerton.
Charbel Mouannes
Internal Auditor
Charbel manages the audit for the accounting team. Working closely with Kirk, he also assists with financial reporting, investor reporting and ad hoc tasks as they come up. Before joining Niki Group, he was an associate accountant at SANDAG, and prior to that was a senior auditor at BPM LLP, a public accounting company.
Kaydee Robison
Accountant
Kaydee assists with investor contributions, financial reviews, and joint venture distributions. She works with Kirk to ensure efficient operations and accurate recording of contributions. Before joining The Niki Group, Kaydee worked for a property management company and holds a degree in economics from the University of California, San Diego.