Comparison · 15 material differences
ICSC vs NVCA
This comparison was generated on request from the records. It carries no editorial verdict and is not indexed. The published comparisons are listed on the compare page.
Read down each column for one organization, across a row for the difference. A bronze mark at the left of a cell means the organizations differ on that row. A dash or “not published” means the organization does not disclose the fact; it is not a zero.
Verified September 2026
Professional association
Verified September 2026 ICSC
Owners, developers, managers, investors, brokers and marketers of shopping centres and other retail and mixed-use property, plus retailers, public officials and academics
Professional association
NVCA
Firms that invest venture-stage risk equity capital in the United States, plus the service providers who work with them
What the records say
- Maximum age at joining: ICSC: Next Generation membership: industry professionals under 40; NVCA: No published maximum age at joining.
- Minimum employees: ICSC: No published minimum employees; NVCA: At least one full-time employee (or full-time equivalent) dedicated to private equity investing.
- Geographic restriction: ICSC: No published geographic restriction; NVCA: Must be investing or planning to invest risk equity capital in the United States.
- Industry restriction: ICSC: Standard membership: companies and individuals who own, develop, manage or support marketplaces and spaces (excludes retailers and tenants); NVCA: No published industry restriction.
- Annual dues: ICSC: $300 a year; NVCA: $500–35,000 a year.
Side by side
| ICSC | NVCA | |
|---|---|---|
| Profile | ||
| Type | Professional association | Professional association |
| Founded | 1957 (ICSC's own account: "With a $500 payment and a handshake, seven enterprising professionals established ICSC in a downtown Chicago hotel in 1957.") | 1973 (Founding year of 1973 is reported by secondary reference sources; NVCA's own site does not state it on the pages checked) |
| Headquarters | New York, United States | Washington, United States |
| Geographic footprint | Global; ICSC runs regional divisions and works with national and regional shopping centre councils worldwide, and holds a Washington DC office alongside its New York headquarters | United States, with offices in Washington DC and San Francisco |
| Members | 70,000as of May 2026 | Could not be independently verified: NVCA publishes a full member directory but no headline count; secondary sources cite figures between 400 and 460 member firms without a clear date |
| Chapters | Not publicly disclosed as a single figure. ICSC organises by region and division rather than by named chapters, and Wikipedia reports relationships with more than 25 national and regional shopping centre councils. | Not publicly disclosed: NVCA has no chapter structure; it operates from two offices |
| Primary audience | Owners, developers, managers, investors, brokers and marketers of shopping centres and other retail and mixed-use property, plus retailers, public officials and academics | Firms that invest venture-stage risk equity capital in the United States, plus the service providers who work with them |
| Typical member | Membership spans the retail property chain: shopping centre owners, developers, managers, marketing specialists, investors, retailers and brokers, together with academics and public officials. ICSC's own pricing distinguishes companies and individuals who own, develop, manage or support marketplaces from retailers and tenants, who pay a lower rate. | Member organizations are venture partnerships, corporate venture groups, family offices, funds of funds and university or accelerator programmes that invest risk equity capital in the US. Membership is held by the firm rather than the individual. |
| Qualification | ||
| Maximum age at joining | Next Generation membership: industry professionals under 40A discounted category, not a barrier to joining.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published maximum age at joining |
| Minimum employees | No published minimum employees | At least one full-time employee (or full-time equivalent) dedicated to private equity investingverified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Geographic restriction | No published geographic restriction | Must be investing or planning to invest risk equity capital in the United StatesOpen to non-US firms that invest into the USverified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Industry restriction | Standard membership: companies and individuals who own, develop, manage or support marketplaces and spaces (excludes retailers and tenants)Retailers and tenants have their own lower-priced category.verified September 2026 · source ↗ | No published industry restriction |
| Invitation required | No | No |
| Sponsor required | No | No |
| Application process | Applicants join online through the ICSC membership pages, choosing a member type. Categories with reduced rates require documentary proof: government letterhead for public sector applicants, a university ID for academics, and a transcript, course list or registrar's letter for students. There is no sponsor, interview or committee stage in the published process. | A firm submits an application form at nvca.org/nvca-application-form/ or contacts the membership team. Eligibility is checked against the risk-capital and staffing tests, and dues are set from the firm's committed capital band. There is no published interview or sponsorship step. |
| Selectivity | Not publicly disclosed; the published route is open enrolment with eligibility set by the type of business the applicant is in. | Not publicly disclosed: NVCA states eligibility criteria but does not publish acceptance or rejection data |
| Cost | ||
| Annual dues | $300 a yearStandard membershipverified September 2026 · source ↗ | $500–35,000 a yearStandard VC fund category, banded by committed capital across funds closed in the past ten years: $500 at $5M; $1,000 for $5M–$9.9M; $2,000–$6,000 for $10M–$99.9M (plus $500 per additional $10M); $10,000–$17,500 for $100M–$499.9M (plus $2,500 per additional $100M); $22,500–$32,500 for $500M–$999.9M; $35,000 and above for $1B+ (plus $5,000 per additional $500M)verified September 2026 · source ↗ |
| Initiation fee | Not publicly disclosed; no joining fee is listed alongside the published dues.verified September 2026 | Not publicly disclosedverified September 2026 |
| Event costs | Not recorded here. ICSC's conferences are separately ticketed and are the main cost of participation, but rates vary by event and were not read for this record.verified September 2026 | Dues are firm-level and set from committed capital in funds closed over the previous ten years. |
| Membership term | Annual | Annual |
| Structure | ||
| Meeting frequency | A year-round conference programme including ICSC Las Vegas and ICSC New York, plus regional and state conferences | National events through the year, including the Strategic Operations and Policy Summit and the Leadership Awards Dinner; advisory committees meet separately |
| Peer forums | No confidential peer forum structure is published; participation is through events, divisions and committees | No peer-forum structure; members organise through advisory committees and policy working groups |
| Confidentiality | Not publicly disclosed | Could not be independently verified: no published confidentiality policy was found |
| Time commitment | Not documented | Not documented |
| Organized as | Event-focused, Chapter-based | Event-focused, Virtual |
| Confidential peer forums | No | No |
| Local chapters | Partial | No |
| Virtual membership | Partial | No |
| Online community | Partial | Partial |
| Member directory | Yes | Yes |
| Events | Yes | Yes |
| Programming | ||
| Educational programming | Yes | Partial |
| Leadership development | Partial | Partial |
| Retreats | No | No |
| Travel | No | No |
| Family programming | No | No |
| Spouse and partner programming | Not documented | No |
| Next-generation programming | Yes | No |
| Investment discussions | Yes | Partial |
| Investment opportunities | Partial | No |
| Philanthropic component | No | No |
| Networking emphasis | High | Medium |
| Social emphasis | Medium | Low |
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