Doug Burt Joins 29th Street Capital as VP of Multifamily Acquisitions in Central Texas

Doug Burt

Houston, TX (July 31, 2017) – Doug Burt has joined 29th Street Capital (29SC) as Vice President of Multifamily Acquisitions for Houston and Central Texas.

Burt is responsible for all facets of the privately-held real estate investment and advisory firm’s multifamily acquisitions and asset management strategies in this region.

 He will target opportunistic and value-add acquisitions in the market with the goal of expanding the company’s presence in the region and add to the existing portfolio, which consists of seven assets and over 2,000 units.

“We are extremely pleased to have Doug join our acquisition team,” said 29th Street Capital Senior Vice President Javier Bustillo. “He has an established track record of success in Texas and will play a key role in our company’s continuing expansion.”

“I’m excited to be joining an extremely well-capitalized, yet still very entrepreneurial company like 29th Street Capital,” Burt said. “I’m looking forward to growing the company’s portfolio throughout the Texas markets.”

Javier Bustillo

Prior to joining 29th Street Capital, Burt spent the past three years at Tarantino Properties where he helped lead the multifamily acquisition and brokerage departments. 

His responsibilities included underwriting, sourcing investment opportunities, negotiations and new business development. 

Having conducted sales and acquisitions of value-add multifamily properties throughout the state of Texas, Burt has a proven record in all aspects of multifamily real estate investments. 

He possesses a strong understanding of multifamily financial analysis, market conditions and investment principles. Burt earned his BBA in Real Estate at the University of North Texas.

In addition to sourcing and completing acquisitions, his responsibilities at 29SC include complete oversight of projects; selecting third-party management; and overseeing all capital projects, marketing/design and dispositions.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Terri Thornton

Partner, Thornton Communications

Phone: 404-932-4347

Email: Terri@TerriThornton.com 

Florida Retail Partners Negotiates Deal to Bring Bento Café to Downtown St. Petersburg, FL

 

Sandia Wasserman

ST. PETERSBURG, FL -- With much anticipation, Bento Asian Kitchen + Sushi, a quick-casual pan-Asian restaurant with 9 locations throughout Florida, will officially introduce its concept to downtown St. Petersburg.

Florida Retail Partners, an X Team partner, represented Bento in the 2,710 square foot deal with Joshua Sims of Vector Realty representing the landlord. The location is set to open at 330 Third Street South – in the base of the AER apartment building near the University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus. 

The Downtown St. Pete location will be the 11th restaurant for Bento Café.  “Bento and downtown St. Pete are a great match, said Sandia Wasserman of Florida Retail Partner who negotiated the deal. It’s already one of my favorite lunch stops in Gainesville.” Bento currently has restaurants in Gainesville, Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Orlando, as well as South Florida. 

Johnny Tung

“We’ve been eyeing the Tampa Bay market for a few years now,” Bento Group owner Johnny Tung said. “Specifically, the downtown development boom in St. Petersburg has been amazing to watch.

“The growing business district, residential condo boom, nearby USF St. Petersburg campus, and the notable hospitals make the area a thriving market.  Bento Café will be a great addition to downtown St. Pete with affordable grab and go lunch and dinner options. We’re also looking at locations in South Tampa and USF Tampa next.”

Bento Café, which plans to open in the spring of 2018, will feature 80 seats along with outdoor sidewalk tables. A few things that have gained Bento a loyal following, and prompted further expansion include:

A vast, customizable menu including bento boxes, noodles and sushi

Quick, casual service to cater to the constantly-growing "on-the-go" population

A sleek, contemporary atmosphere modeled after popular cafes found in urban Taiwan and Japan.

Affordable prices with most dishes in the $7-$10 range, Catering offered.

Bento Asian Kitchen + Sushi is an Orlando-based quick-service restaurant serving pan-Asian cuisine. 

Its menu includes sushi, rice and noodle bowls, bento boxes, and teas.  Founded in 2002, Bento has plans of continued growth with several locations across Florida, and a team of over 400 individuals.

 X Team partner Florida Retail Partners was founded in 1997. Its Florida Retail Real Estate Specialists all have over twenty years of experience.  

The company’s focus has always been on retail tenant and landlord representation on Florida’s West Coast and Central Florida. This exclusive focus on retail includes diverse assignments ranging from tenant representation, land sales and consulting to leasing of both distressed properties in need of turnaround and upscale mixed-use projects with very specific co-tenancy parameters.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Johnny Tung, Bento Cafe LLC                         

Sandia Wasserman, Florida Retail Partners

407.999.8989                                               

813.251-3333

corporate@bento-group.com

sandia@floridaretailpartners.com

WoodSpring Hotels Finalizes Brand Repositioning

Gary DeLapp

WICHITA, KS, July 31, 2017—WoodSpring Hotels, the nation’s fastest-growing value extended-stay hotel company, today announced that it has begun the final process of its previously announced brand repositioning, with 171 hotels having completed the process and an additional 15 properties in the final stages.

The transition touched on virtually all aspects of the hotel, ranging from new employee uniforms and name tags to brand-wide free wireless internet access in all public spaces and guestrooms. 

All hotels also received new interior signage, in-room collateral and marketing materials, as well as new bedding and exterior signage.

“The entire rebranding process was a direct result of an enormous amount of consumer research that allowed us to target what is most important and valuable to our guests,” said Gary DeLapp, WoodSpring President and CEO.  “We now are well-positioned as the leading value, extended-stay hotel company in the country.  This allows us to better communicate the quality of our portfolio and expand our reach to new customer segments.”

To inform current and future guests of its new messaging, WoodSpring also refined its marketing efforts.  The brand’s new messaging centers on the “Suites, Kitchens and Wi-Fi, Oh My” theme through its digital components, while on-property assets encourage continued engagement by downloading its newly launched Mobile Quick Link and encouraging guests to book direct with WoodSpring.  All components, digital and otherwise, are now live.

“Now that the repositioning process has entered its final phase, we are embarking on an ambitious plan, utilizing all the marketing tools at our disposal, to get the word out to customers on the local, regional and national levels,” said Wendy Hoekwater, WoodSpring Chief Marketing Officer.

Wendy Hoekwater

 “Along with physical improvements to the hotels, we have completely upgraded and improved everything from our website to our mobile booking capabilities, all in an effort to let value-minded travelers know that we have listened to the marketplace and responded with the best product available in our space.” 

Additionally, targeted sales strategies and plans were created for each local market to convey the new changes to consumers.  On the national level, the brand launched its new website, www.woodspring.com, which included new photography guidelines, as well as making content updates across all sites, contact centers, social media guest review and consumer feedback portals.  WoodSpring also updated its phone systems and scripts.

  

“We constantly are engaging with both our guests and Franchise Partners to ensure that the WoodSpring brand provides what they want and need at a reasonable rate,” DeLapp added.  “WoodSpring helped to create the value extended-stay segment, and today we move that much closer to perfecting it.”

 For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

CHRIS DALY

PRESIDENT

DALY GRAY PUBLIC RELATIONS, INC.

620 Herndon Parkway, Suite 115 | Herndon, VA 20170

Main: 703-435-6293

Mobile: 703-864-5553

chris@dalygray.com | www.dalygray.com

www.woodspringfranchise.com.

The Keyes Company Wins Big at the LeadingRE Annual Conference

Denisese Talboy

MIAMI, FL, July 31, 2017 – The Keyes Company, Florida’s largest independent real estate company, received four awards at the LeadingRE Annual Conference for its dedicated work in the industry in 2016.

LeadingRE is made up of the world’s top independent brokerages. Represented in more than 60 countries, the organization’s 565 company members include more than 130,000 associates producing over 1 million transactions valued at over $368 billion annually.

 The firm’s Global Relocation and Corporate Services department took home four awards, including Referral of the Year, Global Alliance Referral Award and RELO Direct® Ambassador award. The department’s Vice President, Denise Talboy, was awarded the Chairman’s Service Award.

Mike Pappas

The department was also named a finalist for the Diamond award, LeadingRE’s highest honor, which acknowledges outstanding performance and engagement in all of LeadingRE’s business programs.

“We’re proud of the hard work, professionalism and results of our Global Relocation and Corporate Services department,” said Keyes CEO Mike Pappas. “Without them, we would not be the company we are today.”

“It’s an honor to bring home multiple awards for Keyes,” said Talboy. “We love what we do, and to be recognized and awarded for it among so many great companies around the world is truly something special.”

The 2017 conference was held in Miami and welcomed brokers from firms across the world.

For a complete copy of the company’s news release, please contact:

Eric Kalis, BoardroomPR

ekalis@boardroompr.com

954-370-8999