Company type | Privately held |
---|---|
Industry | Various |
Founded | 2002 |
Headquarters | Bethesda, Maryland |
Key people | Robert L. Johnson |
Products | Investment Holdings |
AUM | $5 billion [1] |
Website | https://www.rljcompanies.com/ |
The RLJ Companies is an American asset management firm owned by entrepreneur Robert Louis Johnson. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] After selling Black Entertainment Television in 2001, Johnson's first company, he created RLJ Companies in Bethesda, Maryland. [7] [8] [9] The company's network includes hotel real estate investment, private equity, financial services, asset management, insurance services, car dealerships, sports and entertainment, and video lottery terminal (VLT) gaming. [4] [10] The company is headquartered in Bethesda and has additional offices in Charlotte, North Carolina; Little Rock, Arkansas; Los Angeles, California; San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Monrovia, Liberia. [11]
Robert L. Johnson founded The RLJ Companies in 2002 in Bethesda, Maryland. [7] [8] Johnson serves as chairman of the company. [4] Previous to founding The RLJ Companies, Johnson owned BET, which he sold to Viacom in 2001. [12] He remained on at BET as its CEO through 2006. [4]
In 2001, Johnson and Tom Baltimore started RLJ Lodging Trust with six hotels. [13] RLJ Lodging Trust started as RLJ Development and changed its name when it went public on the New York Stock Exchange under RLJ on May 13, 2011. [14] [15] The company operates in 21 states with 97 hotels under global brands including Courtyard by Marriott, Hilton Garden Inn, Hyatt Place and Embassy Suites Hotels. [16] [17] In 2008, RLJ Companies formed a partnership with Global Building Solutions to build a 78-room luxury resort and spa in Monrovia, Liberia. [7] The RLJ Kendeja Resort & Villas opened in March 2009. Thomas J. Baltimore Jr. served as president and CEO of RLJ Lodging Trust until his resignation on April 27, 2016, so that he could assume a similar role with Hilton's REIT. Ross H. Bierkan was appointed CEO on August 1, 2016. [18]
David Rubenstein and Johnson partnered with Carlyle Group in 2006 to form RLJ Equity Partners, a middle-market equity firm. [13] [19] RLJ Equity Partners invested in CVC , the largest tour operator in Latin America, in January 2010. [20] In September 2010, it partnered with Enhanced Recovery Corp to gain more presence in the Southeast. [21] It has also invested in Fleischmann's Vinegar, LAI International, TMone, Naylor and R. Thompson Trucking Inc. [21] [22] [23] [24]
In 2014, RLJ Equity Partners acquired Naylor Association Solutions, with its headquarters in Gainesville, Florida.
Johnson collaborated with Mack McLarty and Steve Landers to create RLJ-McLarty-Landers Automotive Holdings, LLC in 2007. [25] It is the parent company for Little Rock, Arkansas based RML Automotive. [26] Johnson holds 60% of RLJ-McLarty-Landers Automotive Holdings, LLC, making it the largest minority-owned automotive dealership in the country. [13]
In response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Global Building Solutions collaborated with RLJ Companies to form Caribbean Opportunity Holdings in April 2010. [27]
Trading under NASDAQ as RLJAU, RLJ Acquisition was formed as a special-purpose acquisition company in December 2010 with the purpose of consummating business combinations. [28] [29] H. Van Sinclair serves as CEO. [28]
RLJ Entertainment Inc. formed when the RLJ Companies acquired Acorn Media Group, Inc. and Image Entertainment Inc. in 2012. [13] [14] It trades under the NASDAQ ticker RLJE.