6. In The News
Tidewater Yacht site for sale; Ocean City’s Seacrets mulls a bid
July 22, 2011Baltimore Business Journal - by Daniel J. Sernovitz, Staff
Date: Friday, July 22, 2011, 6:00am EDT
A South Baltimore marina is considering casting away from its waterfront location near the Port Covington Shopping Center if it can find buyers for its property. And the owners of popular Ocean City resort Seacrets could emerge as a bidder.
Tidewater Yacht Service Center is seeking $22 million for its marine center at 321 E. Cromwell St. and has retained Commercial Brokerage Group Inc. to market the site. Commercial Brokerage agent Stephen P. Gilbert said he is also seeking tenants to lease some of the site’s excess space or partners to redevelop the 7.8-acre property under a plan that would let Tidewater Yacht keep its ship repair business at Port Covington.
Tidewater Yacht Owner Robert P. Brandon said he does not plan to close the business at this point but noted, “everything is for sale at the right price.”
The offering has attracted interest from bidders including the owners of Jamaican-themed resort Seacrets, which the Business Journal first reported in April is interested in the Baltimore area for a new franchise. Seacrets Chief Financial Officer Gary Figgs said Port Covington could be ideal since the company is looking for sites with waterfront access but without many residents nearby.
Figgs said Seacrets also is considering spots at Westport, Harbor Point and Canton Crossing.
“We like it because our brand is certainly recognized in Baltimore; we’ve got that mid-Atlantic appeal right now,” Figgs said.
The marina site is one of several large properties in flux in Port Covington, a sprawling property off Hanover Street where city officials had hoped to attract dozens of new shops and businesses.
The city changed the property’s zoning a decade ago to make way for new commercial redevelopment, including what they hoped would be a 160,000-square-foot strip center with tenants like Staples, Modell’s and Dress Barn.
Developer Starwood Ceruzzi LLC built the 59-acre Port Covington Shopping Center and landed Walmart and Sam’s Club as anchor tenants. But it was unable to attract other retailers, and the developer sold the center in 2005 to Kodiak Properties LLC and Finmarc Management Inc. of Bethesda.
The pair, like Tidewater Yacht, are also looking to sell the shopping center or attract joint venture partners to develop other parts of the property. Finmarc principal Marc F. Solomon said no buyers or partners have yet emerged for the center.
In 2006, Tidewater Yacht moved to Cromwell Street from its former space on Key Highway. It paid about $3 million for the property, according to the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. Brandon has invested about $16 million in his ship repair business there.
In addition to Tidewater Yacht, Brandon also has development rights to a 400-slip marina and those rights could be sold separate from the repair business. In 2008, he pitched a plan to redevelop the site with Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse Inc., calling for about 150,000 square feet of office and retail space along with a 38-story residential tower.
The plans were tabled when the recession hit, and now Struever Bros. is facing foreclosure of its property by banker BB&T.
Struever Bros. has since ceased its development business amid dozens of lawsuits filed by contractors who worked for it on various projects.
The company’s principals, including Struever, have formed a new business, Cross Street Partners, specializing in consulting work for other developers.
Twitter.com/dsernovitz
A not-so-well-kept Seacret.
June 27, 2011Written by Scott Muska | The Daily Times
Jun 26, 2011
OCEAN CITY -- When Leighton Moore opened Seacrets 23 years ago, he wanted to bring Jamaica to the United States, he said.
The business model has worked well -- the vacation entertainment complex is one of the most popular spots in Ocean City, brings in millions in revenue on a yearly basis and employs about 500 people.
Now Moore wants to take the Jamaican attitude and food all across the country, and is looking to do so by franchising his business. So far, 70 prospective franchisees have sought information about opening a Seacrets location in places like New York, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia and Baltimore, among others.
"It's always been one of my goals, but it was a matter of getting the right team and timing together, and now I feel like we're able to split some of our ranks and actually help with managing franchises so they're able to go along with the style we prefer at Seacrets," said Moore, owner and CEO.
There are certain requirements and qualifications potential franchisees must meet to be considered, including a
waterfront location with a decent amount of acquirable land surrounding it, according to Gary Figgs, Seacrets' vice president and chief financial officer.
Moore and Figgs are fine with establishments starting out small like Seacrets did in 1988, as long as they have a plan for the future and the wherewithal to eventually expand. When Seacrets opened, it had a capacity of 200. Now, it can handle up to 4,600 customers at a time.
"I wouldn't be adverse to doing the same thing I did (with a franchisee) as long as they have the right demographic, work ethic and land and space," Moore said. Expansion The company is still awaiting approval from Maryland's Office of the Attorney General to be able to franchise the concept in the state, something Figgs said he hopes will happen soon. Fourteen states have a similar requirement, including New York and Virginia, where Moore said Seacrets has already obtained franchising approval.
Moore is also looking for new locations where mass transit is available and owners are willing to eventually incorporate a hotel into building plans. He doesn't want people to have to worry about driving, something he thinks helps contribute to a laid back, Jamaican-esque experience.
Pappas pointed out that Seacrets' attempt at franchising could be much different, since it's a larger place with a location that's more difficult to replicate. "We can put a Greene Turtle pretty much anywhere, but they have to have water and a more complex theme," he said.
"This isn't something we're going to rush," Moore said, adding that he and the rest of his group will do their due diligence when looking into possible locations. "We're looking for quality right now, and then quantity can come later."
Prospective franchisees will have to shell out an initial investment of $1.6 million-$3.1 million, plus a $45,000 franchise fee. Seacrets will take 6 percent in royalties and 10 percent from complexes with hotel operations. The company directs hopeful investors to www.seacretsfranchising. com for more information.
smuska@dmg.gannett.com
Original Article
Ocean City’s Seacrets Eyes Baltimore, Other Locales for Expansion
April 22, 2011Date: Friday, April 22, 2011, 6:00am EDT
The man who brought Jamaica to Ocean City wants to take his Bob Marley party to
cities across the western hemisphere, including Baltimore.
Leighton Moore, owner and CEO of vacation-entertainment complex Seacrets, plans
to franchise his island-themed bar and restaurant concept and open 37 new
locations within the next five years.
One of those spots could be along the Inner Harbor, but Moore is still looking
for a location and franchise operator. He already has interest from
entrepreneurs in vacation hot spots like the Bahamas, Florida, California and
Myrtle Beach, S.C.
“My whole idea was to bring Jamaica to the United States,” said Moore, who
founded Seacrets in 1988 and began thinking about franchising nine years later.
“I think I succeeded in doing that, so I’d like to see the idea and the food go
other places.”
Ranked among the top nightclubs in the U.S., Seacrets began
as just a bar and restaurant, holding less than 200 people. Today, the club is
one of the regular spots for vacationers — many of them from Greater Baltimore
— who travel to Ocean City each year. It’s a palm-tree-laden, sandy tourist
magnet that can accommodate up to 4,600 people at a time.
Within Seacrets’ Ocean City property is a hotel, 18 bars, multiple dining
sections, a 7,000-square-foot nightclub, bayside views and plenty of water.
In a destination city that draws about 8 million visitors a year, Seacrets nabs
anywhere from 800,000 to 1 million customers annually. It also employs more
than 500 during peak vacation season.
“I think [Seacrets] is a destination in and of itself,” said Donna Abbott, a
spokeswoman for the Ocean City Convention and Visitors Bureau and Department of
Tourism.
Seacrets has applied to the Securities Division of Maryland’s Office of the
Attorney General for the legal right to franchise the concept — a formality
that could be granted within a few weeks. In anticipation of that approval,
Seacrets already has launched a website — www.seacretsfranchising.com
Gary Figgs, Seacrets’ vice president and chief financial officer, said the
company already has fielded inquiries about opening franchises in the Hamptons
in New York, Myrtle Beach, Chincoteague Island in Virginia, and parts of
Florida. “They’re basically coming in [from] all over the country,” Figgs said.
Interest has also been heard from prospective franchisees in Chicago,
California, the Bahamas and Baltimore, where Moore said a site at the Inner
Harbor, Fells Point or another downtown spot isn’t out of the question.
“I’d like to have open area, and one of the easiest ways is on the water,”
Moore said. “If it was around the Inner Harbor, as long as it’s on the water
that’d be my preference.”
The closest Baltimore’s Inner Harbor comes to offering something like Seacrets
is Bay Cafe in Canton and the Tiki Barge at the Inner Harbor. Bay Cafe has the
sand. Tiki Barge has a pool and palm trees. But neither is as big and
comprehensive as Seacrets, which rakes in $25 million to $35 million in revenue
annually, according to Chicago restaurant consulting firm Technomic.
“Themed restaurants and themed resorts are very popular,” said Darren Tristano,
executive vice president of Technomic. “It creates an escape and the more
stressed people become — that’s going to drive people to this type of venue to
try to relax and escape.” Rene Daniel, principal at Timonium-based commercial
real estate firm Trout Daniel and Associates, said Harbor East, Inner Harbor or
Westport could work for a Seacrets, but licensing is the real issue.
“The question is where would that right place of real estate be,” Daniel said.
“Westport is wide open.” Westport is the 42-acre waterfront mixed-use project
in South Baltimore being developed by Baltimore’s Turner Development Group.
Patrick Turner, head of Turner Development, could not be reached for comment.
Moore said franchisees aren’t expected to open a hotel, restaurant, bars and a
club all at the same time. Most franchisees will probably start by opening a
bar and restaurant, but Moore said he hopes franchisees eventually add the
other components. Not all franchise locations will employ 500, either. But the
smallest of them could still employ 25 to 40, Figgs said.
Seacrets could begin reviewing potential locations soon. Prospective
franchisees must have: Initial investment of $1.6 million to $3.1 million; A
franchise fee of $45,000, with the company taking 6 percent in royalties from
restaurant/bars and 10 percent from complexes with hotel operations;
Significant food service and/or hospitality experience.
Franchisees are expected to spend 1 percent of gross revenue on advertising.
Seacrets also expects franchise partners to take an active role in daily
operations, and training will be provided.
“We’re going to have to find the right locations and the right people,” Moore
said. “This whole idea of Seacrets is to keep on going for generations.”
ajackson@bizjournals.com or (410) 454-0516.
Original Article
