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Hoffmanns continue expansion in Naples by buying event planning businesses

David Hoffmann, principal, Hoffmann  Commercial Real Estate.

The Hoffmann family continues to grow its footprint in Naples.

On Wednesday, the family, through its private office Osprey Capital LLC, announced its purchase of three related event planning businesses in Naples. The family intends to expand the businesses.

The trio of businesses are GlobalWorks Events & Destination Management, WeddingLux Event Planning & Design and EventLux Social Celebration Planning & Design. They operate as divisions of a unified company with shared management.

David Hoffmann, founder and chairman of Hoffmann Commercial Real Estate, a division of Osprey Capital, said the deal actually closed months ago, but a public announcement was overlooked.

"We are planning on growing it," he said. "We really like the management team a lot." 

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The companies are managed by Katie Adams and Noelle Christie, who started Global Works as a destination management company for corporate events under a different name in 2007. The business branched out into weddings and social events to meet the increasing demand they saw for those other services, Christie said.

 "We are a national company," she said. "We work with clients all over the United States."

The Hoffmanns purchased the businesses from Sunbelt Diversified Enterprises LLC, a private equity holding company based in Miami. 

A table setting for an event planned by EventLux in Naples.

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Sunbelt also owned Naples Transportation & Tours, which the Hoffmanns also bought earlier this year. 

The family acquired the transportation company and the three event planning businesses as part of the same deal, which fit with the Hoffmanns' interest in extending their reach in the hospitality industry. 

“We’re extremely excited about the recent acquisition and the opportunity for growth potential. Our primary objective is to elevate the guest experience and cultivate exponential growth for our wedding, social celebration and corporate events,” Adams said in a news release.

The Hoffmanns are looking to acquire companies that will complement the event planning enterprise, including ones offering party rental supplies such as chairs, tables and tents.

Greg Hoffmann, left, and his father, David Hoffmann, of Hoffmann Commercial Real Estate, in their offices in downtown Naples on Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2018.

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Hoffman said he's been in conversations with two rental companies and hopes to go under contract to buy one of them by next week.

"No rest for the wicked," he quipped.

The event planning companies regularly rent high-end furniture, so it would make sense to own a party rental business under the same umbrella, Christie said. 

"It would give us the ability to maintain the quality of what we're providing to clients," she said.

Hoffmann's interest in GlobalWorks was sparked when it organized a gala for the Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens at his home and it turned out fabulous, he said. Hoffmann sits on the zoo's board of directors.

The more recent purchases come on the heels of four other business acquisitions.

The Hoffmanns, through Osprey Capital, also bought Sunmaster of Naples, Adelheidi's Organic Sweets, Naples Princess Cruises and The Bevy, a popular downtown eatery off Third Street South. 

The family has also invested millions in real estate that make it the largest owner of commercial properties in the city. 

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