Sam Nazarian - Biography

Sam Nazarian (born 1975 in Tehran, Iran) is an Iranian-American entrepreneur. Nazarian is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SBE, a Los Angeles based luxury hospitality, real estate development and lifestyle company which includes hotel, restaurant, nightlife, and real estate divisions. As a real estate financier, hotelier, and restaurateur, Nazarian owns and operates several award-winning hotels, restaurants, and nightclubs, located throughout Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Miami. In 2006 Nazarian was honored as the youngest executive to be named one of the "Top 100 Most Powerful People in Southern California" by West, the Los Angeles Times’ Magazine, and was named among "The Influentials" in Los Angeles magazine. He has also been featured and quoted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, People, Fortune, W, Variety and The New Yorker.

Nazarian is also a member of the Southern California Institute of Architecture's Board of Directors, serves on the Los Angeles World Airports' Board of Airport Commissioners, and is a supporter of the Beverly Hills Education Foundation.

Early life

Nazarian's family immigrated to the United States following the Iranian Revolution. Son of wealthy Qualcomm co-founder Younes Nazarian, Sam was raised in Los Angeles, California. Sam attended Beverly Hills High School and later studied at New York University and the University of Southern California.

Nazarian's first entrepreneurial venture was in 1998, when he founded Platinum Wireless, a telecommunications business specializing in the distribution of Nextel software. Within one year of its founding, Platinum Wireless was the number one Nextel distributor in Southern California. Nazarian then entered the world of real estate by diversifying his family's assets into real estate holdings, beginning with the establishment of 3Wall Development in 1999. Under Sam's guidance 3Wall quickly became one of Southern California's largest owners of multi-family housing.

Hospitality

Nazarian's SBE owns eight Los Angeles nightclubs and lounges: Area, MI-6, Hyde, XIV, Colony, Eden, MyHouse, MyStudio and The Abbey. Nazarian owns each club outright without other investors. These venues continue to see a high level of popularity and celebrity patronage, as well as being frequently visited by the characters of HBO's Entourage. Nazarian made an appearance as himself greeting the main characters of the show in the episode "No Cannes Do". Nazarian's SBE brand has also been featured on an episode of The Hills.

Restaurants

Nazarian has secured partnerships with Philippe Starck and chefs Katsuya Uechi, José Andrés and Michael Mina. His partnership with Katsuya and Starck resulted in the restaurant Katsuya, with locations in Brentwood, Hollywood, Glendale and downtown Los Angeles. XIV, in partnership with Chef Michael Mina, opened on the Sunset Strip in October 2008. (XIV closed in August 2011.) Nazarian opened The Bazaar with José Andrés, which is integrated into SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills, in 2008.

Hotels

In 2007, SBE acquired the Sahara Hotel & Casino. Nazarian has also invested in several other hotels, such as Viceroy hotels and resorts; Chamberlain West Hollywood; Sheraton Delfina Santa Monica; Sheraton Gateway LAX, and Hilton Garden Inns in resort locales in Southern California and Florida.[4].

Producer

Nazarian has served as executive producer for the films Waiting..., , Down in the Valley, Five Fingers, The Last Time, Pride, Mr. Brooks and College.

External links

• SBE Official Website