To become a Brown Hotel , there has to be an inherent set of values , aesthetics and experiences – it ’ s not just about planting flags , says Co- Founder Leon Avigad , who along with Nitzan Perry created the Tel Aviv-based boutique hotel company in 2010 . Today , Brown Hotels has some 20 properties under three sub-brands open across Tel Aviv , Jerusalem , Croatia and a budding portfolio in Greece . All of the hotels are affectionately referred to as “ Brownies ,” as is the team , Avigad says , because they all put a lot of tender loving care and soul into the repositioned assets that thrive on having exceptional local appeal . “ They are our babies . We have our language and our way of doing things ,” Avigad adds . So far , despite the pandemic , “ brownie ” style appears to be working .
Avigad , 50 , is a hotel lifer who collected hotel brochures as a child and has worked for the local Dan Hotels chain , as well as some classic luxury properties across Europe , including Badrutt ’ s Palace in St Moritz , Switzerland , The Ritz in London and even as part of the entertainment team at Club Med . “ I ’ m just in love with the profession ; this is what I do , breathe , dream about , for many , many years ,” he adds .
This dream-come-true came after walking away from operations to start his own consultancy , where feasibility studies failed to overcome his desire to be an operator . With the help of some friends and the bank , he took a huge loan and mortgaged his life to buy his first property , where in 2010 he brought that same infectious attitude and a new style of hospitality to Tel Aviv . He and his partner opened Brown TLV with a sense of place in the design , food and atmosphere – all reflective of the neighborhood .
The second , third and fourth hotel followed , after which he fortuitously teamed up with the Weizman family that controls Grand City hotels in Germany , as well as many other hotels such as the W in Amsterdam . With some wind in their sails , the team moved toward
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owning and operating 20 hotels , and by next year Brown Hotels will top 25 in Israel alone . “ We will have 15 in Greece , one in Croatia , three in Germany and a couple in Cyprus , and we ’ re moving on ,” says Avigad , who has moved his family to Athens to manage the big growth push there .
Browns equally owns , leases or operates as a management company for other partners and investors in both urban and resort settings , ranging anywhere between 18- to 300-room properties – again showing a
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