Sheila Johnson has built an impressive portfolio in the hospitality industry, but it came at a hefty financial cost.
Johnson made history as the first Black woman to become a billionaire. She is the co-founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET), and her investment portfolio includes stakes in the following Washington, DC sports teams: the WNBA’s Mystics, the NBA’s Wizards, and the NHL’s Capitals, as AFROTECH™ previously reported.
She also has a strong presence in the hospitality industry, rooted in her desire to create a place for sports teams to stay as well as host a film festival, among other reasons, Food & Wine reported. When she was approached to buy land in Middleburg, VA, she acknowledged that she “knew nothing about the hospitality business,” according to the outlet. What she did know is that it would be key to have a proper management team in place.
There were challenges, including being up against “the good old boys” as well as resistance to permitting and zoning at town council meetings.
“I won by one vote after 10 years,” Johnson explained, per the outlet.
Her next challenge came in hiring vendors, including a contractor development company that had been described to her as “the greatest.” In the end, the company was not a good match for Johnson’s hospitality project. She ended up losing millions by getting involved with them.
“They were so bad I ended up firing them,” she said, according to Food & Wine.
It was a painful lesson that nearly led to a lawsuit, but one she is mindful not to repeat.
“I learned very quickly, be very careful who you bring around,” she told the outlet. “You never want to hire people who want to come in with an agenda. They have to be able to share my business. You can have an idea, even if you don’t know anything about it. Then do your homework and hire the best people you possibly can.”
Johnson later added, “It was a $12 million lesson that I had to learn.”
She ended up hiring the right team, and in 2013, Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg was later renamed Salamander Middleburg and became the first of many to launch under her Salamander Collection. The company now has eight properties across the U.S. and Caribbean, according to its website.
The Salamander DC hotel property is now in discussions to be acquired by Marriott’s Autograph Collection, a move made possible through a partnership between Henderson Park, a private equity firm, and Salamander Collection.
“Henderson Park and Salamander Collection collectively determined that the hotel, because of its size and location, would benefit from additional reach and loyalty points of a large brand,” a spokesperson said, according to The Grio and The Washington Business Journal. “As part of this transition, Henderson Park and Salamander Collection also agreed that a new manager should have deep experience running city hotels under the Marriott flag, and therefore it is proposed that Salamander will transition out of the hotel.”
