The RLJ Companies is an American

asset management firm An asset management company is an asset management / investment management company/firm that invests the pooled funds of retail investors in securities in line with the stated investment objectives. For a fee, the company/firm provides more dive ...

owned by entrepreneur Robert Louis Johnson. After selling

Black Entertainment Television Black Entertainment Television (BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting Black American audiences. It is the flagship channel of the BET Media Group, a subsidiary of Paramount Global's CBS Entertainment Group. Originally launched ...

in 2001, Johnson's first company, he created RLJ Companies in

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

. The company's network includes

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

real estate investment,

private equity Private equity (PE) is stock in a private company that does not offer stock to the general public; instead it is offered to specialized investment funds and limited partnerships that take an active role in the management and structuring of the co ...

financial services Financial services are service (economics), economic services tied to finance provided by financial institutions. Financial services encompass a broad range of tertiary sector of the economy, service sector activities, especially as concerns finan ...

asset management Asset management is a systematic approach to the governance and realization of all value for which a group or entity is responsible. It may apply both to tangible assets (physical objects such as complex process or manufacturing plants, infrastr ...

insurance Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to protect ...

services, car dealerships,

sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...

and

entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and Interest (emotion), interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but it is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have deve ...

, and video lottery terminal (VLT) gaming. The company is headquartered in Bethesda and has additional offices in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 United ...

;

Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Arkansas, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The city's population was 202,591 as of the 2020 census. The six-county Central Arkan ...

;

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

;

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...

, and

Monrovia, Liberia Monrovia () is the administrative capital and largest city of Liberia. Founded in 1822, it is located on Cape Mesurado on the Atlantic coast and as of the 2022 census had 1,761,032 residents, home to 33.5% of Liberia’s total population. It ...

History

Robert L. Johnson founded The RLJ Companies in 2002 in

. Johnson serves as chairman of the company. Previous to founding The RLJ Companies, Johnson owned BET, which he sold to

Viacom Viacom, an abbreviation of Video and Audio Communications, may refer to: * Viacom (1952–2005), a former American media conglomerate * Viacom (2005–2019), a former company spun off from the original Viacom * Viacom18, a joint venture between Pa ...

in 2001. He remained on at BET as its CEO through 2006. In 2001, Johnson and Tom Baltimore started RLJ Lodging Trust with six hotels. RLJ Lodging Trust started as RLJ Development and changed its name when it went public on the

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is the List of stock exchanges, largest stock excha ...

under RLJ on May 13, 2011. The company operates in 21 states with 97 hotels under global brands including

Courtyard by Marriott Courtyard by Marriott is an American brand of hotels owned by Marriott International. One of Marriott's High-priced brands with 5 star hotels, the hotels are primarily targeted to business travelers, but also accommodate traveling families. As o ...

Hilton Garden Inn Hilton Garden Inn is an American chain of full-service hotels targeting business and leisure travelers looking for an upscale experience. The brand is owned by Hilton Worldwide. , it has 862 properties with 126,086 rooms in 49 countries and ter ...

Hyatt Place Hyatt Hotels Corporation, commonly known as Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, is an American multinational hospitality company headquartered in the Riverside Plaza area of Chicago that manages and franchises luxury and business hotels, resorts, and vac ...

and

Embassy Suites Hotels Embassy Suites by Hilton is a chain of all-suite hotels trademarked by Hilton Worldwide. , there are 257 locations in five countries and territories with 59,712 rooms. Similar to other Hilton brands, 212 Embassy Suites hotels are independently ...

. In 2008, RLJ Companies formed a partnership with Global Building Solutions to build a 78-room luxury resort and spa in

. The RLJ Kendeja Resort & Villas opened in March 2009. Thomas J. Baltimore Jr. served as president and CEO of RLJ Lodging Trust until his resignation on April 27, 2016, so that he could assume a similar role with Hilton's REIT. Ross H. Bierkan was appointed CEO on August 1, 2016.

David Rubenstein David Mark Rubenstein (born August 11, 1949) is an American lawyer, businessman, and philanthropist. A former government official, he is a co-founder and co-chairman of the Carlyle Group,Carlyle Group The Carlyle Group Inc. is an American multinational company with operations in private equity, alternative asset management and financial services. As of 2023, the company had $426 billion of assets under management. Carlyle specializes in ...

in 2006 to form RLJ Equity Partners, a middle-market equity firm. RLJ Equity Partners invested in CVC, the largest tour operator in Latin America, in January 2010. In September 2010, it partnered with Enhanced Recovery Corp to gain more presence in the Southeast. It has also invested in Fleischmann's Vinegar, LAI International, TMone, Naylor and R. Thompson Trucking Inc. In 2014, RLJ Equity Partners acquired Naylor Association Solutions, with its headquarters in Gainesville, Florida. Johnson collaborated with Mack McLarty and Steve Landers to create RLJ-McLarty-Landers Automotive Holdings, LLC in 2007. It is the parent company for

based RML Automotive. Johnson holds 60% of RLJ-McLarty-Landers Automotive Holdings, LLC, making it the largest minority-owned automotive dealership in the country. In response to the

2010 Haiti earthquake The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic Moment magnitude scale, magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake that struck Haiti at 16:53 local time (21:53 UTC) on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. The epicenter was near the town of Léogâne, Ouest (departm ...

, Global Building Solutions collaborated with RLJ Companies to form Caribbean Opportunity Holdings in April 2010. Trading under

NASDAQ The Nasdaq Stock Market (; National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the U.S. by volume, and ranked second on the list ...

as RLJAU, RLJ Acquisition was formed as a special-purpose acquisition company in December 2010 with the purpose of consummating business combinations. H. Van Sinclair serves as CEO. RLJ Entertainment Inc. formed when the RLJ Companies acquired Acorn Media Group, Inc. and Image Entertainment Inc. in 2012. It trades under the NASDAQ ticker RLJE.

References

{{reflist 2002 establishments in Maryland American companies established in 2002 Financial services companies established in 2002 Investment management companies of the United States Companies based in Bethesda, Maryland Financial services companies based in Maryland Asset management companies