Sowing
the seeds of Innovative thinking and Influential dealings in South Florida’s
hothouse of restaurant sales and leases, Athan
“Tom” Prakas has created a successful real estate
company, stemming from his Greek roots and restaurateur background.
In
2000, Mr. Prakas established The Prakas Group, Inc., a
thriving commercial real estate brokerage company
specializing In restaurant, nightclub and commercial
properties throughout Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade
counties. For over 25 years before that, Tom Prakas owned
and operated 27 restaurants, nightclubs and sports bars throughout Ohio,
Atlanta, GA, and South Florida. Locally, Mr. Prakas was the
originator of alternative music clubs in Palm Beach, with the establishment of The Dark Side In Delray Beach and Moscow in West Palm Beach. He
also owned and operated The Spot, a sports/rock cafe in West Palm Beach,
and brought the popularity of cigar smoking to Boca Raton
by establishing The Cigar
Bar.
Shifting
from owner/operator to plant himself in the restaurant/nightclub real estate market was a natural fit for Mr. Prakas. “Someone who has been an owner knows the back of the house from the front of the house, knows the terminology,
and in the case of a restaurant purchase,
can check a profit and loss statement to know if it makes sense,” says Prakas. “A restaurant broker who has been an owner can even advise a restaurateur on the concept, setup, and city regulations, licenses, and more,” he continues. “Consulting of this kind can be invaluable, especially as part of the real estate transaction.” Prakas must know his stuff. His value-added Midas touch has created a business on track to close over $300 million in
sales over a six-year period.
The Prakas Group has been responsible for brokering the majority of the restaurant and lounge sales and leases along the hottest corridors of South Florida: Atlantic Avenue in Delray
Beach, Clematis Street in West Palm Beach, and Las Olas Blvd.
in Fort Lauderdale. Mr. Prakas employs over 12 agent/brokers, all of whom have
restaurant/nightclub experience or have owned their own
businesses. Eighty percent of his brokers are of Greek descent and understand the deep devotion Mr. Prakas
shows to the Greek community.
“My 100% Greek background, plus my Greek ties in the community, are the biggest factors for hiring Greek associates at The Prakas Group. In addition, since a large share of restaurateurs and lounge owners are of Greek descent, it’s a natural that
we have ex-owner/operators who are
Greek represent the restaurant/ lounge
sates,” said Mr. Prakas.
Clients
of The Prakas Group Include Peter Tsialiamanis of Tavema Opa,
Gusto’s Grill & Bar (a former Gus Boulis
operation), Burton Handelsman, Big Time Restaurant Group, MDN Properties, Rodney Mayo, Tarpon Send Restaurants, Gotham City, Dave
Manero Restaurants, and Mama Mla’s, just to name a few. Mr. Prakas was recently
selected as exclusive broker for Pano Karatassos, Founder
and CEO of the Buckhead Life Restaurant Group for new locations
in Florida, including the recent completion of the first
lease for Chops Lobster Bar in Boca Raton. In
addition, Mr. Prakas recently represented
actor Danny DeVito’s investment group
for a new South Beach restaurant purchase/ lease for a new DeWto’s Italian Restaurant. Prakas
stretches beyond South Florida as well, as evidenced by his
recent lease transaction for a Taverna Opa location
in Las Vegas, NV.
For
restaurant owners seeking to expand to the South Florida market, this GSreek
restaurant broker Is the one to call. “Because we are the
restaurant source For South Florida, not only do we understand
the terrain, but we have more agents and more exclusive listings
here than anyone in the business,” says Prakas. “No
firm closes more high profile restaurant/lounge deals than
The Prakas Group - no one, period. Once an operator deals ″vith
us, he knows instantly the background and knowledge of our
agents and firm. We can make the difference between suc-:ess
and failure in a business with such a ligh failure rate.”
Never
one to stop growing, in 2003, Prakas extended the
reach of The Prakas Group by establishing Boca Brokers,
Inc., a boutique residential brokerage firm concentrating on
high-end residential properties. Then in 2005, Mr. Prakas added a new
dimension to his company and opened a Business Brokerage Division, specializing in the buying and selling of businesses including dry cleaners, salons, day care, automotive shops, and manufacturing companies doing between $2-7 million
dollars of volume.
A
resident of Delray Beach for the last 18 years, Mr. Prakas Is
originally from Portsmouth, Ohio. He grew up in Toledo and
Columbus, Ohio in a family of four boys.
Mr. Prakas is a member of St. Mark Greek
Orthodox Church in Boca Raton, where he
chaired the annual Greek Festival
for six years, and is a member of the American Hellenic Educational
Progressive Association (AHEPA.) He is a
member of the Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce, and the Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Prakas balances his success while enjoying being the father of eight children and has celebrated his nine-teen
years of marriage with his wife Donna. How vast will Mr. Prakas’s garden grow For this Greek descendant and business mogul, deep roots and ingenuity have proven the sky is the limit
Originally posted 2008-02-20 00:00:00. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
