Emerging From a Small Town to Reaching World Records

Stephen Nalley (born September 26, 1969) is an American Real Estate Executive, Entrepreneur, Veteran & Author. He is the founder and CEO of Black Briar Advisors and The Black Briar Hotel Group. He has been seen and heard in Forbes, Entrepreneur Magazine, Fox, CBS, ABC, and other publications (Looking to reword this better). He has also been featured in Writers Life Magazine, World Class Performers, and Star Magazine. 

Nalley was born and raised in Palatka, Florida, and received his high school diploma in 1987. He was taken to Eileen Owens and Jerry Nalley and had three siblings; older sister Stephanie Osier, younger sister and brother Lisa McNaughton and Justin Owens. He joined the Army of the United States in 1988. He served with the Army’s elite 10th Mountain Division as a Light Infantry Squad Leader and Commando before joining the Army Reserves with the 2145th, stationed in Jacksonville, Florida. 

Nalley earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Healthcare Administration from the University of North Florida in 1997. He went on to earn his MBA and DBA from the University of Atlanta in 1999 & 2001 respectively. Nalley also holds a Law Degree from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, Missouri.  

Nalley also attended Cornell University where he earned two graduate certificates in leadership and financial management. He is also a Certified Hotel Administrator via the American Hotel & Lodging Association. 

Black Briar is a full-service real estate investment firm with a distinctive strategy of focusing on the purchase, repositioning, renovation, and asset management of troubled hotel and resort assets. Black Briar and its Managing Principles are authorities in every stage of the real estate life cycle and have a wealth of transactional expertise. 

This comprises asset management, renovations, property management, dealing structuring, contract negotiation, due investigation, underwriting, financing, and closing on debt and equity capital structures. Over $2 billion worth of real estate assets, including more than 100 hotel and resort assets, have been owned and managed by Black Briar and its partners. 

Ocean Waters was a diverse real estate investment firm with over 129 distinct companies, 79 properties, 45 hotels open for business, and another commercial, retail, and residential element. Mr. Nalley was in charge of general management and daily leadership for the company. Mr. Nalley served as the Chief Operating Officer and Chairman of the Executive Committee of Ocean Waters before founding Black Briar. 

By purchasing underperforming Hotel & Resort assets and bringing them to profitability, Mr. Nalley helped Ocean Waters and its Principals create nearly $1 Billion in value. Before beginning his civilian career, Stephen Nalley served in the US Army as a light infantry squad leader and Commando with the 10th Mountain Division’s Special Troops Battalion and is a service-connected disabled veteran.  

He was born in a small Florida town and worked far from the bottom. He is demonstrating that hard work is the grand equalizer. It does not matter where you start or what advantages or disadvantages you have. Anything is possible with hard work. It is the great equalizer, as he is a self-made Millionaire.