Jeffrey Feil
Jeffrey Feil
Chairman and CEO at Feil Organization
Last year's rank: 48
After a difficult year, Feil Organization Executive Vice President Brian Feil credits the history of the long-running family firm, which bought its first property in 1950, for its ability to persevere.
“One of the nice things about us as a long-time family business — I’m generation three, my father’s generation two, and we’ve been at this for 70 years — is our slow, steady, conservative approach,” Feil said. “Our nerves definitely were tested, but when we had people come back starting in September, we had an A schedule and a B schedule. So, it really felt like the office was pretty empty and everybody had a private office.”
The company was active on the deal front last year, finalizing one in August to purchase an almost 200,000-square-foot, four-story office building at 395 North Service Road in Melville, Long Island, from RXR Realty for $32 million.
Feil also signed Cajun seafood chain Hook & Reel to a 15-year lease in October for a new 5,656-square-foot outpost at Feil’s 214 East 161st Street in the Bronx.
Looking ahead, Feil is currently in contract to buy most of the block between two current firm properties at 356 and 376/380 Fulton Street in Brooklyn. The company is also working to convert its vacant building at 140 West 57th Street into a boutique office building.
With the city slowly churning back to life, Brain Feil sees success ahead by doing things with the same care they have for 70 years.
“We’re in lots of different markets and asset classes, and our diversity in region and asset class has fared well for us,” he said. “Being a long-term, multigenerational family office, we have a long, slow, steady view. Just keep moving forward.”—L.G.
