Dev Motwani and Nitin Motwani

“We’ve had a great year at Merrimac,” Nitin Motwani said. “Our strategy of being highly focused has really paid off.”

We’ll say. For Merrimac, the achievements were numerous, and the Motwani brothers’ place on this list, some may say, is “elementary, my dear Watson.” After all, in one of the most buzzed-about transactions of the past 12 months, Merrimac sealed a deal to take over a long-stalled 10.7-acre development site on Watson Island in Biscayne Bay and build a mixed-use project with BH3 Management. 

As if that weren’t enough, within that same period, they also kicked off the development of The Crosby, a 31-story, sold-out condo project at Miami Worldcenter and — seeing as everything they touch seemingly turns to “sold” — they also launched sales at the now sold-out 600 Miami Worldcenter. 

Farther up the coast, Merrimac commenced trades at the Waldorf Astoria in Pompano Beach, and further afield in a much colder climate, at the Four Seasons in Telluride, Colo. 

“Last year helped us validate our strategy, which is to be highly concentrated in a couple of areas and focus on higher-touch deals as opposed to spreading a wider net,” Dev Motwani said. “Fortunately, the markets that we’re in are holding up very well.” 

Maintaining conviction in a choppy and uncertain environment is no mean feat, but “as we ended the year, we looked around and still felt really good about the projects that we have in the market, which I’d say is a big success,” he said. 

The volatility isn’t over, but in 2024 the Motwani brothers will continue to stick to their knitting: creating highly anticipated developments in arguably the hottest market in the U.S. while also maintaining discipline and drawing from their hard-earned experience transacting through market cycles. 

“We’re going to be very focused on our key projects,” Nitin Motwani said. “We’re going to be low leverage, we’re going to have great partners, and we’re going to be great partners.” 

As if their own success weren’t enough, their mother Ramola Motwani is currently being honored by the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans for her notable contributions to the business sector. These apples haven’t fallen far from the tree!