Criolla’s owner announces new company

Criolla’s Restaurant owner/chef Johnny Earles has officially announced the opening of 30A Resorts at a preview party held in April at Criolla’s Restaurant and 30A Resorts’ new location on County Road 30A in Grayton Beach.

More than 300 guests toured the newly renovated restaurant and the 30A Resorts corporate office while sampling tempting tapas and Napa Valley wines.

“This is a dramatically different company and the first of its kind in the area,” Earles, CEO of 30A Resorts and owner of Criolla’s Restaurant, said in a news release.

Earles and partners Ed Clark, Ken Catrino, and Scott Provow hosted the event and shared their vision for 30A Resorts and the company brand,

LIVE. PLAY. STAY. 30A.
“This embodies our vision of uniquely blending real estate brokerage services, boutique concierge, special events planning, and vacation accommodations under the 30A Resorts umbrella. We are a niche destination vacation and lifestyle company,” Clark said in the release.

With 66 percent of the travel population using the Internet to book their destination travel, 30A Resorts has launched a Web site that combines real estate listings and a shopping boutique where visitors can buy specialty wines and organic food from the natural foods store For The Health of It.

Visitors to the Web site can also book a spa treatment, rent a bike, and much more.

“We understand that our clientele is savvy and uses the Internet, and our Web site, www.30aresorts.com, caters to that vacation niche as well,” Clark said in the release.

LIVE
A man of many talents, Earles also founded Johnny Earles and Company Real Estate Brokerage four years ago. He has moved his brokerage services to 30A Resorts. He, along with partners Ken Catrino and veteran Realtors Scott Provow and Steve Wagner, is creating a team of real estate counselors who understand the market.

“Pricing your property correctly is one of the single most important decisions you can make in the current market. We know how to implement marketing plans that work to sell property,” Catrino said in the release.

PLAY
Criolla’s Restaurant was transformed this spring, allowing for room to create the corporate offices for 30A Resorts as well as additional outdoor dining for the restaurant. Guests at the preview party were the first to see the renovations and the “storytelling vignette” staging areas, created to bring the 30A Resorts vision to life. In one area, a dinner table was set with candles, flowers, and beautiful china, with a personal chef serving delectable cuisine. This refined setting conveyed the fact that, while you are on vacation, 30A Resorts can cater any type of party and arrange for personal chef services.

Recent statistics reveal that 41 percent of travelers do not have enough time to travel for leisure, with the majority of vacations spanning only four days. People prefer less work in terms of planning and booking their vacations; therefore, all-inclusive vacations have become more popular. 30A Resorts caters to an evolving niche in the marketplace.

“The ease and convenience of a personal chef preparing dinner for your family in your own home or having specially prepared meals delivered to your doorstep can make for a very special vacation,” Earles said in the release.

The 30A Resorts team also presented its Dream Wedding vignette with a wedding cake, champagne and toasting glasses, and showcasing Criolla’s Special Events, which has catered hundreds of beach weddings and corporate and private events in and around the 30A area for the past several years.

A vignette featuring bicycles, YOLO Boards, surfboards, kayaks, and surf cast rods represented some of the activities the 30A Resorts concierge staff can arrange for guests. 30A Resorts has also teamed with the local favorite, For The Health of It, which presented a display of organic produce and other popular items available for delivery to guests. Spa treatments can also be reserved through the 30A Resorts vacation consultants. For those looking to book tee times, make tennis court reservations, or plan a Grayton Beach fishing excursion, the 30A Resorts team can make those arrangements as well.

A wine cellar presentation was also staged to showcase the boutique wines that 30A Resorts offers for purchase through its Web site.

“You can pick out the wines you want, and have them delivered to your vacation home before you arrive,” Earles said in the release.

STAY
The announcement of the newly formed company at the preview party was the platform that the 30A Resorts vacation rental team used to present to the owners of quality beach homes and condominiums the benefits of adding their properties to the 30A Resorts portfolio of rental accommodations. Chip Peay, Vice President of Business Development made a personal presentation to vacation home owners interested in joining the 30A Resorts rental management program. Throughout the evening Peay answered questions about all aspects of the company, including how 30A Resorts clients can benefit from a comprehensive hospitality program.

Peay’s illustrious career as an executive in the music industry in Nashville is a special benefit to 30A Resorts and its clients. He and the rest of the team are planning several musical concerts and wine events around 30A, most notably, at the Gulf Place amphitheatre. Owners of vacation rental properties managed by 30A Resorts, as well as the guests themselves, can benefit from the added marketability of their homes, with special package stays that may include tickets to the events that 30A Resorts will be producing.

“We want to bring quality entertainment events to the area that will match the sophistication and elegance of our beautiful community,” Peay said in the release.

This article was contributed to The Log by 30A Resorts.