Scott Strumlauf

Personal life

Strumlauf was born in Bronx, New York, to parents William and Nadine Strumlauf. Born in New York City, his father spent his entire career as a prominent dress manufacturer in New York’s garment district, while his mother, born in Pennsylvania, was a professional ballroom/show dancer, featured on the Ed Sullivan Show and in Redbook Magazine. At an early age, Strumlauf’s family relocated to the suburbs of New York City to Westchester County (Peekskill, New York). There, Strumlauf attended Hendrick Hudson High School where he played sophomore baseball and was an active member of the county swim team, placing second in the New York State freestyle championship. After his father retired in 1981, the family made the move to Boca Raton, Florida where Strumlauf completed his final two years of high school in 1984 at Boca Raton Academy where he played golf and varsity football. In 1984, Strumlauf moved to Atlanta, Georgia and graduated pre-med in 1988 from Emory University, where he was a member of the Chi Phi fraternity, with a B.S. degree in Biology. Strumlauf currently resides in the Buckhead area of Atlanta, Georgia. In addition to becoming an instrumented rated private pilot in 2012, Strumlauf enjoys golf, snow skiing, working out, and travel. He helps to serve his community as a committee member for Project Open Hand and as an honorary for the Atlanta Community Food Bank.

Career

At the early age of 15, Strumlauf started down the road as a serial entrepreneur, heading up his own lawn care, car washing and firewood business throughout high school and college summer breaks. While attending Emory University in 1984 and preparing for a career as a medical doctor, Strumlauf worked as a part-time doorman at a local Atlanta nightclub called Scenario. After graduating Emory University in 1988 and at the young age of only 21, Strumlauf made the decision to put medical school on hold to partner up with college friend, Marc Cooperman, to open Boys and Girls in the summer of 1988, Atlanta’s first 18 and over nightclub. With the instant success of Boys and Girls, Strumlauf’s passion for nightlife was sparked and with Cooperman, Plastic Nightclub opened in 1989. During that same year, Strumlauf and Cooperman also threw themselves into the magazine publishing business with the release of Eye Magazine, a fashion forward publication with a focus on Atlanta’s restaurant, and nightlife scene.

Following a short move back to New York City in 1990 with a short lived career as a commodity pit trader on the floor of the New York Mercantile Exchange at New York’s Twin Towers, Strumlauf returned permanently back to Atlanta in 1991 to partner again with Marc Cooperman and George Wagner to open a college bar called The Odyssey in the Buckhead Village, Atlanta’s famous restaurant/bar district. In 1992, Strumlauf made the decision to diversify his business portfolio with the opening Malibu Beach Tanning. After successfully building the Malibu Beach brand to four Atlanta area locations, Palm Beach Tan purchased the company in 2006.

In early 1994, Strumlauf partnered once again with Marc Cooperman, along with operating partner Jim Sullivan, to open his first restaurant/bar concept, Metropolitan Pizza Bar, also located in the Buckhead Village. In late 1994, Strumlauf opened Atlanta nightclub, Tongue & Groove, with business partners, Michael Krohngold and Marc Cooperman. A year later in 1995, Strumlauf, along with partners Michael Krohngold, Marc Cooperman, Dee Grimes and consulting chef Guenter Seeger, opened Mumbo Jumbo, a 200-seat modern American restaurant located in downtown Atlanta. In 1996, Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell honored Mumbo Jumbo with a proclamation for serving as an economic catalyst to the revitalization of downtown Atlanta. In 2000, Strumlauf, Krohngold and Sullivan then opened Jack Rabbit Lounge in the Buckhead Village. In 2007, the original Tongue & Groove location was closed after a lease buyout by Ben Carter Properties. Krohngold and Strumlauf then formed a nightlife consulting company, Wildlife Resource Management, LLC before opening the new Tongue & Groove at Lindbergh City Center in 2008 with new operating partner, David Kreidler.

A year later in 2009, Strumlauf continued down the road with diversifying his business portfolio by teaming up with Steven M. Winter to launch a subprime auto financing company, Georgia Title Lenders, LLC. Then in 2012, Strumlauf and Winter formed WS Funding, LLC, a collateral-based finance company. In 2014, Strumlauf and partner Krohngold were honored by the Atlanta Community Food Bank as one of Atlanta’s premier hospitality duos. In the same year, Tongue & Groove celebrated its 20th anniversary and was honored by the City of Atlanta with a proclamation recognizing the club as Atlanta’s longest running nightclub. Strumlauf continues today to oversee and enjoy the day-to-day operations of all his business entities, with a back-of-house hand on approach in the areas of finance, personnel, risk management and business controls. Strumlauf and his business partners have been recognized for their business success and community involvement in numerous publications.