Reuben Brothers Close W South Beach for Renovation After $400M Acquisition

• Reuben Brothers paid $400M+ for the 20-story W South Beach at 2201 Collins Ave in October 2024, buying out Aby Rosen (RFR Realty) and David Edelstein (Tricap), who co-developed the property
• The deal: 175 hotel rooms and 173 condo-hotel units on a 3.5-acre oceanfront site
• Marriott ends its operating agreement August 20; 337 employees are being let go effective August 19
• Approved renovations include a French patisserie in the lobby (85 interior seats, 88 outdoor), a redesigned hotel reception, new pool deck and pool bar, and a members-only social club

The Reubens Are Closing the W This Summer to Start Their Renovation

The W South Beach goes dark this August. Reuben Brothers, the London-based investment firm run by billionaire brothers Simon and David Reuben, is shutting down the iconic oceanfront hotel at 2201 Collins Avenue to begin a full renovation of the property they paid more than $400 million to acquire last October.

Marriott, which has operated the hotel under its W brand for years, will exit the property on August 20. The hotel sent a WARN Act notice to local officials on June 18, signed by HR director Alexandra Ain, confirming that 337 employees will be let go effective August 19, with no guarantee of future work. No new operator or reopening timeline has been announced.

Who the Reubens Are — and What They're Building in South Florida

Simon and David Reuben are the second-wealthiest family in the UK, with a combined net worth of £27.9 billion per the 2026 Sunday Times Rich List. Born in Bombay to a Baghdadi Jewish family, the brothers made their first fortune in Russian aluminum in the 1990s. At their peak, Trans-World was the world's third-largest aluminum producer before pivoting to global real estate across London, New York, Spain, and now South Florida.

The W is their biggest U.S. hotel play to date, and it fits a pattern. In 2022, Reuben Brothers paid $42 million for the 53-room Chesterfield Hotel in Palm Beach, which is reopening in 2025 as The Vineta under Germany's Oetker Collection. In 2020, they bought a 25 percent stake in JW Marriott Miami Turnberry Resort & Spa in Aventura alongside Jeffrey Soffer's Fontainebleau Development, which had just completed a $300 million renovation of the property. Three South Florida hotel bets in four years, each one larger than the last.

What the Renovation Looks Like

Miami Beach's Design Review Board approved a partial renovation package in April 2026, voting 6-0 on a slate of upgrades including a French patisserie carved into the lobby (85 interior seats, 88 outdoor), a redesigned hotel reception, new elevators, pool deck, and pool bar, and an arrival area off 22nd Street.

The Reubens had originally proposed a larger vision: a 237-seat beachfront restaurant, a 307-seat VIP lounge built out of the existing 250-seat nightclub, and a dedicated VIP valet drop-off. All three were put on hold after strong opposition from unit owners at the adjacent Roney Palace Condominium. The members-only social club component remains part of the plan.

The sellers, Aby Rosen's RFR Realty and David Edelstein's Tricap, had co-developed the W South Beach on the site beginning in the mid-2000s, completing the 20-story building in 2009. The relationship soured publicly in 2023 when Rosen and Edelstein filed dueling lawsuits against each other in Miami and New York, each accusing the other of trying to sabotage a buyout proposal, before privately settling in April of that year. Jeffrey Davis at Eastdil Secured brokered the October 2024 sale.

What's Next

The Reubens have not announced a new hotel operator or a reopening date. With Marriott out and the renovation now underway, the key question is which brand, if any, they attach to the reimagined property. Their Palm Beach playbook (Oetker Collection, a discreet European luxury flag) suggests they may be shopping for a comparable partner at the higher end of the Collins Avenue market.