New York – Brooklyn Orthdoox Businessman Snags #1 Category Ranking In Inc.’s 500 List

New York – A Brooklyn entrepreneur who owns five different companies has snagged a coveted spot on Inc. Magazine’s prestigious 500 List, an annual roster of the fastest growing privately held companies in the United States, placing 154th overall and earning the number one spot in the Travel and Hospitality category.

Eli Ostreicher, CEO of Borough Park based Regal Wings, which offers luxury and corporate travel services, prides himself on offering high end customer service and the personal touch to all his clients. The 29 year old Ostreicher, a Flatbush resident who grew up in London’s Stamford Hill watching the Concorde fly over his home, confessed to a lifelong fascination with airlines and travel. Yet building a premium travel company was an unusual move for someone who grew up in the heart of London’s insular chasidic community.

“I went to a yeshiva called Toras Chesed in Hitchin,” said Ostreicher. “We were secluded from the world. There was nothing there other than a little farm with goats. I was a pretty good learner and scored well on bechinas, but I knew I needed more. I always had that entrepreneurial spirit in me.”

Growing up in a house with a computer, a rarity at the time, Ostreicher had always had an affinity for technology. While his first venture into the business world was in the computer field, it was seven years ago that Ostreicher found his niche in the travel industry.

“I was living in Miami and running a business called Dr. Computer when I had an ‘aha moment’ talking to someone in shul about booking a trip to Asia,” Ostreicher told VIN News. “I had a contact in the airline industry and I suggested that maybe I could get him a better deal and that was how I got started and booked my first ticket.”

As Ostreicher continued booking tickets, he placed ads in London publications and realized he had discovered an untapped market.

“The niche was business class, first class,” explained Ostreicher. “They didn’t need me for economy tickets, those they could book online themselves. But these tickets were expensive tickets and since I knew the ins and outs or airlines, I had ways of getting things cheaper.”

Joining forces with a former yeshiva friend, Shabsi Gross, who ran a travel business in Brooklyn, the two compared notes and spent hours on the phone brainstorming.

“We realized that there was a big demand for personal service, telling people that you care,” said Ostreicher. “At the time we had no clue about business or payroll or anything like that but we learned it together.”

The two formed Regal Wings in 2006, with Ostreicher serving as CEO and Gross as CFO of the fledgling company, often staying at the office until well into the night.

“There were times we went home very late,” recalled Ostreicher. “And times that we didn’t go home at all.”

From their tiny office where they sat on opposite sides of the same desk, Ostreicher and Gross marketed their business aggressively, placing ads in local papers advertising their well priced luxury seats.

“There were times when we literally filled every seat in both business and first class on flights to Hong Kong during peak travel seasons,” recalled Ostreicher.

Today the company has offices in both New York and India with over 100 employees staffing phone lines around the clock and a client list that includes high profiles client including Walmart, Rolex and Berkshire Hathaway.

Ostreicher owns four other companies as well, three of which are travel related. The fourth, Harei At, is an online dating site for Jewish singles.

Ostreicher infuses the personal touch both into his transactions with clients as well as his relationships with his employees, whom he treats as family.

“There is no hierarchy in our office,” explained Ostreicher. “We keep a spreadsheet with everyone’s birthday and their favorite cake and when someone’s birthday comes, we all stop work for fifteen minutes and take the time to celebrate the event. I believe in taking the time to let each one of my employees know how much I appreciate them.”

Recently named to the Young Entrepreneur Council, a by invitation only organization whose membership consists of high profile business owners, Ostreicher admits to being more than a little overwhelmed at being recognized by Inc. from among thousands of applicants.

The Inc. 500, over the years, has featured giants including Pandora, 7 Eleven, Toys ‘R’ Us, Zipcar and Zappos.com.”