RIZWAN SAJAN: REALTY KING
Edmund Hillary once famously said: "It is not the mountains we conquer but ourselves." Human history is replete with stories of people who faced challenges but persevered. They harnessed their minds' true potential while enduring numerous struggles. Indian expatriate stories are full of people who keep on moving forward, setting the bar higher each time. Top Expats continues to showcase every week inspiring achievements of Indian expatriates who challenged the unchallenged despite numerous setbacks. Indeed, these stories prove that no trial can thwart true tenacity.
Rizwan Sajan, Chairman of Danube Group, is one of the top stalwarts who despite hailing from a disadvantaged family went on to achieve enormous success in Dubai. True to his quote, "Life can throw you off gear, but it's your will and determination that keep your head above water," he, despite his chequered childhood days, successfully built his business empire as a first-generation entrepreneur. His story is one of resilience since his childhood. Despite growing up in challenging circumstances, he refused to let the obstacles define his future. Born in a middle-class family in Mumbai's Ghatkopar, a central suburb of the city, he faced several challenging situations as a teenager. Although his father once won a lottery, which proved to be a turning point for the family and thus allowing them to move into better living conditions, life was still full of challenges. His father passed away when Rizwan Sajan was 16 years old. The onus of responsibility of his family came upon his shoulders. As a teenager he sold books and fireworks on the street to support his family. Also, he delivered milk to supplement his family's income.
At the age of 18, Rizwan Sajan went to Kuwait with the help of his uncle. He began work at his uncle's building materials shop in Kuwait in 1981. Starting as a trainee salesman, he quickly climbed the career ladder. However, the Gulf War in 1991 forced him to return to Mumbai. Thereafter, he moved to Dubai in 1993 and started working at a hardware store. He started his own business with his wife Sameera Sajan, who supported him through thick and thin. His wife Sameera was his first employee. He set up a small trading firm, Danube, in 1993. Today, his company's turnover exceeds $1.4 billion, with operations in over 50 locations, employing more than 3,300 workers across the world.
Rizwan Sajan is today one of the richest Indians in the Emirates. Danube Group, a billion-dollar company, is one of the largest building materials suppliers, with diversified branches in all GCC countries and across the globe.
Danube Group
For Rizwan Sajan Dubai was the obvious choice for starting his business. Everything worked out in his favour and his business expanded rapidly, thanks to the business-conducive economy of the UAE. He launched Danube Group in 1993, which is now a diversified business conglomerate.
Danube Group has grown from a single store set up in Deira, Dubai, three decades ago to one of the most trusted brands in the Middle East. The multi-million-dollar Danube Group, a byword in the Emirates, has consistently been expanding its global footprint. With its headquarters in Dubai, today it has operations across the Middle East and Asia.
Danube Group owns many award-winning business verticals. Danube Building Material is the topmost building materials company of the region, offering more than 50,000 products under one roof. Danube Home is the fastest-growing furniture retail brand in the UAE, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar and Africa. The firm's Alucopanel is the first-of-its-kind brand globally. It's the first company in the Middle East to secure approval from Dubai Civil Defence for its Alucopanel A2 (Class A2-s1, d0) aluminium composite panels. Rizwan Sajan attributes the company’s major achievements to timely delivery of exceptional quality assets with record sales success. Danube Hospitality Solutions caters to the needs of the hospitality business. Its products and services are uncompromising in terms of design, and help customers deliver the finest standards to their valued patrons.
Danube Properties' latest project, Bayz101, is situated in the heart of Business Bay, Dubai. It will have a massive 101-level skyscraper with 1,346 homes. The 2.1-million sq. ft. sprawling Bayz101 marks Danube Properties’ largest venture to date both in terms of units and overall space. The project offers buyers a diverse range of living spaces, from chic studio apartments to spacious 4-bedroom homes, alongside retail options, catering to a slew of lifestyle preferences. Prices commencing from AED1.2 million ($327,000) for studio units, Bayz101’s total development value surpasses AED3 billion ($817 million). Danube Properties, the group's property development arm, is rated amongst Top 5 Developers in the UAE. Rizwan Sajan attributes the company’s major achievements to timely delivery of exceptional quality assets with record sales success. (Check the table below for Danube Luxury Homes prices.)
Danube Group is diversified in many other sectors. It launched the sanitary solutions brand, Milano (2006), Danube Home for Home Furnishing (2008), and Alucopanel dealing in aluminum composite panels (2012).
Rizwan Sajan never missed an opportunity and was not afraid to take chances to achieve success. He began the realty business in 2014, which proved to be a tremendous success. Today, Danube Group is one of the biggest business conglomerates, with a tie-up with brands, such as Aston Martin, Fashion TV, and Tonino Lamborghini Casa.
Unique Business Strategy
When Rizwan Sajan planned his foray into the realty business, Dubai’s real estate market was already dominated by many realty giants. He soon realised that in order to flourish in such a competitive market, he had to come up with a unique and innovative strategy. His in-depth analysis of the real estate sector made him realize that most expatriates living in the UAE being salaried workers always opted for renting apartments and shunned buying their own homes. He wished to leverage these potential home-buyers, thereby came up with a novel idea to convert these tenants into house-owners. As part of this plan, he introduced the 1% Plan, which proved to be a huge success while it made tenants into home-owners.
The 1% Plan lets buyers pay a small down-payment along with only one percent of the cost per month, while the remaining payment could be made after the completion of the project. This innovative scheme drew a large number of buyers, because it made owning a house affordable for many expats. This plan shifted the mindset of the expats, and made them believe that they could own a house. Many came forward to purchase homes, which is considered the major step in the success of Danube Group's realty business. This was such a huge success that in 2019, Rizwan Sajan was among the first foreigners who received the UAE's new 10-year residence visa in recognition of his group's contributions to the country’s economy. This kind of innovative thinking, business acumen and smart manoeuvres always made him successful in all his endeavours.
Says Danube Group's CEO Madhusudan Rao: "We are more than just a conglomerate. We are a community of passionate individuals dedicated to transforming the ordinary into the extraordinary...As a Group, we set high standards and strive to excel at every step. In our pursuit of excellence, we never lose sight of our responsibility towards the planet earth. Our commitment to environmental responsibility underscores every decision we make...from sourcing eco-friendly materials to implementing energy-efficient practices. We strongly believe that our greatest pride lies in the relationships that we have built along the way."
In 2023, The Good Plastic Company, the largest producer in sustainable materials, tied up with Danube Group for the exclusive distribution of its revolutionary surface material, Polygood, in the Middle East. With this partnership, The Good Plastic Company took another step towards the promotion of sustainable solutions in the region.
In 2022, Danube Group had an annual turnover of $2 billion (AED7 billion). In 2024, Danube Group's revenue was reportedly estimated at $813 million.
Awards and Recognitions
Rizwan Sajan has received the following accolades:
- Forbes Middle East ranked him 12th among the ‘Top 100 Indian leaders in the UAE’ List.
- He was awarded the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Business Excellence Award.
- He was named The Economic Times Global Indian Leader in 2022.
Philanthropy
Rizwan Sajan's difficult childhood and initial struggles made him realize the importance of giving back to society. He is involved in extensive philanthropic activities, including the following:
- Rizwan Sajan donated AED5 million towards the UAE government's ‘1 Billion Meals Endowment Initiative’ in 2023.
- In 2012, Danube Group started its welfare centre called the Danube Welfare Centre (DWC) to address difficulties faced by blue-collared individuals in the UAE. This initiative provides labourers training in English language and computer skills.
- The company serves Iftaar to many thousands of labourers every year during the Ramadan.
Rizwan Sajan's estimated personal net worth runs into billions of dirhams. As per the website of the Ministry of Economy, UAE, his estimated net worth was $2.5 billion, which is roughly Rs 20,830 crore in 2021.
How does he explain the fairytale journey that began from Mumbai's squalid suburbs to his opulent Dubai city? By expressing his gratitude, Rizwan Sajan says: "God has been kind to me."
(Photo: Danube Group Site)
Read ARTICLE Kumar Mahadevan: Culinary Guru
No comments
Post a Comment