< PreviousCOVER STORY Dr DHANANJAY DATAR “PEOPLE OFTEN GET IMPRESSED WITH THE GLEAM OF WEALTH AND THEREFORE TRY TO SHOW OFF LUXURY. IF YOU WANT THE SAME RESPECT FROM OTHERS IN THE FUTURE, WORK HARD AND ACQUIRE PROSPERITY” 20 CEO MIDDLE EAST 15–30 APRIL 202415–30 APRIL 2024 CEO MIDDLE EAST 21 SELF-MADE BILLIONAIRE Meet the Masala King, Dr. Dhananjay Datar, the Chairman and Managing Director of Al Adil Trading Company COVER STORY ne of the famous young Bol- lywood singers, Stebin Ben, quotes in his talk: “Behind every self-made man is a poor kid who followed his dreams.” Yes! It is right. There are and were many successful personalities, who proved themselves to be an ideal example of this quote. Masala King Dr. Dhananjay Datar, a self-made billionaire, is one such classic example. The success story of Datar is highly inspirational to every business- minded person. His journey, similar to an intriguing movie, has a lot of coincidences, ups and downs, shocking as well as humorous incidences. Born in a modest Maharashtrian family, his childhood passed in poverty – teaching him self-reliance, frugality and hard work. These qualities awak- ened within him the spirit of struggling batch. Datar couldn’t tolerate the insult and returned home disappointed. With tears in eyes, he told the entire story to his mother. She convinced him: “Son, in today’s world respect is given only to the prestige of a person. People often get impressed with the gleam of wealth and therefore try to show off luxury. If you want the same respect from others in the future, work hard and acquire prosperity.” The boy never forgot the insult and always remembered the valu- able words of his mother. Datar took his primary educa- tion from a Zilla Parishad School in rural Maharashtra and later shifted to Mumbai for middle school. He was an average student in his class and more inclined to the playground than academic education. In those days, a passion for sales awakened in him. O against all odds. There is one memora- ble incidence from his childhood. Datar, a village boy who grew up abjectly poor, was once invited to attend a ban- quet. Just before the meal was served, an elderly person came to him and ar- rogantly ordered him to vacate the seat. He said that the first batch of the ban- quet was reserved for prestigious guests and Datar should wait for the second 3.2 million The number of people who follow Dhananjay Datar on Instagram as of 15 April 2024 22 CEO MIDDLE EAST 15–30 APRIL 2024 COVER STORY Dr DHANANJAY DATARCOVER STORY Dr DHANANJAY DATAR After school hours and on holidays, he would collect tamarinds from nearby trees and sell them to housewives and schoolchildren. Later in college days as well he sold phenyl and instant mixes door to door in the Mumbai suburbs. Although without any entrepreneurial or steady financial background, he dreamt of owning a business at a young age and learned the art of selling. At a tender age, he naively dreamt of instant fortune and wealth. For that, he wanted to go to Dubai for any job which would offer a handsome salary. But the wheels of fortune are strange to understand. Datar’s father, Mahadevrao, then working in Dubai, got the opportunity to enter the busi- ness field in his near-to-retirement age. Mahadevrao noticed that the Indian community in Dubai needed its cultural foodstuffs, but there weren’t adequate providers. Hence, he estab- lished a small grocery shop and retail business under the title of Adil Trading Company, and young Datar went there to assist him. Datar started his business career in 1984 as an intern in his father’s business. In the very first year their business suf- fered a huge loss. They had no reserves to cover it, so the father-son duo thought of winding up the business. But Datar’s mother, Shashikala, a wom- an of invincible confidence, sold her en- tire jewellery – even her gold marriage necklace (Mangalsutra), and thus raised the money. She revived them with a small message: “Time changes. Do not take the foot back which you have put forward for business.” This incident transformed Datar and inspired him to take up entrepreneurship gravely and determinedly. He worked very hard, devoting 16 hours a day to business only and ate whatever was available. He used to do sweeping, cleaning and carrying heavy bags initially and gradu- ally learned the management of a shop under his father’s wise tutelage. In those challenging days, Datar and his father had adopted a frugal lifestyle owing to their pressed economic condi- tion. He couldn’t even afford a bicycle, Datar’s journey reflects the principles of self-reliance and a strong determination to face challenges15–30 APRIL 2024 CEO MIDDLE EAST 23 Dr DHANANJAY DATAR COVER STORYDr DHANANJAY DATAR COVER STORY Datar’s entrepreneurial drive led him to transform the modest establishment into the renowned Adil Group so he would deliver goods by walking to the customer’s houses. Whenever he was sent to purchase spices from Deira, he would often opt for an Abra (wooden boat) to save money. There was a flour mill near his shop owned by an elderly Bangladeshi trader. He would address him as Mullah Cha- cha (uncle). He was a kind-hearted and taciturn businessman. Besides the mill, he was involved in the wholesale spice trading business in Deira. Datar’s father and Mullah Chacha were good friends. He would purchase some of his spices from Mullah Chacha and also get his grains ground in his mill. Chacha was fond of young Datar. He taught him to operate the machinery in the mill. He would always inspire Datar by saying: “Young man! Always remember that hard work and skill are never in vain.” Once, as usual, Datar had gone to Deira to purchase spices. After his work was finished, he dropped by Mullah Chacha’s office. He greeted Datar smil- ingly and enquired about purchases. While conversing he informed Datar that a few days back he had received high quality stock of red chilli powder and insisted that he should purchase at least a 40kg bag. Since Datar had spent their entire budget in other purchases, he was about to decline his offer. Un- derstanding his difficulty, Chacha patted his back and said with assurance: “Son! Don’t let go of good quality things. I will give you the bag on credit.” Datar listened to his advice and carried the heavy bag on his shoulders. It was a boiling summer afternoon, and the temperature was 45 degrees Celsius. The chilli powder mixed with his sweat and his skin began burning. But he didn’t care and, after walking 5km, finally brought the bag into the shop. Since the powder was of really excel- lent quality, the entire stock was sold in a fortnight, and he earned a handsome profit. The first profit after the loss brought a breeze of happiness and hope. The incident really inspired him to take up entrepreneurship seriously. Whenever he remembered the sacrifice made by his mother, his vow not to return home defeated and empty-handed would be even more cemented. He began work- ing rigorously, devoting his time solely to business. After a penance of three years, the father-son duo succeeded in establishing their business with a firm foot and their small shop started to earn a good profit. The first thing Datar did then was to repurchase his mother’s entire jewellery. When he returned home after a long three and a half years, and handed over her cherished jewellery- even her pre- cious Mangalsutra - she embraced her son affectionately and patted his head proudly. Both of them had tears in their eyes. When she caressed Datar’s cheek with love, it was the highest honour in the world for him. Another memorable incidence, which brought the greatest turning point in his life, happened around the same time. He was only a layman in business, so his father suggested for him to learn the practical experience of running a shop. He accepted an internship in a superstore. There he did everything to learn about shop management. He was enjoying every task assigned to him, except one. He felt nauseated when handling beef and pork and avoided the job of packaging it. One day the shop owner called him and asked him the reason. Datar admitted that being a vegetarian, touching the “TIME CHANGES. DO NOT TAKE THE FOOT BACK WHICH YOU HAVE PUT FORWARD FOR BUSINESS”24 CEO MIDDLE EAST 15–30 APRIL 2024 COVER STORY Dr DHANANJAY DATAR meat felt disgusting to him. The owner laughed and gave him an important piece of advice by saying: “Young man! I am a staunch Jain vegetarian who ab- stains from tasting garlic and onions in everyday meals also. But this is my busi- ness. Here customer’s needs are impor- tant; hence I don’t bring my personal likes and dislikes to my store. Mind well – work is work and should not be treated as superior or inferior. Don’t feel ashamed to do any work.” His advice was an eye-opener and since then Datar never hesitated to do any job. Datar’s father retired from the busi- ness and handed over the responsibility to his son. He wanted to expand the business, but he was rather reluctant to take bank loans for it. Then an incident took place that changed his entire perspective and inculcated the habit of saving in him. In those days he would enjoy a cup of tea and some refreshments in a nearby restaurant every evening. One day he noticed that the restaurant owner had kept two tins under his cash counter. He asked him the reason, and the shop owner smilingly told that they were meant for saving. Every day he drew two notes of AED100 each from the income and stored them aside in the tins. At the end of the month each tin contained a pool of AED3,000. He would use the money from the first tin to cover expenses like bills and wages, and the amount from the other tin would be his profit. The owner proudly told him that he had never needed to borrow once he started saving daily. Fascinated by the idea, Datar fol- lowed the same strategy in his shop. Datar has been honoured with various international and national awards for his business excellence and quality of products “MIND WELL – WORK IS WORK AND SHOULD NOT BE TREATED AS SUPERIOR OR INFERIOR. DON’T FEEL ASHAMED TO DO ANY WORK”15–30 APRIL 2024 CEO MIDDLE EAST 25 Dr DHANANJAY DATAR COVER STORY He even dared to save AED500 daily in both tins and resolved to open it only when the year ended. At the onset of the new year, he opened the tins - and there was a massive AED180,000 in his hands. With that investment he opened a new shop in Abu Dhabi. The next year he had a whopping corpus of AED360,000. From this amount he opened his third shop in Sharjah. Datar continued to use this saving technique. When his savings reached AED540,000, he started a spice processing plant from the investment. The magic of saving and compounding made it possible for him to expand his business multifold. Datar faced a lot of challenging incidents in life. He escaped narrowly from the clutches of death four times. During the Iraq-Kuwait war in 1990, Dubai faced severe war fear and a moment came when his business was almost on the verge of ruin - but he escaped from it. He always followed the mantra of hard work: Determi- nation, honesty, customer service, courtesy; which turned Datar, once a small shopkeeper, into a billionaire and the Masala King of Dubai. He worked patiently and passionately and expanded the number of super- stores in UAE and neighbouring Gulf countries. In 39 years, he carved the world- famous Adil Group of super stores out of his tiny shop. Recognised as an ISO 22000, HACCP, GMP, GHP certified company in 2006, Adil Group under the leadership of Datar has performed a key role in bringing more than 9,000 Indian products to the UAE. The group also produces more than 700 products within categories like readymade flours, spices, pickles, jams, Namkeen and instants, under its own brand, named Peacock. Today, his group encompasses of a chain of 50 spacious super stores spread across the Gulf countries, two spice factories, two flour mills equipped with modern technology, and an import-ex- port company. He has created employ- ment for hundreds of Indian workers and given them the opportunity to work abroad. The rulers of UAE gave Datar a prestigious award and the title Masala King in 2001 for his invaluable contribution to the business sector. Datar has been honoured with various international and national awards for his business excellence and quality of products. Recently he has been ranked eight among the top ten Indian billionaires in the GCC region, by the world-renowned media house Arabian Business. He was continuously in the list of the top Indian leaders in the Arab world for many years. Besides, he has been conferred with business awards from countries such as the UAE, USA, UK, France, Ger- many, Switzerland and Spain. A boy in his twenties came to Dubai 39 years ago from India with a mere AED30 in his pocket and today he is Dr. Dhananjay Datar - Chairman and Managing Director, Adil Group of supermarkets, popularly known as the Masala King. His success is entirely attributed to his honesty, hard work, determination, perseverance, and excellent customer service. Adil Group has performed a key role in bringing more than 9,000 Indian products to the UAE26 CEO MIDDLE EAST 15–30 APRIL 2024 merging markets continue to witness interest from Middle Eastern investors, including sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) and other state-owned investors. These en- tities are actively expanding their global investment footprint, with a keen eye recently announced a significant invest- ment in an Indian retail giant, under- scoring the growing interest in India as an attractive investment destination. Investing within emerging markets warrants a nuanced approach, par- ticularly when considering the role of China. The country’s economic prowess and expansive capital mar- kets have naturally positioned it as a dominant player within emerging markets. Yet, the strategic decision to segregate China from the broader emerging market portfolio is gaining traction among investors. This move is not a reflection of a bearish stance on Chinese equities, on the contrary, it is a sophisticated strategy to optimise asset allocation and manage risk more effectively. We can view emerging markets excluding China as a nascent version of Asia without Japan. Investing within emerging markets warrants a nuanced approach, particularly when considering the role of China DIVERSIFYING INTO EMERGING MARKETS BEYOND CHINA China’s economic prowess and expansive capital markets have naturally positioned it as a dominant player within emerging markets BY JAMES MCDERMOTTROE, FUND MANAGER, INVESCO E INVESTMENTS on India and other Asian nations. This trend is further evidenced by the ramp up of investments in Asia across various sectors, such as health- care, real estate, infrastructure, trans- portation, and consumer services. The Qatar sovereign wealth fund INVESTMENTS 15–30 APRIL 2024 CEO MIDDLE EAST 27 Why separate China from emerging markets? The rationale for considering emerg- ing markets without China hinges on several key factors. Firstly, it address- es the issue of country concentration risk. As China has grown to represent a significant portion of the emerging market index, separating the two is crucial to mitigating potential risks associated with overexposure to a single country. Furthermore, China’s unique economic and regulatory landscape presents specific challenges and op- portunities that may not align with an investor’s risk profile or investment objectives. By treating China as a distinct investment destination, inves- tors can tailor their exposure to align with their strategic goals, whether that means increasing, decreasing, or maintaining a separate allocation to Chinese equities. The benefits of emerging markets Investing in emerging markets ex China offers increased exposure to sec- tors such as IT, financials, and energy. This diversification can lead to a more balanced and resilient investment strategy, capable of weathering market volatilities and capitalising on global growth trends. Performance and opportunities The performance of emerging mar- kets, with or without China, has been competitive over the past decade. This indicates that excluding China does not inherently diminish the potential for robust returns. Instead, it under- scores the richness of opportunities available across the spectrum of emerg- ing economies. Countries like Brazil, Mexico, India, South Korea and Taiwan, in particular, offer compelling investment narratives. From the semiconduc- tor boom fuelling AI advancements in Taiwan and South Korea to the burgeoning consumer, healthcare, and financial sectors across these markets, the growth prospects are both diverse and compelling. A forward-looking strategy The decision to invest in emerging markets without China, and tailor asset allocation to China, recognises the multifaceted nature of investment opportunities and the importance of a tailored approach to risk management and growth. This nuanced approach enables investors to embrace the vast potential of China’s market while also exploring the broad array of opportunities pre- sented by other emerging economies. It’s a strategy that harmonises diver- sification with targeted investment, potentially facilitating a pathway to robust returns and sustainable growth across the vibrant spectrum of emerg- ing markets. Investing in emerging markets offers increased exposure to sectors such as IT (pictured), financials, and energy The strategic decision to segregate China from the broader emerging market portfolio is gaining traction among investors, says McDermottroe 50.1% The contribution of the emerging market countries to the global GDP in 2023, according to a report from World Economics28 CEO MIDDLE EAST 15–30 APRIL 2024 espite the ongoing volatility in the global macroeconomic environment since last year, the real estate sector is anticipated to gain momentum as 2024 progresses. Globally, markets are expected to sta- bilise, providing more predictable out- comes and opportunities for growth. The shadow of risks in the first half of the year is expected to give way their space requirements, emphasis- ing aspects such as location, quality, design, and amenities. This deliber- ate effort aims to create offices that are not only ‘commute-worthy’ but also align with the return-to-office directives, foster stronger employee engagement, and ultimately enhance overall performance. Furthermore, corporate real estate leaders will lead the paradigm shift as they move from operating static assets to managing dynamic workplaces, calling for a seamless adaptation to changing occupancy levels and busi- ness requirements throughout any given day or week. In this dynamic environment, technology is emerging as a critical ally capturing the kind of Futuristic approach, tech innovations, and high green space demand unlock value for UAE real estate in 2024 AIMING HIGH The influx of HNWIs into the UAE further reinforces the stable business environment, world-class infrastructure, and high living standards in the country BY JAMES ALLAN, CEO, MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA, JLL D REAL ESTATE to signs of recovery, presenting new opportunities globally for real estate occupiers. As the emphasis on quality intensifies in high-demand sectors, oc- cupiers are expected to further solidify workplace policies and strategically align portfolios with the ever-evolving nature of work. Occupiers are actively enhancing their existing facilities and refining REAL ESTATE 15–30 APRIL 2024 CEO MIDDLE EAST 29 data needed to make informed deci- sions about footprint size, location, and type of office spaces. Therefore, investments in technology will en- able corporates to test and learn from artificial intelligence (AI) pilots and leverage workplace data to enhance and optimise portfolio management. With more businesses and industries increasingly adopting digital transfor- mation strategies, firms are beginning to receive more data about buildings and people. The availability and access to real-time data is transforming real estate operations today, delivering tangible value for organisations across various sectors by enhancing opera- tions, improving customer experiences, and unlocking unprecedented opportu- nities. As a result, the global data centre market has emerged as a fast-growing sector across many geographies, riding on the increased adoption of AI within the real estate sector and beyond. Alongside technology, sustain- ability too remains central to driving growth in 2024. The growing impact of climate change and regulatory pressures has already seen more than half of the world’s largest companies commit to more efficient, zero-carbon buildings in the future. This trend presents a significant opportunity for sustainable building developers to ac- celerate retrofits and meet the increas- ing demand for low-carbon footprint and net-zero structures. The positive momentum of the real estate landscape in the Middle East in 2023 sets the pace for continued growth and transformation in 2024, buckling global trends. Driven by robust diversification strategies and bolstered by tourism and infrastructure investments and the rise of mega and giga projects, the real estate sector will continue its upward trajectory and provide strong investment opportuni- ties across a varied property portfolio. In the UAE, especially, real estate is well-positioned as a top performer credibility in the nation’s reputation as a secure investment destination. The post-pandemic influx of High- Net-Worth Individuals (HNWI) into the UAE, particularly in Dubai, further reinforces the stable business environ- ment, world-class infrastructure, and high living standards in the country. Today, the UAE is also reaping the benefits of its economic diversification policy. Tourism, transport, and logis- tics continue to be strong drivers of growth alongside commerce and trade. In the UAE’s retail sector, a futurist approach is visible, with mall operators in the UAE leveraging cutting-edge technologies to redefine the customer experience with immersive environ- ments and the seamless integration of online and offline shopping. These for- ward-thinking operators will shape the future of retail in the region through the creation of experiential destinations that captivate and engage shoppers. The increased focus on tech innova- tion will also see hospitality operators harness data-driven insights, advanced analytics, and AI to capitalise on the changing business mix and optimise pricing strategies to deliver personalised experiences that exceed the expectations of their discerning clientele. “THE REGION’S REAL ESTATE SECTOR WILL CONTINUE ITS UPWARD TRAJECTORY AND PROVIDE STRONG INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES ACROSS A VARIED PROPERTY PORTFOLIO” The strong performance of the UAE’s real estate sector reflects the success of the country’s visa and residency reforms, Allan says in 2024. In line with global trends, the growing preference for premium office spaces and the shift towards sustain- able practices will drive growth in the office market this year, while interna- tional occupiers will seek high-quality green office spaces, aligning with their broader carbon commitments. The strong performance of the UAE’s real estate sector also reflects the success of the ongoing visa and residency reforms. The introduction of a 10-year residency visa has been a game-changer, boosting investor confidence, encourag- ing long-term investments, and driving Next >