TRIBUTE
Sajid Dhanani
The spirit of Sayaji The late owner of the Sayaji Group of hotels, Sajid Razak Dhanani, was a complete people’s person, which is still reflected in the everyday functioning of the hotel chain. Hitesh Varma, CEO for business hotels, Sayaji Hotels, fondly remembers his late owner and shares with us his vision. By Reema Lokesh
H
itesh Varma, CEO for business hotels, Sayaji Hotels, proudly affirms to his late owner Sajid Razak Dhanani's belief that the core essence of Sayaji Hospitality commitment is to make people happy. It revolves around the sentiment to make the guests feel comfortable, feel free to demand, not get intimidated and experience the same warmth, personalisation and concern as one would feel at a friend’s place. Varma spent about four years in the company in two stints. “Earlier I joined Sayaji as quality head in 2008-09 for a year. Post which, I was inspired by him to start my own venture in Hyderabad. However I was called back to join as CEO for business hotels by Sajid sir (as I fondly called him) in 2011. I chose to handover my business to
my partner and come back as both of us shared common views on culture and values for our organisations,” reflects Varma. The man and his vision Varma adds that the vision of Sajid sir was to provide unparalleled personalised services, true value for money, innovative product, genuine care and concern for the guests. “He would always think of catering to all segments and age groups within his
Hitesh Varma
30 FOOD & HOSPITALITY WORLD January 1-15, 2014
properties. All his hotels had this unique comfort that would appeal to all. He envisaged building a chain of 40 hotels in the next five to seven years. Also the Barbeque Nation chain was planned to grow to 100 branches in the next few years as well as to take it international,” explains Varma. Highlighting his personal traits, Varma shares with us that Sajid sir was a very humble amd caring human being. “He always shared all his success with his team who he treated as family. He had a special gift of innovation and was a true visionary which is evident from his hotels and restaurants. He was always a firm believer that 'Change is the rule of the game'. He led his team from the front by demonstrating true customer first service. He was very fond of children and
youngsters. Always dressed in casuals, he was a prominent figure in the hotel lobby, meeting and greeting people at length,” reminesces Varma. He added that professionally, Sajid sir was a true leader as he would get down to the basics for any challenge with the team. He had a strong belief in his team and the inculcated some great values in the group like his pathbreaking decision of a ‘No tips policy’ across the group hotels at Indore, Pune and Barbeque Nation which the team still follows religiously. “He held very strong business ethics, his own value system and shared the company’s success with employees. He would support lot of social causes like organising Fun & Food evening for about 1200 specially kids every year on the hotel’s anniversary,” recalls Varma.
TRUE HOSPITALITY
I
t was in the month of October 2012, when I (Reema Lokesh) had the opportunity to stay at the Indore property of Sayaji Hotels. Unfortunately it was also during that same period the owner of the group Sajid Razak Dhanani fell ill - an illness that took away one of Indian hospitality’s most promising entrepreneurs. However, his work and his commitment to offer his guests the best in the business reflecting genuine hospitality is reflected in both the tangible and intangible elements of the group. I must confess, before I stepped into a truly hospitality setup I did enter with a mental block thinking it will be a homegrown hotel chain in one of India’s upcoming metro cities. However, I was pleasantly surprised to experience realtime hospitality and warmth without the typical fanfare and professional smiles. The staff at the hotel is the true asset and this was a perfect endorsement of its owner's commitment to ‘true hospitality’.