Eight years ago, I left my family, my life in London and, yes, a bit of my heart and soul to start a new journey back in my home country. When I joined Mont Choisy in April 2016, the organization was nothing more than a start-up, I was put up in an empty shop in a quasi empty shopping mall. There were some 5 employees in the “head office” and a dozen more in sugar and farming. Most people had never heard of Mont Choisy and did not recognize the brand. Assets (comprising agricultural land and the shopping mall) were worth Rs2.4billion, tiny compared to the big players. The IRS project, Le Parc de Mont Choisy and the championship golf course had just broken ground. For almost 3 years, it was a massive construction site with some 3,000 workers at its peak.
As I look back today, I am quite overwhelmed by what we have achieved in less than a decade with a very small team, the vision and courage of the family board and the support of many stakeholders/authorities. A few snapshots of this incredible story.
-Delivered 240 luxury homes, championship golf course, over 300 high end service plots to locals and foreigners;
-Delivered a Build and Lease private clinic operated by C Care, Le Boulevard de Mont Choisy, the Leisure and Wellness Centre and the renovation of the 200 years old Heritage Zone at the heart of Mont Choisy estate;
-Diversified our operations with 165 people employed across all the group companies;
-Rs15b in sales and over Rs600m paid in dividends to our shareholders despite some bad years and despite Covid-19;
- Assets have grown tenfold from Rs2.4b to Rs25b and we are due to add at least another Rs10b this year;
-Very low gearing;
-3 projects under construction and numerous others under various stages of design development;
-Designed the masterplan of the Mont Choisy Smart City, got the approval in 2019 over 529 arpents and the letter of intent for phase II of the Smart City (another 487 arpents) in 2023;
- Mont Choisy is recognized as a strong brand with a strong voice and we are in the top league today;
- Perhaps what is most fulfilling is the governance transformation of this tiny family run company into one where the best practice of corporate governance has been executed and is working successfully.
- Finally, I must not forget that we are perhaps the unique company in the “traditional private sector” where the shareholders have put their trust in non-family executives to manage their businesses. Trust comes with responsibility and a lot of hard work but this speaks volume of the family/shareholders and hopefully a model to be replicated.
This has been by any means phenomenal growth and expansion and a lot of hard work, drive and determination. This is only the beginning of the story. I hope we have laid the foundation for a new Grand Baie in a sustainable and inclusive manner during the many decades to come. Big thanks to all.
#MontChoisy #GrandBaie #transformation #vision #strategy #purpose
