Bhaluka's luxury face

Bhaluka, a small town in Mymensingh that has already become a hub of enhanced economic activities, is going to have more feathers in its cap -- an upscale five-star hotel, a high-end private housing project, a globally reputed school and a private economic zone.

These projects, undertaken by Best Holdings Limited (BHL), are designed to equip the sprawling suburb with modern amenities and services for the comfort of people living in or travelling to the area for job or business.

The group will invest a whopping Tk3,500 crore in these projects on around 850 acres of land, which will create thousands of new jobs, its chairman and a pioneer in Bangladesh's construction sector Amin Ahmad has said. 

The Marriott Bhaluka, a hotel of Marriott International, USA, will be a 228-room luxurious property by the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway near Mawna to cater to businesses and foreigners visiting the area, which is housing hundreds of factories varying from garments to textiles, ceramics, pharmaceuticals, and float glass.

In fact, the entire area will be ameliorated to a township, where branches of eight banks, 120 showrooms and two cineplexes will be built, Ahmad told The Business Standard in a recent interview at his office in Dhaka's Nikunja.

In addition to the Marriott Bhaluka hotel, the BHL is also building The Muslin, a luxury collection brand resort of Marriott International, USA, at Mamarishpur in Bhaluka.

But what has driven Ahmad to pour so much money into a luxury hotel and school in Bhaluka, an upazila located 50 kilometres away from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport?

According to Ahmad, there are around 5,000 industries in and around the area, where scores of foreigners visit but cannot find any good place to stay and enjoy leisure. The lack of hospitality for international visitors in the area motivated him to invest in a luxury hotel, resort and school in Bhaluka.

He has conducted research to make sure that his upscale hotel and resorts in Bhaluka will pay returns faster than those in Dhaka.

Ahmad's passion for development is not limited to the hospitality industry. He is building a 1,000-student capacity high-end residential school, namely Haileybury Bhaluka, a joint venture with Haileybury UK, one of the world's leading independent schools in the UK.

"Everything is ready and the school will be opened this year and a British principal has been appointed to run the school," said Ahmad, who has invested Tk700 crore in setting up this globally reputed chain school.

Ahmad's Big Dream 

Ahmad believes that without a big dream, no one can ascend to the top of a ladder. He said he is surprised to see that no one in the private sector of Bangladesh, home to 170 million people and an emerging economy, dared to take on a billion-dollar project yet. He blamed the lack of foresight and knowledge about sustainable development for this.

But Ahmad likes to dream big. He started his business career as a contractor in the late 1980s. His construction firm has built over 200 bridges across the country, like Teesta, Dharala, Daratana, Bhairab, Brahmaputra, Kanchan, Dholashori, Toilerdeep, 3rd Karnaphuli etc.

He is not in the public construction business now. Since 2009, he has focused on his own infrastructure projects. He began to make his dream a reality with Le Meridien Dhaka, even though that journey was not as smooth as he initially thought.

He started the works of Le Meridien in 2006, but he had to halt all works soon due to political turmoil. Resuming work in 2009, he finally built the hotel in 2015, which went into operation in 2016. But in the meantime, his Tk462 crore bank loan ballooned to Tk1,800 crore including the interest burden.

"I was able to convert part of this loan into equity shares. Besides, this hotel is making profits now," Ahmad said.

The success in building Le Meridien made him more confident in undertaking more expensive hotel projects.

The construction of Marriott Bhaluka, designed for those travelling frequently for business and recreational purposes, is nearing its end and is set to open in December this year. Ahmed has invested Tk1,200 crore in this hotel.

He is building a Tk1,385 crore luxury brand resort of Marriott International, namely The Muslin Luxury Collection, which will be launched in 2024. He is making this luxury project on a sprawling 57 acres of land.

Besides, he is building 100 luxury villas on 30 acres of land for individual uses costing about Tk450 crore. This three-bedroom duplex house will be sold to individuals and maintained by Marriott International.

Why is Ahmad interested in the hospitality sector?

Amin Ahmad, a man who avoids publicity, said he bought 850 acres of land in Bhaluka 16 years ago. Land, which is a very scarce thing and has lots of disputes and enough to drag a project in Bangladesh, gave him the boost to think big.

Now he is developing all his dream projects including infrastructure, education, health, real estate, private economic zone, food and agriculture, and industrial projects, on this land.

He also has a plan to establish a 1,000-bed hospital in Bhaluka, for which he is looking for an international chain partner.

Despite his remarkable achievements, Ahmad lives a simple life and passes this lifestyle on to his children who have preferred to be teachers instead of relishing the empire their father built over the years.