How to Build an Empire with Billionaire Hotel Businessman Surinder Arora
Disruptors
Rob Moore
4.8 • 1.4K Ratings
🗓️ 22 November 2024
⏱️ 74 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
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From a 13-year-old immigrant who couldn't speak English to building a £2.5 billion hotel empire, Surinder Arora's story is nothing short of extraordinary. He joins Rob to share his journey from working as a waiter and British Airways clerk to becoming one of the UK's most successful hoteliers. With candid revelations about near bankruptcy, family sacrifice, and the importance of maintaining humility despite immense wealth, Arora gives his experiences and thoughts on business resilience, property investment, and the true meaning of success.
Surinder Arora REVEALS:
- How four houses bought for £161,000 in 1993 evolved into a hotel worth £50+ million
- How he survived the major financial crisis in 2008 when his company nearly collapsed
- How he outmanoeuvred British Airways and Heathrow Airport
- Why he developed his business philosophy from his mother's wisdom: "Never buy your name or reputation" and "Be a farmer, not a hunter"
- Why he maintains a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion in his business
BEST MOMENTS
"My dear mom used to say, son, in life, you can never buy your name or your reputation. So always be a farmer and not hunter. Don't just go for a quick kill. Don't miss sell. Don't cheat people."
"Life is like a wave. A lot of people will say they're winners when you're on top of the hill. In my world, the real winners are down in the valleys."
"I want to treat all the guests like royalty, and my staff like family."
"Never expect for life to just be in a straight line... since I started the business, you know, we've had valleys and hills. We had 9/11, then we had 7/7 then we had the 2008 financial crisis."
"We are all on this planet and we come with nothing. We're going to go with nothing."
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ABOUT THE HOST
Rob Moore is an author of 9 business books, 5 UK bestsellers, holds 3 world records for public speaking, entrepreneur, property investor, and property educator. Author of the global bestseller “Life Leverage” Host of UK’s No.1 business podcast “The Disruptive Entrepreneur”
“If you don't risk anything, you risk everything”
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | As a billionaire, what did you think of the budget? |
| 0:05.0 | Well, firstly, never believe what you read in the media, |
| 0:12.0 | millionaire or billionaire, and secondly, what they don't tell you is what currency. |
| 0:16.0 | So we won't talk about the budget was, look, you know, as a nation, we have spent a lot of money. |
| 0:25.9 | It's a bit like you and I, you know, if we spend too much money on our credit cards or on our bank overdraft, then we need to tighten our belts. |
| 0:33.5 | And I did have a lot of hope. |
| 0:35.6 | I think a lot of the nation was saying it's time that we want to change. And that was fine. |
| 0:43.8 | Because the conservatives, sadly, they really have no one else to blame and they should only be blaming themselves because they were so disjointed, so broken |
| 0:54.7 | internally. And whether that happens at home or in business or in politics. So it's their fault |
| 1:02.2 | for getting us and getting themselves kicked out. Then I thought, live in hope. Maybe we'll |
| 1:08.2 | get another, you know, the new party coming in. It could be another Blair type, |
| 1:14.5 | new labour. And then when we saw the budget last week, that was really heartbreaking. Hardbreaking, |
| 1:22.4 | in a sense, is very easy. You know, when during COVID, if you remember, |
| 1:28.3 | it happened very quickly. |
| 1:30.3 | Rishi Sunnet was the chancellor |
| 1:32.3 | and very quickly came out and said, |
| 1:36.3 | I'm going to pay all this money, |
| 1:38.3 | I'm going to do all the different schemes to support businesses |
| 1:43.3 | and individuals on furlough and everything else. |
| 1:46.0 | And I remember saying at that time, it's very easy to give others money away. |
| 1:52.0 | If any of us want to go and stand on the junction by the traffic lights and hand out 50-pound notes, |
| 1:58.0 | you would be the best person, best mate of this daily mail reader. |
... |
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