Lord Paul heads list as total wealth tops £5bn

ASIAN BUSINESS AWARDS CELEBRATE MIDLANDS SUCCESS

BRITISH INDIAN industrialist and peer Lord Swraj Paul has taken the top spot in Eastern Eye’s Asian Rich List Midlands 2018, with an estimated fortune of £800 million, followed by food entrepreneur Ranjit Singh Boparan (£740m) in second place and steel tycoon Sanjeev Gupta (£275m) in third.

Published by the Asian Media Group (AMG), the publication was unveiled at the Asian Business Awards at Leicester’s Winstanley House last Friday (27).

Now in its sixth year, the Asian Rich List Midlands reflects the success of the community in the region. This year the combined overall net worth of the featured 51 Midlands-based millionaires has topped the £5 billion mark (an increase of £400 million over the past 12 months), with the top 10 being valued at over £3 billion.

West Midlands mayor Andy Street, who unveiled the latest edition, praised the community for their achieve­ments, adding that their hard work and determination to succeed were exemplary.

Lord Paul, 87, is chairman of the Caparo Group, which has steel plants in the UK and US, automobile factories in India as well as a property portfolio. He said Caparo’s flourishing businesses are a tribute to his son Angad, who died in 2015 aged 45.

There are seven new entries this year. At number 14 and the highest new entry is Bobby Kalar with an esti­mated wealth of £95m. He started his entrepreneurial career in care homes before turning his attention to the energy sector. Kalar sold Redrose Care in 2002 and set up Yu Energy. Headquartered in Nottingham, it focuses on the business end of the trade and Kalar believes it can beat its threefold revenue increase in 2017 this year.

Pritpal Singh Landa is also a new entrant, ranked 41 in the list. He runs DSL Group, a petrol forecourt pro­motions company, along with his three brothers. The family has investments in other sectors such as prop­erty, both commercial and domestic and

document storage and management business through an entity called Docubank.

Shane Thakrar, 34, whose family firm HKS Retail are number 12 on the list, told the Asian Rich List Midlands there was a lot to be proud of, both generally and for the region itself.

“It’s been a great home to us,” he said of Leicester. “The Midlands is a diverse area with a great economy and it’s a powerful place with so many pockets of differ­ent trades.”

A property magnate and one of the most respected business figures in the Midlands, Paul Bassi (at number 16), predicted a bright future for the region, saying: “Birmingham and the West Midlands, in particular, look set to enter a new golden era.”

Some of the 51 entrepreneurs featured in the Asian Rich List Midlands have seen rapid growth in the past 12 months despite political uncertainties.

Among the fast risers are Kailash and Suman Suri, who have climbed from 34 to 21 this year. Kailash started out in agriculture, but is better known now as the owner of Reel Cinemas, an independent cinema chain.

Joginder Pal and Harjot Singh Anand, who own Anand International, a wholesale trade distribution business in batteries and electronics, also saw better fortunes in the past year. Revenue at the business, which is based in Melton Road, Leicester, rose to £43m last year (until June), and while the operating profit of £2m might not seem enormous, the business has no debt, and strong cash reserves. They moved from 44th position to 36th this year.

Shailesh Solanki, executive editor of AMG and one of a panel of four experts who has examined British Asian wealth over the past 12 months for the Asian Rich List Midlands, said: “The Midlands has, for a long time, been a beacon of success for the UK. The list shows the remarkable strength and diversity of Asian businesses in the region.

“And with Brexit on the horizon, and uncertainty over future trading relationships with Europe and the world, this comprehensive list proves that British Asian businesses in the Midlands have the desire, flair and know-how to continue to flourish.”

The evening also saw the recognition of Asian entre­preneurship and business success.

Chief guest Heather Wheeler, parliamentary under-secretary of state at the department for Housing, Com­munities and Local Government, honoured outstand­ing business achievements across industries.

Cofresh, one of Britain’s leading Indian snacks brand, collected the coveted Asian Business of the Year Award.

A further seven awards were handed out at the glit­tering ceremony.

Wheeler praised the Midlands as a region where “we make stuff”, referring to the presence of JCB, Bombar­dier, Rolls Royce and Toyota and added, “we are hugely proud of that”.

She also noted that Coventry would host the year of culture in 2020 and that the Commonwealth Games would be held in Birmingham in 2022.