Kent-born serial entrepreneur Raj Dhonota made his name on the BBC’s first Apprentice series in 2005. He has launched eight businesses and twice being declared bankrupt. He is planning his next tech venture in California.
My first job was at HSBC (HSBA.L) and it was the only time I have been in employment, which has never really worked out for me. Perhaps this is due to politics at large organisations or people holding me back.
I arrived at the bank straight from university as a law graduate. My first line manager was great. She was able to spot talent and wanted me to progress up the ranks a lot quicker than normal, after three months she put me towards a graduate programme.
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However her manager wanted to retain me in my position for 18 months, for his own benefit, before moving me on. I felt my career was being held back; I looked at people who had been there for over 30 years and the division manager with the lack of responsibilities he had. It just wasn’t enticing back then in the late 1990s.
This led me on to the path of self-employment. I saw what HSBC was doing with a push towards centralising operations and making work more efficient.
I took the concept into the property market and put together a business called H for Homes, in a similar style to British online estate agent Purple Bricks, albeit one that came 20 years too early.
I’ve tended to take the high-risk options which have really pushed my buttons. I think it is unique and something that has marked me out. It’s why I’ve had some huge successes but also a couple of significant setbacks — but that was the path I chose.
For me, it’s been about taking something new and growing it. It’s the challenge of conceptualising something and everyday being a struggle in terms of launching and getting the initial traction.
Of the eight ventures I’ve launched so far, I’ve been successful with six and bookended by two failures, which have been painful. All my businesses have, though, been ahead of their time.
I had one business called Global Proximity, which outsourced large data to offshore locations and was perhaps the most boring business I had. I grew my second business, an online translation agency, over five years which led to a significant, eight-figure exit for me in 2008. Each business has been based around tech and growing from scratch.
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My last business was struggling and COVID was the nail in the coffin. We were providing support to 400 tech entrepreneurs similar to me. From that portfolio we didn’t get the number of exits we expected which led to financial struggles.
The most important aspect of starting a business is the team around you. They are there to help you push towards whatever business aims you have.
People management is super important and sometimes it’s where businesses typically struggle. If you can’t bring all the staff with you, then you won’t achieve what you potentially can.
I don’t know where I’ve got it from, but I do pay a lot of attention to detail. It is one of the pillars for success. I will spend months looking at every single angle and looking at trends and what everyone is doing in the space.
In 2005, I was coming to the end of my first bankruptcy in which I couldn’t operate for three years on a self-employed basis. I was planning my next venture and on the BBC homepage I saw a picture of Lord Sugar who was looking for the 14 best entrepreneurial minds in the country. I felt it might be a serious business challenge but obviously the experience was a bit different!
I got through the interviews on the basis of what I had done with my first estate agent business. And although it failed, ultimately it was something different and showed where I was in terms of business mentality and what I wanted to achieve. I have no doubt that it played a major part in me getting on to The Apprentice.
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When I eventually started my second business, it didn’t end up where it started off after the initial idea. You always have to be bold but if you do your research in the first instance, be prepared to evolve and change.
It was where I failed with H for Homes. Those closest to me were saying to give myself a high street presence so the psychological obstacle with house sellers’ minds wasn’t there.
I stuck with my guns and if I had taken the advice it may have been a success. Respond to what the market is telling you and make sure you are close to that.
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