Hussain Sajwani (born 1953) is an Emirati billionaire and founder of both DAMAC Properties, the world's leading real estate developer, and DICO Group, his investment arm.
DAMAC Properties topped the Forbes Global 2000 list of the world's fastest-growing companies in 2017, based on its compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of financial revenues from 2013 to 2016. In 2018, DICO Group signed a hotel partnership agreement with the Italian fashion house Roberto Cavalli to design the interiors of the upcoming Aykon Hotels in Dubai.
Before the group acquired the Italian fashion house in 2019, Hussain Sajwani was ranked among the 100 most influential Arabs in the world by Gulf Business magazine in 2017, 2018, and 2020, and among the 100 most powerful Arabs by Arabian Business magazine in 2018 and 2019.
In April 2021, Forbes magazine ranked Hussain Sajwani among the 10 richest Arabs in its "Arab Billionaires List 2021," with a fortune estimated at approximately $2.5 billion.
In 2022, Sajwani acquired the Swiss jewelry company, De Grisogono. The developers subsequently announced two projects in Dubai in collaboration with the Swiss company.
Upbringing and education
Born into a middle-class family in Dubai, Hussain Sajwani was the eldest of five children. His interest in business began at a very young age in his father's shop, which sold watches, pens, and imported goods from China. Sajwani received a government scholarship and enrolled in the College of Medicine at the University of Baghdad. After his first year there, he left for the US to study industrial engineering at the University of Washington, graduating in 1981.
Career
Sajwani began his career in 1981 as a contracts manager at the Abu Dhabi Gas Industries Company (GASCO), a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). Two years later, he established his own catering business, providing catering services to a number of major institutions and entities, most notably the US Army and Bechtel.
To this day, the company continues to operate under the name Global Logistics Services. In 2002, his foresight led him to recognize the potential and opportunities in the market, leading him to establish Damac Properties, which has grown exponentially to become one of the largest real estate development companies in the Middle East. Since its inception and until September 30, 2021, DAMAC Properties has delivered approximately 36,400 homes and has approximately 29,000 units under development and planning.
In October 2011, DAMAC Properties launched its hospitality division, DAMAC Maison Hotels & Resorts. In 2015, the company was officially listed on the Dubai Financial Market as a public joint stock company.
Among the most prominent projects developed by DAMAC Properties are a golf course managed by the Trump Organization and luxury apartments with interiors designed by prominent Italian fashion houses such as Versace, Fendi, and Roberto Cavalli. This is in addition to Paramount Hotels & Resorts, in partnership with Paramount Pictures.
Sajwani has also invested £600 million in London, UK, through the DAMAC Tower Nine Elms London project, which bears the Versace brand name. In June 2021, Hussain Sajwani resigned as Chairman of DAMAC Properties and made a full acquisition offer.
Corporate Social Responsibility
In 2017, the Hussain Sajwani-DAMAC Foundation signed an agreement with the Dubai Future Foundation to sponsor the "One Million Arab Coders" initiative, launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. The initiative aims to provide free programming training to one million young Arabs.
In February 2020, the Foundation donated AED 3 million (USD 816,000) to the "Hope Makers" initiative to build the Dr. Magdi Yacoub Heart Center in Aswan governorate (Egypt) In April 2020; the Hussain Sajwani-DAMAC Foundation donated AED 1 million to support the "100 Million Meals" campaign, the largest food distribution campaign in the UAE to those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Achievements and Awards
Recognition