Page 26 - James Caan - The Real Deal
P. 26

The Real Deal



                As I got a bit older, my dad became increasingly keen on
             educating me about the business, and I was equally keen to learn
             everything he could tell me. It was just accepted that I would join
             him, and he often talked of opening a boutique selling leather
             goods that I could run. Business was a lot more interesting to me
             than school, so I was happy to be involved, and now my father
             started to ask my opinion on whether he should change suppliers,
             or find new clients.
                My father worked extremely hard to replace the savings he’d
             spent after the fire. I couldn’t understand why he still wanted to
             return to Pakistan, but that was his mindset. So Monday to Friday
             he’d be in his workshop, or overseeing orders he outsourced to
             factories. On Saturdays he would visit clients, going to their
             boutiques and meeting their customers so that he could see what
             they were buying and pick up ideas; and Sundays were spent
             seeking out new clients in new neighbourhoods and finding out
             what they needed.
                Watching him taught me two very important lessons: firstly, that
             nothing is achieved without dedication and effort; and secondly, that
             there is little point in hard work if you can’t take the time to enjoy
             the rewards of that effort. I loved and respected my father, but I was
             slowly realising that I would never be able to dedicate myself to a job
             that involved working seven days a week with no time for fun.
                Because of my elder brother Azam’s academic bent, he was
             encouraged in his studies and everyone expected him to go to
             university and become a banker or an accountant. I had always
             shown more interest in the business, and so I was the natural
             successor. For my dad, the business was never just about earning
             money: it was about building something for the future, something
             that would be passed down through the generations to support the
             entire family. My interest in the business was therefore a great
             source of satisfaction for him, and he was nearly as keen for me
             to finish school as I was.




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