Businessman Kulappuarachige Don Dhammika Perera’s story is somewhat similiar to the success stories of entrepreneurs of the calibre of Maliban Mudalali.
Venturing out into business at the tender age of 19 with no entrepreneurial background and not having the right connections nor the right social background as it were, and starting-out with only Rs 500 in his pocket, now, 15 years later, and in his prime of life at 34, his investments include banks, power projects, casinos, hotels and ships, worth several hundred millions, if not billions of rupees.
His life story is something like reading a story from one of those fairy tale books. ‘When I was 19, this was in 1987, my mother gave me Rs 500 to buy me a pair of shoes. At that time I had qualified to follow an NDT course on electrical and electronics at Moratuwa University.
But by then the JVP troubles had broken out and Campus was more closed than open. I’m from Paiyagala, Kalutara, having had my education at Taxila Vidyalaya, Horana. At that time I was living with my uncle who was running a cafe at Pettah.
There was a pavement hawker operating in front of my uncle’s restaurant. Instead of buying a pair of shoes, I lent him that Rs 500 on the understanding that he conducts his business on a profit sharing basis with me.
The life of a pavement hawker is a hard one. He starts his work early in the morning and continues till evening. He does not have time to relieve hinself nor does he have time to have his meals while hawking his goods. The only time he is free is when dusk sets in. Then he winds up his business for the day, said Perera.
So, this tie-up with this hawker brought me a return of Rs 200 on a daily basis, while my capital inveetment of Rs 500 remained in tact. This operation went on for three months, during which period I made a clear profit of Rs 74,000.
Then, I turned my hand to slot machines or jackpot machines as they are commonly known. I borrowed five such machines from Lal Wijeratne of Grayline Group.I had them installed at my uncle’s cafe in the Pettah-it was called Isurugiri Hotel.
My arrangement with Wijeratne was that I would keep 30% of the takings, while the balance 70% was for him. This was a successful business partnership. ‘But I was restless.’ I wanted to learn the technology of these slot machines.
Therefore I took wing to Taiwan to follow a six month technical course. This was in 1988 and I was 20 yearl at that time. By then I had dropped out from Moratuwa University.
But I returned from Taiwan in three months.Because it took me only that much of time to assmilate that technology. Then I started making my own slot machines and had them operable in his uncle’s cafe. As a result, all of the takings made from these machines were for me. There was no question of giving 70% of the share to the landlord, because I was now the landlord.
By then I had made enough money, enough to buy over my uncle’s cafe. And at 23, that was in 1991, I had millions and millions in my kitty, with 285 machines in operation.
But disaster struck in 1991. Ranasinghe Premadasa who was the president at that time imposed a ban on jackpot machines.Then What did you do? ‘I opened a car sales centre at my home in Paiyagala,’ said Perera. I called it Anuradha Traders. Currently we have four showrooms-at Kirullapane, Negombo, Kandy and Peliyagoda. I also ventured out into property development.
In 1993 I started my own casino business at Isurugiri. I called it Capricorn.
You see there are four major games played in a casino. Three of them are card games-Black Jack, Baccarat and Porker, and the other Roullete. Then in 1995 I opened up the MGM casino in Colombo-Iwas 27 at that time and followed it up by opening Ballys in 1996 and Bellagio in 1998.
The reason I have restricted entry into my casinos to only foreigners is because it is messy when the doors are also open to locals. ‘You know that shooting incident at the Carlton in 1998 which resulted in the death of Fijian ruggerite Joel Pera? So I feel that it is better to be safe than sorry. Therefore I have imposed these restrictions.
Most of the foreigners who patronise my casinos are Chinese, either from the mainland or Hong Kong or Singapore, says Perera. Meanwhile, with the government’s plan to create a Casino City at Bentota under the ‘2002 Tourism Masterplan,’ and ‘clear’ Colombo of all Casinos, I asked Perera whether he was ready to meet this change.
‘We are ready for it’? he said. I shall be startng a casino at Bentota. It will be called Ballys. It will be equipped with all the modern technology, he said. Referring to his other business ventures, Perera said that in 1998 he started his shipping business, investing $ 1.8 million in two cargo ships.
‘One does the Colombo-Tuticorin run and the other the Dubai-Indonesian run,’ he said. And the two power project? a 10 mega Watt (mW) hydro electric power project (HEPP) costing Rs 600 million at We Ganga in the Kahawatte Plantations. This project is expected to be commissioned in another 11 months time.
For this purpose, Perera has floated a company called Didu, of which Vallibel Holdings, a company wholly owned by Perera, has a 90% stake.’I got this name Vallibel from a friend in Singapore,’ says Perera.
According to Perera, We have to work. ‘I don’t think most of those employed in the public sector in particular work eight hours a day, he says. And from the government’s side? Greater transparency is required.
courtesy-www.island.lk
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