Comsats Institute of Information

Technology

Success Story of Mr. Malik Riaz – The

Owner of Bahria Town

Submitted to: Jawad Saboor

Submitted by: Mehdi Raza

FA06-BBA-053
Success Story of an Entrepreneur
Mr. Malik Riaz – Owner of the Bahria
Town
Bahria Town’s Background

Bahria Town was established in the year 1996. The main objective was to build not only homes but
several value-added, master planned commercial projects that would contribute to the economic
development of the country. The chairman/CEO Mr. Malik Riaz got a contract to develop 2,388 kanals of
Revenue Employees Cooperative Housing Society land. Although several controversies have affected the
image of Bahria Town, yet it has been successful to maintain the impression of a luxury housing society.

Mr. Malik Riaz’s Background

Although Malik Riaz belonged to a wealthy family, his father’s contracting business collapsed when he
was just 19. By that time, he began his career as a ‘lowly clerk’ in Islamabad. Although there is no
information available on his educational stream, some close to the entrepreneur say that he is a real
intelligent person. He has been so poor during the initial years of his marriage that he did not have
money to purchase medicine for his infant daughter. According to him, he never forgets being poor and
that keeps him modest and generous. In the late 1970s, he was given loan by a friend to invest in
contracting business. Riaz worked day and night for the success of his business and proved himself as a
great business man. With the passage of time, his business and experience grew and he moved on to
Malaysia for further projects. During his stay at Malaysia, he decided to introduce a world class luxury
housing society in Pakistan and in the year 1996, he launched Bahria Town.

Early Days of Bahria Town

During its initial days, Bahria Town was no less than a paradise in the jungle. There were hills and
mountains all around and people were quite hesitant to invest. But then, with the passage of time and
awareness provided through media, Bahria Town started to gain popularity with people. In fact, just as
DHA, Bahria Town became of the most trusted housing societies of Pakistan.

Although there is no exact count of employees available, it is said that Bahria Town emerged as one of
the most leading conglomerates that brought employment to the country. At this point in time, Bahria
Town has more than 21,000 employees in different parts of the world and is looking forward to hire
some more for its further projects in Murree and Karachi.

Bahria Town – A Journey of Success

Bahria Town which began as a housing society in the year 1996 is working on a number of existing and
potential housing and commercial projects. The company operates in three cities at present namely,
Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Lahore and it is looking forward to expand in Murree and Karachi as well.

During the course of its success, Bahria Town launched several housing, commercial and welfare
projects. These include:

 Safari Villas
 Safari Apartments
 Safari Valley
 Bahria Homes
 Meadows
 Executive Lodges
 Bahria University
 ACE Academy
 Commercial Zones
 Bahria Town Dastar Khwan and many others.

Some of the reasons behind Bahria Town’s success include:

 Capable human resource

 Exceptional security system
 Clean and healthy environment
 Strict rules and regulations for every person who resides or operates business within the
boundaries of Bahria Town
 CEO Malik Riaz’s honest efforts and maintenance programs.
In addition to these strengths, Bahria Town has been involved in various affiliate programs which
contributed to its positive image and long-term success. At present, Bahria Town is partners with DHAI,
OJMR (Los Angeles) and Starwood Hotels and Resorts.

Mr. Malik Riaz as an Entrepreneur

When it comes to entrepreneurship, Malik Riaz is one of the names that come to the minds of many. In
fact, Entrepreneurship has itself found new meanings in the personality of Mr. Malik Riaz. He attributes
his success to his hard work and faith in Allah. According to him, he sets aside 2.5% of the profits and
disburses to the charity.

Mr. Malik Riaz possesses the following entrepreneurial traits:

Bold and Confident

No matter what it takes, Mr. Malik Riaz would always stand by his words. We have a practical example for
this. Mr. Riaz wanted to make Bahria Town a trusted corporation and he has always been partnering with
conglomerates like DHA and Starwood Resorts to enhance credibility.

A “never, never, never quit” Attitude

Riaz’s never-quit attitude is one of the most prominent reasons behind his success. When he began
operation in Pakistan, he was forced to give up by political, economic and competitive forces. But then,
he found his way in the interests of both the country and its politicians.

Devoted disproportionate time to the Business

Riaz’s restless nature has contributed a lot to his success. He is always producing new ideas and
providing ways for their practical implementation.

Always seeks Personal Satisfaction

Mr. Malik Riaz would always do things which he enjoys and once he’s finished, he achieves personal
satisfaction. The whole Bahria Town project was no less than a dream to him and he has done his very
best to realize it.

Manages Money Wisely

Although he has not taken formal accounting education, Riaz is too good with numbers. He keeps
himself updated with the real estate market and manages his money in the most appropriate manner.
For instance, when Riaz was about to launch Bahria Homes (8 Marla Houses), he asked all the Safari
Home owners to sell their homes back to him at two times of the purchasing price. The owners did and
he launched those Bahria and Safari Homes at five times of the original price. He is an expert when it
comes to cash/money management.

Knows his Customers

Malik Riaz understands the psyche of Pakistani customers. He knows that the ultimate dream of a
Pakistani national is to have a house of his own and his housing schemes target almost all income
groups.
And besides these characteristics, Mr. Malik Riaz stays organized, gets involved in the operations and is
easily accessible to the customers and employees.

Future Challenges
Although Mr. Riaz has realized his dreams, he’s still looking forward to a number of projects in future.
Some of his upcoming projects include:

 Bahria Garden City

 Bahria Golf City
 Bahria Paradise
 Bahria Icon
 Ahram-e-Misr

In addition to Bahria Town’s upcoming projects, I would like to place some of my own
suggestions/recommendations that might benefit the development of this great society. They include:

 Bahria Town should link its first 6 phases with phase 7, 8 and 9 through a Fly Over. This will
double the prices of lands and houses as it would become accessible from within the old Bahria
Bridge.
 Malik Riaz should introduce some more housing schemes for the ordinary average class –
especially the lower middle class.
 In order to quadruple sales, Bahria Town should initiate mortgage loans. In fact, they should
enhance the installment period/tenure so that more and more people could have their own
houses.
 Fresh graduates should be employed so as to benefit from honest efforts and cheap cost of
human resource.