an article from the star
Riz Dhanji: The master marketer
July 25, 2009
Gale Beeby
Real Estate Editor
There's always an aura of excitement hanging around Riz Dhanji, the man who single-handedly has redefined the way condominiums are marketed in this city.
Thanks to Dhanji's power of persuasion, many people have bought downtown condos and, as vice-president of sales and marketing for Canderel Stoneridge Equity Group – developer of the 75-storey Aura at College Park project – he's hoping many others are listening to his latest sales pitch.
It's hard not to.
Dhanji, the winner of two BILD (Building, Industry and Land Development Association) marketing awards, learned his craft in Vancouver, one of the toughest condominium markets in the world, after studying Urban Land Economics at the University of British Columbia.
He also worked in Hong Kong, the capital of the real estate world, for Vigers International and if you can make it there...
"I'm probably one of the few South Asians in Toronto who can speak Chinese," says Dhanji, who learned the language while working in Hong Kong and found it useful when, in 1997, many Hong Kong residents moved to Vancouver, where Dhanji was working at the time, prior to the former British colony's handover to China.
In 1998, he came to Toronto and in 2002 he was given an opportunity to work with the Canderel Stoneridge.
He jumped at the chance.
"It was a spectacular move for me," Dhanji says while sharing lunch in the 43rd floor College Park condo belonging to Jonathon Wener, chairman of Montreal-based Canderel Stoneridge.
"They are a very entrepreneurial firm and they let me do what I wanted to do. They allowed me to take risks and those risks paid off, starting with the launch of DNA (Downtown's Next Address)."
Built on the old Massey Ferguson lands near King St. W. and Shaw St., DNA was the beginning of the King West revitalization and one of the city's first real loft conversions, which was a very unique concept at the time.
"It had vision," he says. "It was funky and cool and appealed to first-time buyers."
Dhanji single-handedly created marketing buzz around DNA. He rented two Hummers and wrapped them in the DNA colours and hired a couple of kids to hand out "Rave Cards" – invitations to the sales centre – which became a sort of hang out and event centre. It was there that Dhanji presented fashion shows, a Toronto Indy party, regular musical performances and neighbourhood events, including a MyBindi.com home show, focusing attention on the South Asian community.
"And now," Dhanji says, "DNA is now one of the hottest buildings in the resale market."
"He thinks so far outside the box, I don't think he's even found the box yet," Wener comments during a phone interview. "In fact, we've nicknamed him Guerrilla, as in Guerrilla Marketer."
And yes, sometimes Wener has to say "no!"
"I'd rather pull the reins in with someone who has the courage to try things, than always have to be prodding," Wener says. "Riz is a thoughtful guy and always comes back with more creative suggestions.
"He has a great imagination and knows that to be successful we have to do things differently. He has input on everything from design to marketing to packaging."
Dhanji also knows the importance of being a team player.
"He doesn't do it alone, he does it with a group of people. People want to be around people who are successful."
Other Dhanji success stories include the Massey Harris Lofts on King St. W., the revitalization of College Park, and the launch for the Residences of College Park.
"It was (Riz's) idea to hire a helicopter so that potential purchases could see exactly what their views would be," Wener says.
In 2004, when College Park Phase II launched, the market had slowed, Dhanji recalls.
"I knew success would mean getting (real estate) brokerages involved. So we offered incentives; if you sold 10 units, you'd get a TV, 20 units earned you a trip, and if you sold 50 units, you'd win a car.
The tactic paid off and cost the company several televisions, a trip or two and a car.
"But the brokers also trusted us enough to put their clients in our project."
Aura is by far Dhanji's biggest project. With over 900 units and more than a million square feet of residential space, it's like selling two towers, he says.
Over the years, Dhanji has developed a keen sense of the market and perfected the art of presale registration by working with brokers.
His techniques resulted in a huge lineup on the day the sales office opened, with more than 750 units sold of 931 (more than 80 per cent) to date.
The velocity of sales has been extraordinary, Wener says, adding that he was "blown away by the success of Aura. It's the fastest selling project in the city's history.
"And Riz was driving that boat."
Aura will have direct access to the TTC and, eventually, the PATH system. It offers three floors of retail space, totalling 180,000 square feet, and will be anchored by U.S. giant retailer Bed Bath & Beyond, which will model the Toronto store after their New York City outlet.
Aura boasts many unique features, including 200 bike racks, a fifth-floor amenity space that includes a billiard room, cyber lounge, guest suites, catering kitchen, private dining room, and a party room that opens on to a roof garden that will feature a reflecting pool. There will also be a state-of-the-art fitness facility surrounded by a terrace.
Aura will also feature one of the city's first residential sprinkler systems, moving ahead of the new provincial legislation. "At 75 storeys, you can't compromise on safety," says Dhanji.
The interesting part in the article is the description of the amenities that Aura will have. The guest suites, roof garden and fitness facility is nothing new. But this is the first time I heard about the cyber lounge, billiard room, catering kitchen, dining room and pool. I don't believe these amentities appear on any of the contracts or marketing publicity.
