Showing posts with label Tony Fernandes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tony Fernandes. Show all posts

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Tan Sri Anthony Francis Fernandes "Tony Fernandes"




Tan Sri Anthony Francis "Tony" Fernandes ( Twitter: tonyfernandes‎ ) , born 30 April 1964; is a Malaysian Indian entrepreneur. He is the founder of Tune Air Sdn. Bhd., who introduced the first budget no-frills airline, AirAsia, to Malaysians with the tagline "Now everyone can fly". Fernandes managed to turn AirAsia, a failing government-linked commercial airline, into a highly successful budget airline public-listed company.

He was also instrumental in lobbying the then-Malaysian Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad in mid-2003, to propose the idea of open skies agreements with neighboring Thailand, Indonesia, and Singapore. As a result, these nations have granted landing rights to AirAsia and other discount carriers.

Fernandes was born in Kuala Lumpur to an Indian father (a physician, originally from Goa) and Portuguese-Eurasian mother, Ena Dorothy Fernandes of Malacca, Malaysia.  Tony was admitted as Associate Member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) in 1991 and became Fellow Member in 1996.

Upon his return to Malaysia, he became the youngest managing director of Warner Music (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd. As well as being an accountant, Fernandes is an amateur guitarist and also has achieved grade 8 piano which is where his musical inclination lies.

He subsequently became the South East Asian regional vice-president for Warner Music Group from 1992-2001. When Time Warner Inc announced its merger with America Online Inc., Fernandes left to pursue his dream of starting a budget no-frills airline. However, his application for a license from the Malaysian government was rejected.

Instead of starting from scratch, Mahathir advised Fernandes to buy an existing airline instead. AirAsia, the heavily-indebted subsidiary of the Malaysian government-owned conglomerate, DRB-Hicom, was quickly losing money. Fernandes says his timing was in fact perfect: after 11 September 2001, aircraft leasing costs fell 40%. Also, airline lay-offs meant experienced staff were readily available. Fernandes estimates about 50 per cent of the travelers on Asia’s budget airlines are first-time flyers.  The company grew from two planes in 2002 to a fleet of 86 aircraft flying 30 million people around the world.

After the success of Air Asia's short-haul flights he expanded into long haul journeys with a new airline, Air Asia X.  The result was two separate companies, one dedicated to low cost short-haul flights, the other focusing on long-haul routes. Despite this, the two airlines utilize a similar modus operandi: efficiency is key to keeping up with demand and ensuring a healthy profit-margin.
In 2007, Tony Fernandes started a hotel chain, Tune Hotels, based on the no-frills concept. The first Tune Hotel was opened in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.

Caterham Group
The Caterham Group is home to a range of cutting-edge automotive, motorsport, technology and specialist engineering companies that sit within a single group business under the stewardship of Group Chairman Tan Sri Tony Fernandes.

Caterham F1 Team
Fernandes is the founder of the Caterham F1 Formula One team, which began racing in 2010 as Lotus Racing and raced in 2011 as Team Lotus.



Richard Try To Kiss Tony Fernandes


On 16 December 2009, Fernandes accepted a "challenge" from Richard Branson, a fellow airline boss and the owner of Lotus' fellow F1 newcomers Virgin Racing. Fernandes joked "The sexier the better.  On 19 December 2012, Fernandes announced that Branson would honour his bet in May 2013. Branson ultimately honored the bet on 13th May, 2013.





Caterham Racing
Caterham Racing, also created by Fernandes, competes in the GP2 Series.

Caterham Cars
On 27 April 2011, Fernandes announced that his company had purchased Caterham Cars.

EQ8 Energy Drink
EQ8 is a natural energy drink and the first FMCG product from Fernandes and his business partner Kamarudin Meranun. Football League

West Ham United
Fernandes is a fan of English club West Ham United. Fernandes has been involved in talks concerning a takeover at West Ham United. In May 2011, Fernandes was linked with a buying a share in the club.[10] On 1 June 2011, his Twitter feed stated that he had made an offer to the West Ham board, although David Sullivan and David Gold later rejected this offer.

Queens Park Rangers
On 18 August 2011, he was unveiled as the majority shareholder of Queens Park Rangers, having bought Bernie Ecclestone's 66% share. In March 2012, Tony Fernandes Served on the International Advisory Board of Global March to Jerusalem, which aims to "mobilize the international community in solidarity with Palestinians and to protect Jerusalem.". A Joint Statement was issued, signed by the various members of the Board, including Fernandes.

Fernandes' biggest achievement has been to turn the AirAsia airline into an international carrier. Before the creation of AirAsia, countries in the region did not have open-skies agreements. In mid-2003, Fernandes' lobbying pushed Dr Mahathir to raise the idea with the leaders of neighbouring Thailand, Indonesia, and Singapore. As a result, those nations have granted landing rights to AirAsia and other discount carriers. Fernandes opened up the budget carrier sector in the region.

In Thailand and Indonesia, AirAsia holds a minority stake in the respective local companies. PT Awair, re-launched as a low fare airline on 8 December 2004 and subsequently renamed Indonesia AirAsia, presently serves 5 domestic destinations in Indonesia.

In 2013, Forbes Asia valued Fernandes' personal wealth at $625 million ranking him at number 20 on the Forbes list of Malaysia's Richest.  Compared to 2012, his personal wealth at $615 million ranking him at number 15 on the Forbes list of Malaysia's Richest.

“As long as we are enjoying ourselves, that's the most important thing,”                         - Tony Fernandes


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Wednesday, May 22, 2013

The Apprentice Asia: You're Fired!



The Apprentice Asia ( twitter: ) is the Asian adaptation to the mega hit reality series, The Apprentice, which was created by Mark Burnett (The Voice, Survivor), with Donald Trump as host.

Who is the host?
Aviation tycoon Tan Sri Dr. Tony Fernandes, Group CEO of AirAsia.

"Believe the unbelievable. Dream the impossible.
                           Never take no for an answer"- Tony Fernandes
Advisor
1. KATHLEEN TAN
Chief Executive Officer of Expedia Asia, the world's leading online travel company. A dynamic business leader, opportunistic marketer, and innovative thinker, Kathleen has helped build AirAsia while serving as Tony Fernandes’s right-hand woman. As a pioneer among Asian airlines in social media, Kathleen led AirAsia’s social media development which is now ranked as the most social airline in Asia-Pacific and one of the top worldwide. Now, she's on a mission to take Expedia Asia to even greater heights.

Kathleen is an avid social junkie herself, actively engaging on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Sina Weibo (China’s Twitter). Her Weibo account has over 200,000 followers and is now ranked as a top 2000 most influential account out of 300 million members.

2. MARK LANKESTER
Group Chief Executive Officer, Tune Hotels. Mark comes to Tune Hotels from the entertainment and leisure consumer goods industry. With over 15 years with the Warner Music Group in senior Regional and Managing Director management roles throughout Asia, Mark's experience includes managing companies from start-up phases to managing growth-oriented established businesses across Asia and Greater China. Having spent an extraordinary amount of time in hotels, (including living out of one in Hong Kong and Taipei for a full year!), and seeing how little time recording artists actually spend in hotels, he is totally committed to our mission statement of promising a great night's sleep, enjoying a fantastic hot power shower the next morning and ensuring a clean and secure environment to all Tune Hotels guests!

Contestants
Among the 30,000 applicants from Asia, 100 were called for interviews, before they were cut down to 30, and then to a final 12.

The finalists were then put up in an apartment in Kuala Lumpur for five weeks, where they faced weekly tasks, during which they remained out of contact with everyone.

They only have 15-minute phone call to connect to the outside world.

1. Malaysian Hanzo(Ng Kian Tat), 34; a self-proclaimed “sales ninja”;
(twitter: @salesninjaworld ) You're Fired! 



2. Nik Aishah, 25; who quit her job and delayed her wedding to be on the show;
( Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nikaisyah.mansor Facebook Page:https://www.facebook.com/pages/Nik-Aisyah-The-Apprentice-Asia/649366358413072#!/pages/Nik-Aisyah-The-Apprentice-Asia/649366358413072 twitter: @NikAisyahMansor #AANIK )
You're Fired! 


3. Nazril, 38; Malaysian actress Sazlini Shamsul Falak’s other half. You're Fired!
 ( twitter: @Nash_IdrusLVG )


4. Filipino Celina, 30; who claims that she always gets what she wants;
( twitter: @celinaleneindre #AACelina)  You're Fired! 


5. Jonathan, 27; a proud Pinoy who was named one of the top seven marketers in the Philippines under the age of 35. ( twitter: @jonathanyabut facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AAJonathanYabut ) The winner!!!



6. Indian Ningku, 29; a feisty director in her family’s construction company;
( twitter: @Ninxster #AANINGKU )



7. Samuel, 37; a VP in a Big Four professional services firm with big dreams of being a film director.
( twitter: @samrufus #AASAM Personal Website: samrufus.com) You're Fired!


8. Indonesian Hendy, 30; a successful entrepreneur whose kebab empire spans over 1,000 outlets in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines; You're Fired!


9. Former Miss Indonesia 2003 and news anchor, Dian,36.
( twitter: @LusciouslyD  ) You're Fired!


10. Singaporean Andrea Loh Ern-Yu , 25; a feisty lawyer who once boldly decked a rugby player who got too close for comfort.
( twitter: @leyandrea13  )  



11. Thai Dussadee, 35; a Hurricane Katrina survivor, and owner of a bistro bar.
( twitter: @msdussadee  )  Fired herself! ( Go to my youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/poklang )



12. Multilingual Frenchman Alexis, 29; who picked up fluent Mandarin in two and a half months.
( twitter: @abauduin  #AAAlex )  You're Fired!


When?
AXN Channel Wednesdays, 9.05pm (8.05pm JKT/TH). Starts 22 May.

My Top 6 Contestants
  1. Hanzo(Ng Kian Tat) ( too strategic, play safe, not a part of team) You're Fired!
  2. Jonathan  Winner
  3. Samuel You're Fired!
  4. Hendy (fired himself ) You're Fired!
  5. Dussadee (fired herself ) You're Fired!
  6. Nik Aishah You're Fired!
Final
 
Final

Good Luck To All Contestants!!!
More Details:
http://www.axn-asia.com/programs/apprentice-asia/



Update:

5 Minutes with... Nik Aisyah Amirah Mansor (The Apprentice Asia) 

One memorable experience from The Apprentice: Selling fish (laughs). Well, being scolded by (Tan Sri) Tony Fernandes obviously.

Favourite movie: Lord of the Rings

The best place to dine in KL: Chili’s. I know it’s not really ‘KL’ but I love it because it’s my comfort food.

How do you relax: I talk (laughs).

How do you spend your weekend: With my fiancée.

Your favourite holiday destination: Maldives because it’s pretty. I’d love to go there.

Favourite Twitter or Instagram accounts to follow: I’m very new to Twitter but I love @TonyFernandes and @Oprah.

What motivates you: Success because if I want something, I will try to get it.

Your favourite quote: There’s always a reason for something. In Malay, it’s “Setiap kejadian ada hikmahnya.” I’m a firm believer of that and that keeps me going.

Advice for young Malaysians: Always be positive and don’t be afraid to take a challenge in life. I just did and I’m loving every second of it.

Read more at: http://english.astroawani.com/news/show/5-minutes-with-nik-aisyah-amirah-mansor-the-apprentice-asia-14658?cp

5 Minutes with... Nazril Idrus (The Apprentice Asia) 

One memorable experience from The Apprentice Asia: The times before we wanted to go in the boardroom. All of us, if not myself, would just be busting to go to the toilet before going to the boardroom. We would always laugh about how frightening it feels before walking into the boardroom.

Favourite book: “Losing My Virginity” by Richard Branson. I thought it’s a cleverly titled book and the book is super-duper hot with his biography, who he is as a rebellious entrepreneur, and a music guy. He is a very unorthodox kind of person.

Another book was given to me by my wife. It’s the easiest business book in the world to read and it’s “Who moved my cheese”. It’s another favourite of mine for people who do not want to read books.

The best place to dine in KL: Alexis at Great Eastern Mall. Not only is the ambience awesome but sometimes they have jazz bands playing. We can just relax with friends, enjoy the atmosphere, enjoy life and be in the moment.

How do you relax: It’s pretty tough for me to relax but I always try to relax a lot. I always think of ways to relax. One the thing that I do that gets me off my head is I go to the gym and I have a personal trainer to train me. That’s when I don’t have to think. I have about 45 minutes with the personal trainer. He takes away things from my head and I just focus on what he asks me to do, which is trying to ‘kill’ me all the time.

How do you spend your weekend: I spend the weekends predominantly with my children and my wife. We make a point that we must spend family time, kick back and think about where to go. We do that over weekdays as well. My wife is a big person when it comes to family so we try to find time to be with our kids. I find things like sending my two girls to school very, very soothing and loving. I like that.

Your favourite holiday destination: My all-time favourite holiday destination right now is New York. My wife and I went to New York after we were in Los Angeles, and we stayed in Manhattan. In Manhattan, I could walk everywhere and everything is there. I think we spend seven days there and could only cover ten percent of New York so we are definitely going to go back. My second and third quick destinations to just go away are Phuket and Bali which is not too far.

Favourite Twitter or Instagram accounts to follow: @SazzyFalakCLPT. She’s a freak when it comes to Instagram, Twitter and Social Media. She’s the biggest one that I follow. I also follow @TonyFernandes and I also like to listen up to what @KhairyKJ has to say because I think he is a smart dude as well.

What motivates you: What motivates me is the fact that when I wake up everyday, I’m thinking, “Who can I help today?” and “How can I inspire today?” I need to affect someone else’s life so that motivates me to wake up. After being a successful entrepreneur, I realize it’s not about me. It’s about how can I affect other people and their lives.

Your favourite quote: “LVG”, which stands for Legacy, Vibrant, and Giving.

Legacy: We need to leave behind a legacy for our loved ones, as a person who can inspire others or financial legacy. Financial freedom is where you have managed to leave enough money for the family and for them to leave the next legacy for the next generation.

Vibrant: Live life with energy, with power, with inspiration.

Giving: It’s not about us anymore. It’s about giving back to other people so that life means something to everybody.

Advice for young Malaysians: Go into organisations or in groups of entrepreneurial youths. Get into something you can be part of or able to create something. Start a small business with a few friends. The key here is to be mentored. You need someone to model. There are young entrepreneurs in Malaysia like Joel Neoh of Groupon.

Don’t be with friends who are only thinking about finding jobs. Go out there and perhaps work in the service industry. If you want to be an entrepreneur, you need to know how to market. Marketing is key. Learn marketing and communication. That’s what is lacking. Start with marketing other people’s product and that is when you will learn and then you start on your own.

Read more at: http://english.astroawani.com/news/show/5-minutes-with-nazril-idrus-the-apprentice-asia-14666?cp

Tony Fernandes admits growing fan

KUALA LUMPUR: Satisfied with the program of "The Apprentice Asia" first season, Tan Sri Tony Fernandes was not sure if it will be continued further into the second season.

In the meantime, Tony also admitted beating the crowd awaiting feedback even willing to add fans.

Air Asia airline tycoon is however not call himself a celebrity but stating the number of fans through growing social site was chosen as the host since the show.

The program that is famous through Apprentice Donald Trump as host, Tony said trying not to imitate the original host and hope it is well received by the audience.

12 participants will face 11 episode featuring a variety of challenges and tasks.

Since the search began in November last year, it had received more than 30,000 applications.
Having assessed through assignments and a process of elimination, winner of "The Apprentice Asia" will receive good pay and career under the management Fernandes.

 Read more at: http://www.astroawani.com/news/show/tony-fernandes-akui-peminat-semakin-bertambah-13890?c

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