The young hotelier

Akiebu Shaiza has been in the Hotel Management Industry for over a decade now, bringing alive his dream career, which he has long defined as a higher secondary student. That, he rose from the mere position of being a bartender, a dishwasher, a waiter, and eventually a supervisor before he was promoted to Assistant Manager while simultaneously being a Management Student, all in a matter of three years is a feat that not many people achieve. 

He has his foundation rooted at the Swiss Hotel Management School, Switzerland, a place reputedly known as the home of hotel and hospitality management for its establishment over a hundred years ago when the first palace-style hotels were built. He undertook a two year course in Hospitality Management at the Swiss Hotel Management School (SHMS) before he subsequently ventured into a course in Events Management. His memory of being a student there also includes being selected as the Students’ President at the SHMS, Switzerland.

Akiebu decided to shift places after a while but his experience also says that, that is not the easiest thing to do, even as he explains, “you know, for instance, from out of 100 requests, you get 80 denials…” but very clearly, he isn’t the kind who gives up easily as he found himself landing in a new place during the year 2010 at one of the largest hotel operators in Hong Kong, namely, ‘Regal Hotels International’.

Yet, he started all over again right from the ground level till he was promoted to Supervisor and looked after an overwhelming number of 482 rooms. Recalling his work experiences in these places, he says, ‘it was a challenge in the sense that we had to handle a lot of complaints, sometimes our clients get locked out, or leave their passports or credit cards in their rooms and call from the airport…things like that.’

But, “a breath of fresh air” is what he says of his experiences abroad. He also likes the fact that he gets to meet people from all walks of life, right from the well-to-do to the not-so-fortunate. Well, it has always been his motto to “work hard, party harder”. ‘This is one of the things that a teacher of ours always insisted on too!’ he adds.

He worked at Hong Kong for a shorter duration of two years, only perhaps because he had far greater plans. Although he enjoyed the rich culture and work experiences in these places, it has however always been his prerogative to travel and explore the world of management. To this end, he has been to places like Portugal, Amsterdam, France, Italy, Belgium, Norway and Germany, fulfilling both the purposes of travelling as a hobby and travelling as part of his eagerness in exploring lounges and bars.

One could say, the greater Naga in Akiebu compelled him to return home. “If people who had had exposure do not come back and let our people not know about what we have learnt, our place will not change…” is what he says about choosing home over all the fascinating places he had been to. His latest venture being the “Rattle and Hum Lounge” which opened last December in the heart of High School Junction Kohima. ‘I wanted a lounge which can cater to everybody, young and old, single and individuals”, he enlightens. Rattle and Hum Lounge specializes in Indian and Chinese amongst the varieties of items such as Pork Manchurian, Aloo Bhaji, Non-Veg Thali etc that are served there and is open from 10:30 am to 7:00 pm all week excepting Monday while Sundays are open after 11:30 am.

If there is something that the young Managing Director of Rattle & Hum Lounge would change in the Naga society as far as management and hospitality is concerned, it would be “personality” and “punctuality”. “Everybody is very shy to even warmly say, ‘can I get you a cup of tea?’” he expresses while the rest of us are all aware of the popular ‘Naga Timing’.

One of the things that he is really concerned about is the traffic while specifically pointing to the snail-paced traffic in the state capital. To this, he suggests, maybe parking on both sides of the road could be avoided or make it one way for certain time periods, even as he hopes for the traffic to get better in Kohima.

It is a sign of encouragement for the 27 year old to see private enterprises growing in the state, and it is also his hope that entrepreneurs and proprietors would build relations of trust and promote each other’s businesses instead of competing with each other. ‘There are times we could always refer clients to each other’s’, he puts across, while emphasizing on building networks of business related connections.

For the youths, he goes on to say, ‘speaking up and raising your voice is the only way you learn things, but be sure that you always put God first’, while on a special note, he insists, that he is grateful to family and friends for encouraging him and helping him be where he is today.