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Vivek Narain began his career in the banking industry in 2000 and moved into the hospitality industry in 2006, spearheading financial transactions in the hospitality sector.
“My move into hospitality was by chance. I had just finished working at Fairmont Raffles Hotels International. I enjoyed my work there and wanted to stay in hospitality,” says Vivek Narain, founder and CEO of The Quorum.
So, to stay in the hospitality industry, Vivek Narain along with his wife Sonia Jehan founded The Quorum in 2018.
Narain said Sonia had always wanted to run her own restaurant. “This year has been a big one for us and we wanted to come together. We were inspired by the resurgence of clubbing globally and wanted to create a similar environment in India,” Narain said.
Currently, The Quorum is available in Gurugram, Mumbai and Hyderabad.
The first club opened in Gurgaon in June 2018, spread across 35,000 sq ft in the Robert Stern-designed DLF Horizon Centre development. The second club, spread across two floors and 56,000 sq ft, opened at One World Centre in central Mumbai in July 2021. The third and largest club, spanning 80,000 sq ft, recently opened at Sattva Knowledge City, Hyderabad.
Jehan says, “Vivek and I have always loved entertaining in our home and in many ways what we’ve created with The Quorum is similar. It’s more than a club – it’s a ‘hostel’ – a third space, a home away from home. It’s important to us that people feel comfortable and that they belong when they’re at The Quorum.”
Recently, the company launched its second flagship brand, District150, a hospitality-focused meeting and events venue – an amenity for tomorrow’s office buildings, adding value by transforming buildings into social and cultural hubs outside of working hours.
Jehan grew up in a family with an artistic background: Her grandmother was a famous singer and actor, her father was a photographer, and her mother was a fashion designer, she said.
“I’ve always been creatively inclined, especially towards design. Ever since I was a child, I was fascinated by prints, patterns, fabrics and colours. Plus, my mum’s family owns restaurants in France, so experiences and bonding over food have always been an essential part of my life,” she says.
Commenting on the possibility of creative breakthroughs, Narain emphasised that there is no magic formula: “However, I believe there is a creative side in everyone. I have developed this skillset over time and now I really enjoy the creative part of our work. I think I have figured out how to stimulate the right side of my brain.”
The brand claims to have more than 3,000 members of The Quorum, including public officials, authors, journalists, filmmakers, businesspeople, unicorn founders and venture capitalists.
Phase 1 of The Quorum’s expansion aims to set up three more clubs over the next four to five years, with Bangalore, Goa and Delhi being the next targets.
For District 150, the company is targeting 8-10 District 150 developments over the next five years. The cities covered include NCR, Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune, Chennai and Kolkata.
“In any business, maintaining a consistent focus on the basics is important but often overlooked – get the product right, understand the consumer and deliver consistently excellent. If you get this right, scale will take care of itself,” concludes Narain.
fact:
- Amount of external funding received: private
- Number of employeesThe company currently employs 350 people and plans to grow to 500 this year.
- turn over: Not open to the public
- Established: 2018
- Key Customers: – Tomorrow’s thinkers, doers and achievers. Influential voices across business, technology, finance, culture, arts, film, media, literature, politics, sport and more. For us, it’s not about where you come from, but where you’re going.
