Akshat Jain is a professional pilot and entrepreneur who aspires to become financially independent in five years.
The main enabler of this is his business, KAD Designs, which he co-owns with his wife Kadambari, who is also a pilot.
Based in Dubai, KAD Designs is an interior design company founded in 2017 and deals in luxury interiors, bespoke furniture and in-house manufacturing.
Mr Jain oversees the factory, operations, project execution and financial planning.
“My wife, who is a trained interior designer, has been running the design company for eight years,” says Mr Jain, 42, who is the director of production at the design studio. "She initially did freelance design for smaller villas through sources.
"However, she soon got tired of people not meeting timelines and product quality, so I decided to jump into the business and open our own manufacturing unit. We opened the unit in Al Quoz, where we now have a team of 30 people.”
The pilot and entrepreneur, who is from India’s capital city of New Delhi, lives with his wife in a property they own in Arabian Ranches, Dubai, and has been in the UAE for 10 years.
Mr Jain has completed a bachelor's degree in business administration and has also acquired many technical licences to boost his aviation credentials.
Did wealth feature in your childhood?
My father was in the Indian Air Force, so money was not in huge supply. I was around people who were on the same economic level as my family. Money was not abundant but there was a lot of value given to it in terms of how it needs to be spent. If I spent money on something, I was encouraged to use it for as long as possible rather than for the short term.
How much did you first earn?
I started working when I was 17. My first job was as a deck cadet in the merchant navy in India and worked there for five years. It paid me $200 per month.
Any early financial jolts?
When I decided to take up a career in aviation, I had to take a leap of faith and leave a fully
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