Editor-SKNVibes.com
New Opportunities:
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| Nick Menon |
(Basseterre; St. Kitts); Menon established the Marketing Department at TDC where he worked for five to six years as the Manager. During that time, he also introduced the new discipline of marketing into the different departments and subsidiaries.
"I'm trying to make the bottom line look bigger for our management and ultimate owners, our shareholders, so they can have a bigger return to them and I was quite successful in doing that," he said.
Menon was instrumental in bringing new business into TDC with new agencies including Real Estate and Development.
He wore many hats and believed that the strength to the diversification of a company is those people who can put their hand to anything and can go around and learn about the different businesses and be able to offer a considered and invaluable opinion to them.
"I just like to have every day different, and when you're working with 20 to 21 different businesses, everyday it's going to be different, everyday is a challenge and it could be a lot of fun and a lot of harassment at times.'
In 2000, TDC made another offer to Menon; he was appointed to the Board of Directors, which was surprising to him.
He hadn't had the traditional foundation coming into TDC and into his management position. But he saw the new appointment as them seeing what he could bring to the table with fresh ideas and what he had done since working there.
"I'm not saying I'm the only one who could have done so, but I guess life is about part chance, part luck, part timing, part ability," he said. "It's a complicated equation, and I think my track record in making some money for the company really helped."
The directorship has been a challenge and learning experience for him, as he discovers details of the many businesses owned by TDC and contributes to their development.~~adz:Right~~
Those who know Menon well know that every now and then he likes enjoyment; he enjoys hanging out and having a drink at a bar and perhaps at a nightclub.
"I think it was difficult for me - I was a little younger than the average directors; there are expectations on you from the wider community, I'm a fun-loving outgoing person," he said. "People expect you to behave a certain way when you're in certain positions here and I guess in a bigger country you can be more anonymous. But here, everywhere has eyes and every wall got ears. It was a real change for me, not something I can say I completely yet adapted to but I'm getting there."
Love & Marriage
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The Menon's (L-R) son, Kahlil-Omar, Nick and wife Naeemah. The couple also welcomed another son in September named Nile Narayan. Photos provided |
Even though a tragedy brought Menon to St. Kitts without knowing whether he'd stay here permanently or not, perhaps a slender, tall, brown-skinned, exuberant young woman helped.
Naeemah Hazelle, the daughter of Ambassador Roslyn Hazelle, back then walked downtown Basseterre on a typical day with her mother and the now Minister of Culture, Tourism & Sports, Richard Skerritt.
Menon took one look at Naeemah and fell in love with what he saw. He then walked straight up to her and said "hello' and introduced himself.
"She was visiting from Canada," he said. I really liked the way she looked and Ricky said jokingly, 'you see this fella, keep away from him, he's no good'."
However, cupid was busy at work on Hazelle and Menon and they had another encounter before their relationship became official.
"It was one Christmas and Carnival and there I was "jamming" in Ronnie Rascal's troupe as I normally would do, on top of the speakers, with some rum in me," he said laughing. "When who jumped up on top the speaker and danced with me, but Naeemah, and we were together ever since."
"We have a good relationship and we call J'Ouvert our official anniversary and we're out every J'Ouvert jamming, and I guess we will be until we're 60 or 70," he said.
Hazelle went back to Canada to finish her first degree which she completed in 1998 and moved back to St. Kitts, while Menon went away in 1995 to do his masters.
"We had Kahlil in 2000, and marriage was always a thing where my family and friends from England and her family and friends from Canada and our family from around the Caribbean wanted to be a part of," he said. "But we could never coordinate so we set our dates and then had a very small wedding with 9 or 10 people in 2003, because we couldn't be bothered to wait any longer so we snuck over to Nevis and came back."
Menon said that Hazelle is a wonderful mother to his son and that she understands him.~~adz:Right~~
"There are very few people who understand me and she understands me very well. She's got a big, big heart and she helps many people, and I always call her my social conscience for my business side," he said.
Menon says that he loves her attitude towards life and that she's a very driven woman who is complete and always has time for people with a smile on her face.
Life & Onward
Menon's schedule is somewhat compact: his day begins at 6 a.m. when he has breakfast and leaves for work at around 7 where he visits one or two construction sites before he heads to the office.
He still enjoys going out and "liming" at least once a week and believes that everyone should try and leave this world a little better than they've met it.
"It comes from interaction with people, like the way you're given an opportunity to help people whether through education, financial support and so on, and it is just understanding that you're not here for yourself," he said. "There"s a community around you, and if you don't interact with the community and help to improve you're just a part of the problem and not the solution, so you got to leave things better than you met them."
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| Menon presenting a voucher to a member of the St. Kitts Cancer Society for their annual raffle. |
He continued: "If that means me helping people through mentoring, personal bad times, opening my house, or helping families here and there, then that's good," he said. 'I think it comes into my work as well because the more successful I can make this company, the more people we can employ, the better it will be for this local economy, the more opportunities would be generated from them and the more families we can help."
He added that we live in a small society and if we can't reach out and help everyone in the society then we're going down a wrong path.
He loves life and he loves to travel and is now content with himself and what he has experienced thus far.
In June 2006, he traveled to Germany to watch World Cup football which was on the list of his 'things to do in life' which also included skiing, traveling to the desert and other continents of the world while interacting with different people and learning about their cultures.
"The older you get (and I'm married with a family now), the more you want for your family, and the more you want to see your family successful and I've got a son and another on the way. Just to make sure they're set and that they're on their way and that they become good people rather than bad people," he said. "That's important to me and is where my focus is. It's easy to point the finger, it depends on parenting it depends on attitudes from a young age, and if there's something in life you could give people, it's a start when you're a parent and that's important to me."
His advice to his sons is to enjoy life and whatever they do because success would come with it and once someone enjoys doing something whether it's work or studying it wouldn't become a chore but something you're pleased about doing.
His mother is still living in St. Kitts and has become very involved in a few things including writing for newspapers, being involved in a woman's group and politics.~~adz:Right~~
"She enjoys politics as she likes to help people. A lot of our family has been involved in politics - it runs in the blood," he said. "She tries to make a difference here."
Menon also said that there are a number of projects he is spearheading for TDC presently and told SKNVibes about some other initiatives TDC will be involved in. In another interview we conducted with Menon he will give his views and plans for TDC.
