Kashka Haynes is where he wants to be at this point in his life. At 40 years old, he is on the path he intended to be and while there is more he wants to do, he is pleased with what he has accomplished so far.
The small hotelier, who runs the family owned 14-room Adulo Apartment Hotel, recently took over the chairmanship of the Intimate Hotels of Barbados, a position he will hold for the next two years. He is looking forward to this chapter in his life and together with the board of directors, he will work to achieve what he can for this sector.
Who is Kashka Haynes, though?
“I’m a simple fellow. What you see is what you get. I believe in the philosophy of hard work, operating with integrity, being the best you can and everything else will have to work itself out. Just do the best you can,” he said told BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY during an interview at a south coast coffee shop.
After graduating from The St Michael School, he attended the Barbados Community College where he did his “A” Levels before heading to McGill University in Canada. He said he did not want to be a medical doctor like his dad, the late Sir Richard Haynes.
“I think something like medicine is something that you have to be very passionate about . . . I didn’t have that kind of passion. What I did do though was I studied engineering so I am a trained electrical engineer. I came back to Barbados and I worked for four or five years in information technology and communication.
“I did all kinds of different things in that field, from being a very technical person to being someone being very sales oriented to account management. The whole spectrum of jobs within information technology and communications but I always found that when I was in that area I was always more interested in the business side than the technical side.
“My father, although he was a doctor, was always involved in business also. So I was always around when he was doing his real estate transactions and thinking about different opportunities. I did a Master’s in business administration [at Nova University, South Florida] and when I came back home in 2000, I . . . worked in it [ICT] for a little bit longer and then in 2005 I jumped into business and I’ve been doing it ever since.”
He said after his dad retired from medicine and politics, he presented a proposal to him to change his focus on the businesses, moving to a more formal arrangement with proper legal and governing structures.
“There’s one overarching business. The business is predominately real estate oriented but there are different components to it. There’s the holiday short-term rentals . . . . We’re also involved in commercial rentals, we do land and property development. It is a small business,” the businessman said.
He will tell you he is not a trained hotelier and that running Adulo for the last nine years has been “interesting”.
“What happens in a small accommodations business is that you have to wear many hats so you have to quickly become an expert at everything: finance, general management, human resources and dealing with all the staff issues, guest relations, so you have to be quick on your feet.”
Haynes said he has been “quite fortunate” to have a “very, very strong support team”. He has a staff of eight, which allows him to have extra time to do the other business things he needs to do and also to pursue other opportunities.
“Without that first-class support, hotel management, no matter or big or small, is very time-consuming” he added.
This is one of the reasons he noted that staff has to be happy and comfortable. Of equal importance is ensuring that guests are happy and that they tell you instead of posting it on travel websites, which are being used increasingly.
When he is not working you might find him at home with his wife Meredith Haynes and their three children – Ross, 13, Leyla, nine, and 10-week-old baby Olivia. You might catch him swimming, cycling or doing cross fit. He’s also thinking about starting triathlons.
Haynes is excited about his tenure as chairman of the Intimate Hotels group and is looking forward to continuing the “good things” it has been doing and to bringing new ideas to the table.
“I think I have an understanding of what it takes to run a small hotel in the tourism sector in Barbados. I’m at the point where I have knowledge, I have an understanding, and I’m also young enough that I have energy and I feel as though I have something to offer,” he said.
“I’m honoured to be able to be a part of it and at the top of the leadership group,” he said. (Green Bananas Media)
