Mr. Reyaz Farook - Chairman
Reyaz Farook, the heart & soul of HTL group stepped into unchartered territories of freight forwarding in Sri Lanka in the year 1979 proving his prowess as an entrepreneur establishing Air Express Consolidators (AEC). Within a short period Reyaz’s dynamic, professional and hands on operation attracted some of the major players in the international freight forwarding industry to appoint AEC as their agent in Sri Lanka, one of which was Hecny Transportation Hong Kong.
Reyaz and AEC were appointed to handle some of the largest apparel (including GOH-Garments on hanger) accounts such as MAST, MACY’s, Polo, Ralph Lauren, LEVIS STRAUSS in the US & S OLIVER, Marks & Spencer, C&A (Mondial) etc in Europe, in view of their technical brilliance in handling this specialized commodity. Hecny being a specialist in the garments and textile industry joined forces with Reyaz and AEC to establish Hecny Transportation Sri Lanka in 1982 after which Reyaz was instrumental in setting up Hecny in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh & other regional and strategic locations.
Maintaining his consistency in breaking new ground, Reyaz Farook made history being the 2nd International freight forwarder to enter the Indian market in the year 1990 and led the way to be the largest Sub Continent based Freight forwarding Company in India. Similarly, Reyaz was first International operator to enter Bangladesh and was amongst the first few into Pakistan as well. He continued to gain momentum and portrayed his entrepreneurial brilliance when he restructured the organization to form the HTL Group in 1999 in all the key locations in the region in line with his vision to meet the demands of the evolving industry. Apart from apparels Reyaz mastered logistics services for Tuna fish and other perishables which is a niche market controlled by a few selected companies. In line with the strategy to service and develop each line of business, AE Logistics was established in 2003 to cater to Imports with emphasis on Pharmaceuticals.
Whilst driving his company to the pinnacle in the Industry, Reyaz played a pioneering role in establishing the Sri Lanka Freight Forwarders Association and was appointed Chairman of the SLFFA for four consecutive years in view of his unparalleled contribution to the industry. One of his key initiatives is the Cargo Complex at the Colombo Airport which is in operation today with share holding by the member freight forwarders.
A rare and unique quality in Reyaz is his ability to train and impart knowledge to his staff and youngsters in the trade. Some of the personnel trained under Reyaz are now in key positions in the industry globally which on its own is the best way to contribute towards the development and growth of the industry.
Reyaz Farook is a highly respected and recognized name in the global freight forwarding and logistics fraternity which he has built with Honesty, Trust and Loyalty which is synonymous with the individual as well as the company. Most of the global business partners who started with Reyaz three decades ago are still with him, now more as family. This is irrefutable evidence of a businessman and a gentleman par excellence!
Apart from the professional achievements Reyaz is a veteran motor racing champion in the Indian sub continent with many a wins under his belt. Currently Reyaz leads the HTL Motor Racing team which has been in the forefront of gravel, tarmac and rally racing in Sri Lanka and India which has taken the HTL brand to masses whilst boosting the sport in the region.
Within a span of 30 years Reyaz Farook has built and developed HTL from scratch and now has a turn-over of sixty million US dollars per annum and continues to grow with clear direction & desired speed.
Reyaz – born in Sri Lanka and now based in India for the past 6 years-drives the vision of the company with the support of a hand-picked team of professionals and continues to prove the invaluable asset he is to HTL and the industry with his innovative thinking, knowledge, experience, adaptability & most of all the humanity which has made him a Master Strategist and a living legend.