Dubai is no stranger to rags-to-riches stories and one such tale is that of Indian expat Vignesh Vijaykumar, who went from a teenager washing cars to being the owner of 14 luxury cars, among other assets worth millions.
The car park in Mr Vijayakumar's opulent Jumeirah villa is enough to turn any car lover green with envy.
His private collection includes a Ferrari, Rolls-Royce, Bentley Gt Continental, Bentley Flying Spur, Range Rover, Cadillac Escalada, Mercedes Viano, Lincoln Aviator, Maybach, BMW 7 Series, Mercedes E300, Mercedes G630, Thar, Nissan Patrol and a Defender.
The Keralan founder and chief executive of Wealth-i group of companies, also owns a luxury yacht, 68 horses and several farms all over the world.
He has more than 700 employees working under him in a diversified portfolio of companies in various industries including real estate, hospitality, e-payment, car rental, human resources, and legal and business consultancy.
Mr Vijayakumar's stratospheric rise from one of his first jobs as a receptionist earning Dh3,500 in 2005 to a multi-millionaire is the stuff of which Bollywood blockbusters are made.
Humble beginnings
Mr Vijayakumar told The National that his entrepreneurial journey started with a modest investment of Dh100.
"I bought a bucket, three towels and car polish. Everything I made began from there," said the married father of two.
Looking back at his humble beginnings, Mr Vijayakumar said car washing was a part-time job he took up to make ends meet as a teenager faced with the responsibility of paying off his father's debts.
"Dubai was never on my radar when I was doing my undergraduate degree in Kerala," he said. "But circumstances forced me to do so.
"My father who was a Dubai expat ran into debt after he incurred big losses. I decided to take up a job in Dubai to help my father and support my family."
But his nine-to-five job was not enough to clear the debts.
"I looked around and saw two options; I could be a newspaper boy earning an extra Dh600, or I could wash a few cars and earn more."
When he did the maths he figured out that by having monthly deals to wash just 14 cars every week he could earn up to Dh2,000 extra.
The young 19-year-old woke up at 4am each day and spent the first few hours washing cars in the Deira neighbourhood.
"I got paid Dh150 a month for big cars and Dh130 for small cars. I did a better job than others because I had three towels, which I always kept clean, and I added a dash of car polish for a finishing touch. My customers were happy and they paid me well," he said.
Close quarters
At the time he was living in a room with seven other people, which had one bathroom shared between 14 people living in the house.
Mr Vijayakumar said that even when he was struggling, he had always dreamt of owning cars.
"I had the gall to dream of owning a dozen cars. But if I had not washed 14 cars, I would not have bought as many.
"I drew inspiration from Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid. I learnt a lot from him that dreams should have no limits," he added.
He took on more jobs alongside his car washing gig which topped up his monthly salary to about Dh9,000.
Dreaming big
In 2008, his dreams grew with his income, and he launched a visa-renewal business.
"Soon, I was processing 600 visas a month. I decided to give up my full-time job since I had enough money to invest in a contracting business through a friend," he said.
By 2011, Mr Vijayakumar had launched another business, which he said was a one-stop shop for all investors and businessmen.
"My fortunes turned around in just two years. In 2013, I was among the list of 50 upcoming Indian businessmen published by the Indian Association of Dubai," he said.
Mr Vijayakumar has also won the Golden Achievement Award from Dubai Chamber of Commerce in 2020 and the Youth Business Icon Award in 2022.
Cautionary tales
But he has had his share of ups and downs, after building a business empire spread across immigration consultancy, public relations, HR and green economy.
"I made millions but I also lost several millions," he said.
Mr Vijayakumar said he is grateful for the challenges and the good relationships he built with people.
"There is no bigger wealth than that. If you are honest, you will always find a way out," he said, adding that he had to sell off all his assets to pay back his customers.
"There are a lot of ways to make money.
"The only things you need to look for are the opportunities that are always around you," he said.
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Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill
Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
