Dubai: At 34, Noveel Pandya is a billionaire who has made it big right here in the UAE. While it would be alright to say he is more blessed than others – his father, Narendra Pandya, ran an established business in the UAE before Noveel started – Noveel is attempting to make a mark with his own venture, Bioscience Clinic Middle East.
Senior Pandya runs a successful business – House of Chemicals (HOC) - as a distributor of specialty and commodity chemicals for key suppliers especially in businesses such as oil drilling, refineries, gas plants, lubricant plants, water treatment for desalination plants and sewage treatment.
Pandya, Noveel’s father, also started another company BDH with an expertise in supply, installation, commissioning and maintenance of all laboratory equipment and furniture.
“We are pretty much the turnkey laboratory projects expert,” said Noveel, in an interview with Gulf News at his house in Emirates Hills.
But Noveel’s baby Bioscience Clinic Middle East – a center offering regenerative medicine and personalised autologous cell therapies – brings him much pride and cheer. Premium services of the company include cryopreservation and expansion of cells used for anti-aging treatments, aesthetic and plastic surgery, wound care and for dermatological imperfections.
Starting from the bottom up
With a family-run business, it was perhaps a given for Noveel to become a businessman himself and run his father’s mantle.
But this was not achieved before he had to work his way up to the top.
“In fact I started from bottom low. There was no way my father was going to have me take over people’s jobs in the company who had put in years of hard work. So there was a huge process of learning one that taught me humility and gratitude for the people who are part of our team,” he said.
Noveel’s father came to work in the UAE in the early 70s. He said, “From the stories I hear from him - there were many challenges and struggles he faced. In fact, lots of people who came with him to work in the UAE returned home.”
It wasn't handed on a platter
Before jumping to the conclusion that he had it all easy, Noveel had to prove his capabilities just like any employee of the firm and had to work his way up the ladder.
“There was no way my father was going to let me work above all those people who had put in so many years of service. From 2007 until 2011 it was all about learning and observation.”
Take this: From the time Noveel completed his MBA in London in 2011 to join the family, he has helped the family business grow by a 100 per cent year on year.
Noveel said, “BDH for example was making Dh35 million in 2007, but today, it is making over Dh140 million.”
As for his own venture, there is massive potential for Bioscience Clinic Middle East as the stem cell venture business for the MENA region is tipped to be around $2 billion.
According to a report published in April 2019, the global stem cell market size is expected to reach $15.63 billion by 2025.
“Today, we have little competition in the MENA region, so as you can see, there is a massive potential to grow.”
Reverse-aging with stem cell therapy
Noveel said typically a client would reach out to a clinic to undergo a full scan and evaluation. A consultation with specialised doctors follows. Once the evaluation is done and the patient passes the test to become a candidate for the stem cell venture project, the doctor executes a plan to extract fat from the person’s body. “
This fat stores stem cells and we extract it from the fat. We have advanced technology in place to do the job for this. The stem cells derived are stored in vials and frozen,” he explained.
The stem cells are multiplied to a couple of hundred million or sometimes a billion in order to produce the required volume.
Noveel said: “When the stem cells are frozen – they stop the ageing process of the cells. This means it effectively helps reverse-age a person. If someone at the age of 30 comes to us and asks us to freeze their cells. We do it. The person can always come back ten or 15 years later to rejuvenate their skin, hair or any part of their body.
"Just imagine at 45 or 50, this person wants to rejuvenate their skin. What we will do is inject their cells which were frozen when they were 30. When these cells are injected, they will leave the person with a skin looking as young as 30.”
Stem cell therapy is said to be the most natural way to rejuvenate your skin, body and cells. The concept is called autologous which means it is your own cells which go into your body - not that of siblings or parents. Basically it is your own cells which are injected to the body and it is the most natural way to rejuvenate your body and skin.
How long does it take for the body to rejuvenate?
“It depends on the body type, the person’s lifestyle, food habits and more. This can take from a couple of weeks to a whole month. Remember, this is not an overnight fix. In fact treatments that come with overnight fixes can be very dangerous. Anything that has a drastic effect on your body is not good at all,” explained Noveel.
“We have seen fine lines or wrinkles disappearing in seven to 15 days after the cells were injected. The effect of the cell injected can last up to a year or over a year. But it all depends on the body type. Remember, your body can never reject your own cells – it always accepts its cells.”
“Our clients are people from the age 18 and above. People who use alternative treatments come to us. I had a 63-year-old man come in from India saying they wanted their stem cells extracted.”
Screening process
When a person comes there is a screening process that goes in. Upon successfully passing the screening process, other factors expel candidates like those who are typically heavy smokers or people with certain existing medical conditions.
“If a client has a virus present in the body, that would drastically effect the quality of cells. If the quality of cells we get right in the beginning is poor – the effect will not be desirable for them. Similarly, if the person is diagnosed with some STDs, certain terminal illness, we do not recommend them to store their cells.”
Package cost
An initial package offered by Bioscience Clinic Middle East is close to Dh15,000 which includes a consultation, cell extraction, one year storage of stem cells and application. The application can be used anytime. One is not forced to use it immediately.
“We are the only business in the region offering such services,” Noveel claimed.
Business investment
Noveel said he invested 5 million euros in Bioscience Clinic Middle East.
“This money went in for the facilitation of the lab, the treatment, and consultation, hiring skilled professionals and setting up class‘ clean rooms ’for storing stem cells. Remember we are talking about a niche industry and a very niche product. The investment is for this.”
Challenges as a millennial
“There is a definite need to make an effort to be heard. Sometimes we are not taken seriously and that is the only challenge I see for myself today. But never give up. Keep dreaming and have the zest to grow. Patience is a virtue that we millennials need to build. Success does not come overnight. For example, my break-even did not happen for long. But I kept at my dreams and went after my goals. This is critical,” Noveel said
