Tani Hanna, CEO, Leisure World Consulting.
When I first met Tani Hanna perhaps 25 years ago I found before me a startling character with – to me – wild ambitions.
The young Lebanese was opening up gaming operations in some of the darkest regions of the Dark Continent. I could not be blamed for conjuring up the mental image of a string of bearers toting ageing slots through the bush, egged on by a pith-helmeted adventurer.
A romantic image, but at that time not a long way short of reality. For Hanna was, and still is, one of those curious creatures often to emerge from the gaming industry, who see potential where no-one else can; or at least who are prepared to go into what one can best describe as ‘dodgy’ areas of the world to set up business.
It has paid off for Hanna, now comfortably edging towards middle age but working out of his high-class office suite in the Jumeira Business Centre at the Jumeirah Lake Towers free zone area in Dubai. From there his Leisure World Consulting both consults for and manages five wholly-owned African casinos, a string of slots locations across Africa, manages a water park in the United Arab Emirates and retains a keen eye on the main chance, wherever it may be and whatever form it takes. He doesn’t have partners…”I don’t work well with partners. I have to admit that I want to do things my way and will insist on that – until someone proves to me that I’m wrong.” That isn’t arrogance, just the confidence that in the great majority of cases, Hanna gets it right.
Read the full article in the April issue of InterGaming.
