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Born and raised in Kolkata, Khosa was also a state-level cricket player and had played division matches in Kolkata for the Calcutta Cricket and Football Club
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He came to NZ in 2007 as an international student with one two-rupees coin in his pocket
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He thanks his friends who supported him to buy his flight tickets…
Kiwi-Indian Jagpal Khosa is set to become the youngest Kiwi-Indian Branch Manager in the history of Barfoot and Thompson. The 36-year-old Sikh will head the real estate chain’s Manukau branch beginning April 1, 2023. He stays with his mother, wife and three daughters at Alfriston in south Auckland.
The Indian Weekender talked to Khosa who recalled his journey in New Zealand, his struggle, professional successes and the road ahead. “Like many others, I was no different in dreaming of having a good life and career in NZ, but the difference was that I woke up to work towards achieving my dreams every day,” Khosa said.
Born and raised in Kolkata, Khosa was also a state-level cricket player and had played division matches in Kolkata for the Calcutta Cricket and Football Club. He came to NZ in 2007 as an international student with one two-rupees coin in his pocket. He thanks his friends who supported him to buy his flight tickets. “They helped me even when I studied professional accounting and management and worked at Petrol Station Shell (now Z) at Botany downs and Waiuku. After completing my studies, I worked at a liquor store for quite some time… The support and the love I have received from this country over the last 16 years I have been here is mesmerizing,” Khosa said.
“Don’t underestimate the power of self-belief, and plan your goals. Every year I write my top five goals and an action plan to achieve them and once done, I move to the next.”
— Jagpal Khosa’s message to all migrants in NZ who aspire to make it big
While working at gas stations, Khosa used to speak with property agents and was very fond of how they dressed and the cars they drove. “Until then, I didn’t even think about entering the property market. However, when I got married in 2013, I thought about changing my career. I finished my salesperson qualification from Unitec and rang Manurewa Barfoot and Thompson Branch Manager Bill Humphrey for a vacancy.”
Speaking about the challenges he faced as a migrant, Khosa said, “It was hard for me to settle in a new unknown country as initially, I had no friends and didn’t have anyone very close to ask for help. Moreover, there were challenges with getting the Kiwi accent right, but I gradually picked it up as time passed…All my struggles gave me the momentum to work hard and make a better living for myself and my family. Bill rejected me in my first interview, but later that day, I got a call back from him asking me to come at 8am sharp in a suit for another interview the next day. He told me I had just three months to perform and prove myself. I was hired, and in my first week, I secured a listing. In my second week, I sold my first property. I have achieved what I have because of Bill and his constant support.”
As the youngest Kiwi-Indian branch manager in the history of Barfoot and Thompson, Khosa said it was an honour “to make my family and community proud and form a pathway for many others. People have shown their love and affection by ringing me to congratulate me. They expressed that they felt so proud that I am one of them who has been appointed to this position.”
His message to all migrants in NZ who aspire to make it big is simple: “Don’t underestimate the power of self-belief, and plan your goals. Every year I write my top five goals and an action plan to achieve them and once done, I move to the next.”