FOR RAMOLA MOTWANI, chair of Merrimac Ventures in Fort Lauderdale, FL, the wellspring of inspiration runs deep through family roots that withstood the upheaval of a nation divided.
Standing on the sun-drenched shores of Florida's coast today, few would guess that her journey began amid the tumult of 1947, when the newly independent India was partitioned. Her family, once prosperous business owners in Sindh (now in Pakistan), abandoned their wealth – a movie theater and other properties – fleeing to India with little more than determination.
In India, they quickly established a timber business before returning to their passion: cinema. This early lesson in resilience would prove invaluable decades later when Ramola found herself facing her own moment of reinvention.
Despite the discrimination her family encountered during partition, her childhood was remarkably progressive. "In our house, the servants were treated like family members," she recalls to the Women of Color Power List 2025.
Her father's presidency in the local Rotary Club exposed young Ramola to service leadership, while his subscription to Reader's Digest opened windows to American culture and possibilities beyond India's shores. Though fiercely proud of her heritage, she recognized the limitations of opportunity in her homeland.
"I am a very passionate Asian Indian and didn't want to leave the country," she admits. Yet in 1975, six years after her future husband Ramesh Motwani departed for America to pursue his MBA, Ramola followed.
The couple married and settled in St. Charles, Missouri, where they launched Sona Enterprises, importing goods from India, China, and Hong Kong. What began as a modest store quickly expanded, mirroring their ambition.
"We came with an open mind, and as a proud Indian and Bharat Mata's child I was aware you just don't take, you also give," she says. "I was also aware that in the U.S. we were seen as ambassadors or representatives of India. When people look at us here, they make the decision of what kind of people from India or what India is."
The seven-day workweeks of those early years forged a foundation for greater ventures. In an era when the Indian community in America was small and scattered, her store became a cultural touchpoint.
"If we met an Indian in our store it was like meeting a family member," she reflects. "I still own that property because a lot of memories of my children, business and going back reflecting to my past."
The couple's trajectory changed dramatically when Ramesh was diagnosed with scleroderma, an autoimmune disease carrying a grim prognosis of perhaps ten years to live. Doctors recommended he avoid cold climates, leading to seasonal relocations to India that left Ramola balancing their business, household, and raising two sons alone for months at a time.
A vacation to Fort Lauderdale provided the solution. The tropical climate promised Ramesh relief, and the family decided to relocate permanently. They purchased the beachfront Merrimac Hotel, venturing into hospitality without experience but with characteristic determination.
"We were willing to learn and determined to succeed," Ramola says.
Fate dealt them another blow when Fort Lauderdale officially cracked down on spring break revelers shortly after their arrival in the mid-1980s. The city, immortalized in the 1960 movie Where the Boys Are, had grown weary of property damage and public debauchery. Hotels throughout the area went into foreclosure as tourism plummeted.
Rather than retreat, the Motwanis adapted. They slashed expenses, formed alliances with tour operators, chambers of commerce, and trade organizations. When cash flow tightened, Ramola would return temporarily to their Missouri business. Their persistence enabled them to expand, acquiring the Gold Coast and Beach Breeze motels, plus two acres of prime beachfront land for future development.
In October 1994, they added the Tropic Cay motel to their holdings. Days later, on November 2, Ramesh passed away at just 47 years old. Their sons, Dev and Nitin, were teenagers.
At this critical juncture, Ramola faced the defining decision of her life. "After my husband's demise, I had a choice – sell the property and go back to India or any other place to have a good life or continue with the business," she remembers.
The answer came from within: "I'm not going anywhere." She moved into the family's Gold Coast Motel and watched as beachfront property values steadily climbed. By 2001, Merrimac Ventures owned 12 motels.
Her most audacious move came when she single-handedly secured city permissions to build a 320-room luxury hotel on Fort Lauderdale's beachfront. This project would help transform the former party destination into an upscale vacation paradise and dramatically increase commercial property values.
Even Donald Trump expressed interest in partnering, but the 2008 real estate collapse temporarily derailed their plans. Later, Conrad Hilton invested in Merrimac's vision. Ramola razed the original Merrimac Hotel, replacing it with today's Conrad Hilton Hotel.
"In the second phase of my life it is not just owning and operating hotels, but building new ones," she explains. With her Columbia University-educated sons now executives in the company, Merrimac Ventures has expanded beyond hotels into multifamily residences, condos, and broader real estate development. Today, the company has investments in $31 billion worth of properties.
As her business flourished, Ramola increasingly turned her attention to community service. In 2011, she spearheaded the launch of the first hospitality program in Broward County Public Schools, providing students with scholarships, internships, and mentorships. The program now operates in 15 schools.
Her service record is extensive: membership in United Way of Broward County, advisory committee for the Business Improvement District of Fort Lauderdale Beach, vice chair of the Beach Redevelopment Advisory Board, and a 20-year trustee of the local chamber of commerce. She serves on the state board of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association and was appointed to the Florida Commission on the Status of Women by the governor's office.
In 2019, marking 25 years since her husband's passing, the Motwani family partnered with Broward College to establish the R. Motwani Academy of Hospitality and Tourism, supporting local students pursuing careers in hospitality.
Ramola's advice to budding entrepreneurs remains remarkably grounded: "Start with what you can lay your hands on and then go with what you want to do in your life. Don't say no to anything and believe in yourself."
From the partitioned streets of newly independent India to the gleaming towers of Fort Lauderdale's reimagined beachfront, Ramola Motwani's journey embodies the resilience she first witnessed in her parents. Through personal tragedy and economic turbulence, she has transformed not only her family's fortunes but the very landscape of her adopted city – all while never forgetting the importance of lifting others along the way.
