Meet our team
Firoz Lalji
Chairman of the Board
Firoz Lalji is Chairman, CEO, and Co-founder of Zones, LLC. Prior to his tenure at Zones, Lalji was the founder, president, and CEO of Kits Cameras, Inc., which he built into a chain of 225 stores across the U.S. and Canada. Lalji obtained his Bachelor of Science degree (Economics) from the London School of Economics and attended Harvard Business School. He serves on multiple advisory boards, including the board of directors of US Bank of Washington, the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington, the London School of Economics, and the Pacific Northwest Ballet. Lalji is also founder and chairman of the Program for African Leadership (PFAL) Foundation as well as the Program for African Leadership at the London School of Economics.
John Powers
President of Real Estate
John Powers serves as President of Real Estate, overseeing management of the existing properties, new development projects, and acquisitions. Prior to Fana, Powers served as Director of Real Estate for Boeing Realty Corp, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Boeing Company, where he managed dispositions and redevelopment projects in the Western United States, along with overseeing Boeing's leased property portfolio in the Asia Pacific Region. Powers is a graduate of the University of Washington with a B.S. in Building Construction.
Michael Chase
Chief Financial Officer
Mike Chase serves as Chief Financial Officer for Fana, overseeing all financial operations of the company, including reporting, controls, structured financing, and directly managing the company's accounting systems. Chase, a graduate from the University of Washington with a BA in Business Administration and a CPA, has been with Fana since its inception in 1989.
Mark Kennedy
Controller
Mark Kennedy serves as the Controller for Fana overseeing the accounting activities of the company. Prior to Fana, he held finance management positions at Zones, LLC, a global IT solutions provider. He earned his Bachelor’s degree from Washington State University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant (inactive) and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).
Carol Van Mierlo
Director of Property Management in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA)
Carol is responsible for the property management operations of Fana Group of Companies Toronto Commercial Portfolio. Prior to joining Fana, Carol worked at O&Y Enterprise and was a Director of Property Management at Arcturus Realty for 8 years, where she was responsible for a Commercial Office and Retail portfolio of in excess of 5 Million square feet. Carol, a graduate of Capetown University with a BA in Business Administration, brings over 19 years of industry experience with major real estate owners.