Category Archives: Interviews

Sarovar is one of the fastest growing hotel chains in India with over 80 operational hotels across 50 destinations in India and Africa. Ajay K. Bakaya, Managing Director, Sarovar Hotels and Resorts, is extremely positive about the brand’s international presence especially East Africa. He says, “Sarovar started in a small way in Tanzania. We are operating in Nairobi (Kenya), Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), we have opened in Lusaka (Zambia), we have a project coming up in Auxum in Ethiopia and one in Somaliland. Both the properties will start operating by mid 2020.”

Sarovar has shown 6-7 per cent growth on its total revenue. Speaking on the same, Ajay Bakaya, MD, Sarovar Hotels and Resorts says, “As far as revenue is concerned, Bengaluru is number one, Hyderabad is number two and Mumbai is number three. In all these cities, I have the domination of business clients.”

Mandeep Lamba has taken over as the President of HVS ANAROCK South Asia. In a recent one-on-one interview, he says, “In terms of the structure, the new partnership is a JV, but of course, both the partners are extremely strong. ANAROCK is a substantial real estate consulting company and HVS is a global leader. So, with the two companies coming together, there couldn’t be a better merger of opportunities in the real estate and the hospitality sector and that’s why it’s going to be different from the previous venture. The strength of the two companies merged together is going to be substantial. The earlier joint venture was between HVS and an individual in his own capacity. This one from that perspective makes it look very different because both the companies are extremely solid in their own space.”

Radisson Hotel Group has shown robust growth in the Indian market in 2018. In a recent conversation with Raj Rana, Chief Executive Officer – South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group, he says, “Radisson will be adding two more hotels to its pipeline for 2018. The brand will finish the year with 95 properties. Next year, we will have 100 hotels in operation. In our pipeline, we have 143-145 hotels as we speak. In the next five years or so, to hit the target of 200 hotels. I am very happy with the progress the group is making.

Marriott Market place 2018 concluded in Delhi recently. Shampa Dhali, Area Director, National Sales, Marriott India, says, “Marriott Marketplace has a lot of importance to us in a way it’s a platform for our hotels to showcase their offerings, new destinations. With 16 brands, we have a huge pipeline. This year, we have opened more than 15 and we are scheduled to open another 13 next year.”

Radisson Hotel Group has embarked on a five year plan which is focused around technology where the brand is investing in technology to drive the top-line of its hotels. Also, to make sure the new loyalty name, Radisson Rewards is well accepted by the guests. Raj Rana, CEO, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group, says, “We are steadily growing, adding 7-9 hotels each year and signing 14-15 hotels. As the Udan Scheme takes off and as the infrastructure grows, especially road connectivity, we look forward to add more hotels on leisure as well as business front.”

Lemon Tree will be opening 7-8 hotels by the end of this fiscal year. Rattan Keswani, Deputy Managing Director, Lemon Tree Hotels says, “There are a lot of exciting things happening in the group. The recent one was the successful IPO where we opened hotels one after the other post that. It continues to be that way in the sense that we have about 7-8 opening due by the end of this fiscal. Fair amount of growth is being added in terms of inventory. From a managed piece, there are a few contracts in play. The market is firmer now and occupancies are stable even tough its summer.”

In a recent interview, Jatin Khanna, Vice President, Operations- India, Hilton, talks about how important India as a market is for the brand, growth strategy in the country and more. He says, “We have two-pronged strategy plan for India. One is for the big cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad etc, where we want to bring some of our iconic brands like Conrad and Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts. Also, we don’t want to lose out on Tier II and Tier III cities where there is a lot of expansion happening. So, we have a robust plan for the country where we are not going to overlook smaller cities. It will be a uniform growth. We have a plan where we do not want to miss out on any of the brands or any other positioning in any city.”

Marriott has robust expansion plan for the Indian market. Ramesh Daryanani, Vice President, Global Sales – Asia Pacific (excluding Greater China), says, “Globally, we have over 2700 hotels in the pipeline of development. It represents over 460,000 rooms. In India, we will be launching a new brand in the next six month to a year. We still are in discussion about where this new brand will be launched.”

As per recent reports, the Supreme Court (SC) has given a judgement that allows hotels and restaurants to sell bottled water and other packaged products at above the maximum retail price (MRP). “The judgement has come as a relief for the hotel industry. Hotels do not just sell packaged drinking water, aerated drinks or any such packaged commodity, but they serve it. As was contested by us, the bench observed that hotels and restaurants besides selling F&B, also render a service. We are glad that the Hon’ble Supreme Court has acknowledged the point and come out with a just decision”, says Mr. Dilip Datwani, President, Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI)