|
|
|
You can get e-magazine links on WhatsApp. Click here
|
|
|
|
|
|
“We are set to expand pan-India”
|
|
Monday, 20 June, 2016, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
|
|
|
|
fiogf49gjkf0d  Conceptualised in 2011, Vedanta Wake up! is a chain of budget hotels with strong presence in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Puducherry. Rishabh Gupta, director, Blanket Hospitality Ventures Pvt. Ltd, in an interaction with Anurag More speaks about the current scenario of budget hotels in India, his company’s expansion plans and more. Excerpts:
Tell us about current scenario of budget hotels in India.
The budget accommodation segment continues to see strong momentum and we expect the positive phase to continue in the coming days as well. The surge in the demand can be primarily attributed to increased impetus on domestic travel and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) travel. With the ongoing holiday season, we expect to see more traction in the segment, especially from domestic leisure travellers.
How different is it in India compared to developed countries?
While developed countries have already exploited their tourism potential, India has not even reached mid-way in terms of realising its full potential. It’s only been a few years since India has started putting tourism at the forefront. Till a few years back, India didn’t have world-class budget and leisure hotels to attract foreign tourists. However, the scenario is rapidly changing and is not limited to just metros but can also be seen across tier-1 and tier-2 cities. I believe that India has still a long way to go and its next phase of growth story will be written by the boom in budget and mid-segment hotels.
How do you see the segment by 2020? What kind of price wars are prevailing in this segment?
Given the robust demand from SMEs, corporates and also domestic travellers, the budget accommodation segment is expected to continue its upward trajectory. The past decade has seen a sea change in the industry with the focus shifting to mid-market and budget segment from the luxury hotels dominated space. Currently, budget segment occupies the larger share of the total room inventory.
What challenges do players face in this segment?
The key challenge that continues to plague the hotel industry is the lack of skilled labour. Although the hotel industry has witnessed an unprecedented boom in the last decade, the talent supply has not kept pace. Government regulations for acquiring a hotel project as well as taxation policies are other major hurdles faced by hotel players.
What steps are being taken to overcome them?
We try as far as possible to solve this at the root. We have put immense thought into who we hire in terms of operations. Our operations team is head by people with knowledge and experience in the hospitality industry. Graduates from top hospitality colleges like IHM Mumbai with experience at luxury brands like ITC, Hilton and the Taj groups. We have devised a training strategy where we make it a point to carry out periodic training sessions with all our on-ground staff to make sure we deliver the best kind of service.
Tell us about demand and supply of budget rooms.
While currently, demand-supply gap (with supply being more) is a reality in a number of cities, the situation is expected to change by 2017. Ministry of tourism's vision of 11 million foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) by 2017 (1.0% of the world's tourism share) and other reforms by government are expected to significantly increase the demand. We are quite bullish on the segment considering the growth in Indian economy.
Furthermore, an immensely positive outlook for domestic business and leisure travel in the coming years is also expected to prove instrumental in bridging the demand and supply gap.
Brief us about your current and upcoming properties. By 2016, how many will be operational?
Conceptualised in 2011, Vedanta Wake Up! is a budget hotel chain by the travellers and for the travellers. The key motive of the chain is to let travellers enjoy a fun yet inexpensive travel experience. Our hotel properties provide a platform to guests to meet fellow travellers, make new friends and take their travel experience to a different level.
In a short span of time, we have expanded our footprint in business and leisure destinations in Kerala [Alleppey, Fort Kochi, Kovalam, Varkala, Thekkady, Ernakulam (Cochin), Trivandrum, Munnar (two properties), Wayanad]; Tamil Nadu [Kanyakumari, Kodaikanal (two properties), Madurai, Ooty]; Karnataka [Mysore, Coorg] and Puducherry. By 2016, we will be standing at 18 properties and are looking to expand multifold in the coming year.
Tell us about your expansion plans.
We have charted an aggressive expansion strategy and are all set to expand our footprint pan-India. We are reviewing several new locations across India and are evaluating many new properties for acquisition.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|