Indian Hotels to open 19 new Gateway properties by FY'17

NEW DELHI: Tata Group firm Indian Hotels will open 19 new properties under 'The Gateway Hotels and Resorts' brand in four years as part of its expansion plans.

The hospitality company, which currently has around 2,200 rooms under the Gateway portfolio, will thereby add another 2,000 rooms to its present strength.

"We will be opening 19 new hotels under the Gateway brand by FY 2017 across the country, taking the total tally of hotels under the brand to 42," The Gateway Hotels and Resorts Chief Operating Officer Prabhat Verma told PTI.

The new hotels will come up at Kolkata, Raipur, Pune, Hyderabad, NCR, Corbett Park, Bangaluru and Gondia in Maharashtra, among others, he added.

When asked about investments, he did not share a specific figure citing it would depend on the business model followed for the new properties proposed to be added.

"We are taking multiple approaches for these hotels. The upcoming properties will be a combination of management contract and joint ventures," Verma said.

The company is also open to investments as and when required, he added.

The Gateway Hotels and Resorts are upscale full service hotels and resorts and are five star properties.

Despite the current slowdown, he expressed optimism over the hospitality sector in India, saying "potential of the country is huge and tourism in the country is bound to grow."

The company currently has 23 Gateway properties across the country at Agra, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Calicut, Chikmagalur, Coonoor, Ernakulam, Gir, Hubli, Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Madurai, Mangalore, Nashik, Surat, Vadodara, Varanasi, among others.

It launched its 23th property, having 198 rooms, at Chennai on Saturday.

Source: Economictimes.com

The Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi appoints Emiliano Di Stefano as Italian Chef De Cuisine at ‘Prego’

The Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi has appointed Emiliano Di Stefano as Italian Chef De Cuisine at the hotel’s restaurant, Prego. He has eight years of experience as an Italian chef and has worked with many restaurants and hotels globally, such as China’s Venice Hotel, Intercontinental Hotel, Muscat and Hotel Executive, Italy. In his new role, Chef Di Stefano will be supervising culinary operations at Prego, as per a release.

Chef Di Stefano said, “I am excited to be a part of The Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi and bring the taste of Italy to a different country. It is a challenge to adapt to the Indian palate and yet keep the authentic flavour of Italian cuisine intact, but I am excited to experiment and serve food that is only of the finest quality, to all my guests.”

Speaking on the appointment of Chef Di Stefano, Sanjay Sharma, Complex General Managerm The Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi and The Westin, Sohna Resort and Spa, said, “We are delighted to have Chef Emiliano Di Stefano on board with us. Prego is one of our prized possessions at The Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi and Chef Emiliano is the idyllic person to preserve the same standard that we uphold Prego to. He brings with him refined culinary knowledge and strong leadership skills, which we are certain, will prove highly beneficial for the hotel in the time to come."

Source: economictimes.com

ITC Hotels launches WelcomHotel Dwarka, New Delhi

ITC Hotels has further expanded its portfolio of premium hotels with the opening of the WelcomHotel Dwarka, New Delhi in the NCR. The 393-room, five-star property will be managed by ITC Hotels under the WelcomHotel brand. As part of its expansion drive, ITC Hotels proposes to add several managed hotels under its brand portfolio. On the anvil are an ITC super-premium luxury hotel in Mahabalipuram, a WelcomHotel in Jodhpur as well as in Patna, and more than 30 hotels under the Fortune brand.

WelcomHotel Dwarka Hotel New Delhi boasts of over 1,600 sq mts of meeting and convention space, a fitness centre and salon services, a release stated. The rooms and suites are equipped with a range of modern facilities. The dwarka hotel has four F&B outlets—an all-day dining restaurant, Pavilion 75; ITC Hotels’ culinary brand, K&K-Kebabs & Kurries; Shanghai Club, a fine-dining Chinese restaurant; and Ghungroo.

Address:
WelcomHotel Dwarka, New Delhi
Plot No.3, Sector-10, District Center,
Dwarka,
New Delhi - 110075, India

News Source: Hospitalitybizindia.com

Delhi hotels may be allowed to build and sell flats to raise funds

NEW DELHI: The government is planning to allow hotels to build and sell apartments in their complexes in Delhi, a move that may benefit several hotels in the city except those that fall within the restricted Lutyens' Bungalow Zone.

Hotels will be allowed to use the 20% of the total built-up space, where they are permitted to set up a commercial and retail wing, to develop apartments, a senior official at the Delhi Development Authority said, on the condition of anonymity. "The government's move will significantly reduce the initial capital requirement for hotel projects. Hotel developers will be able to utilise the funds available through residential pre-sales to offset the level of debt funding," said Siddharth Thaker, managing partner at Prognosis Global Consulting. New and existing hotels will also benefit by way of improved ROIs and breakeven on initial capital investment will be shortened, he added.

The permission to build and sell apartments could benefit several older hotels such as the Hyatt Regency, The Grand, Qutab Hotel, The Lodhi and The Leela Palace. However, the concession will not apply to the Taj Mahal, Shangri La, Le Meridien, The Oberoi, Taj Palace, ITC Maurya and Claridges, all of which are in the Lutyens' Bungalow Zone.

The move is expected to push hotel owners and developers to bring in the globally popular concept of branded residences, which is catching up in many Indian cities as well, with a number of international brands such as Four Seasons, Hyatt, Starwood Group and domestic players such as Leela tying up with partners. Owners of these residences, which are attached to the hotel, will be able to use all the facilities that a hotel offers, including daily housekeeping, dedicated concierge and a 24-hour room service, spas, restaurants and banqueting facilities.

The Leela Palace in Chanakyapuri, for instance, has not utilised the additional FSI (floor space index) that DDA had given to hotels in 2008 to help add more rooms in anticipation of the rush of tourists for the Commonwealth Games. At the time, the FSI was increased from 1.5 to 2.25. The hotel will now be able to use a part of this extra FSI to build apartments, which will be more commercially viable.

The Qutab Hotel already houses 30 apartments that have been given on lease. Similarly, Hyatt Regency Delhi has recently built a tower, utilising a part of the FSI available to it. The tower, called the Hyatt Regency Delhi Residence, is expected to offer one, two and three-bedroom serviced apartments on lease when it opens later this year. When the new rules come into force, the hotels will have the option to sell these apartments.

Source: economictimes.com

MCD brings down house tax to 15%; move fails to impress Karol Bagh hoteliers

DELHI: After much hullabaloo, the MCD has passed the proposal to slash property tax to 15 percent from 20 percent. But this move has failed to impress Karol Bagh hoteliers. They are still adament about their demand to slash property tax to 12.5 percent.

"It was unfair for the government to charge 20 percent house tax from budget hotels, which fall under the guest house category, while they charged 12.5 percent tax from four-star and below category hotels," said Sandeep Khandelawal, president of Karol Bagh Traders Federation. "Though it will work as a breather for us, we are not going to stop our demand to bring it down to 12.5 percent."

In July, 2010, to accommodate tourists for Commonwealth Games (CWG), guest houses in Delhi were clubbed in the 'Special Non-Residential' category along with three-star and above category of hotels. The property tax in this category is flat 20 percent. This translated into a rise in house tax from 12.5 percent to 20 percent for budget hoteliers.

On asked if they would stall their plan to move the Supreme Court, Khandelwal said that as of now he is going to put it on hold. "Our efforts have paid off to some extent. They have brought it to 15 percent, but we will keep pressuring them to bring it down to 12.5 percent."

Yogendra Chandolia, standing committee chairperson of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) said, "We understand that 20 percent house tax has aggravated the problems of guest house owners in Delhi. Thus, we reached the 15 percent figure after taking into consideration the view point of stakeholders from across the city," he said.

When asked about the demand for a futher slash in the tax rate, Chandolia offered, "We can not please everybody all the time. Our decision has been taken after a lot of consultations and deliberation."

Balan Mani, vice president, Delhi Hotel and Restaurant Owner Association, alleged that the recent step of the MCD is just a face-saving exercise. "We want the MCD to come clean on the issue as to why they have been over-charging us since long. Also, some hotel owners have privately formed a group and are planning to move court to seek legal stand on the issue. Our organisation has given full support to these people," Mani said.

"We still demand that house tax should be nothing more than 12.5 percent," he added.

JN Chawla, spokesperson, Karol Bagh Hotel Association, said, "We are waiting for the new official notice to come to us. Once we get that notice, we will go to the court on a different issue, asking if they are going to charge 15 percent from now on, why have they been taxing us at 20 percent and if they are going to refund the extra money?" he said.

"We also want to know if we will be given the provision to pay less tax in the coming years to compensate for whatever extra we have paid so far. If not, we will move the courts," he added.

Khandelwal, who also runs a hotel called Nanak Continental in Karol Bagh, said that apart from house tax, there are so many other charges that hotels have to pay. "A 5 percent slash is no relief to us," he said

West Delhi hotels expect better 2013

NEW DELHI: The high-end hospitality properties operating in West Delhi have posted better results in the fourth quarter of 2012. Along with policy initiatives like allowing FDI in retail is filling up the sector with hopes for a better year ahead. Despite abysmal GDP growth rate.

"Reform in retail FDI, among others, has signaled the economy back on track," said Rubal Chaudhary, general manager of Hilton Janakpuri. Speaking on the previous quarter's performance of his hotel, he believed that the proposed reforms would boost the hospitality business. Hilton Janakpuri recently completed three years in West Delhi.

The other two hotels in West Delhi — Radisson Blu Hotel in Paschim Vihar and Jaypee Siddharth in Rajendra Place — are also optimistic about signs of a revival with the return of business customers.

Kanchan Rizvi, director of sales & marketing, Radisson Blu said, "MICE segment was a major source of business and revenue for the hotel in the quarter of October-December." They cashed in on revenue from rooms, F&B and residential weddings.

Manju Sharma, director of Jaypee HotelsBSE 3.39 % said, "India — a destination for investment and expansion for many sectors — is contributing positively for the hotel industry. The economic activity has been quite aggressive. This resulted in good business from the corporate segment for Jaypee Hotel Siddharth." Also In-bound tourism has contributed positively towards their business.

Replying to questionnaires, Hilton reported a 12 per cent growth in the year 2012, Jaypee said that the occupancy in 2012 increased by 6.79 per cent, whereas the fourth quarter occupancy was at 90 per cent and finally Hilton without divulging figures said that they were satisfied with the performance, although they were not able to meet the pre-budgeted numbers.

Explicating the performance Rizvi said, "Demand was available in the market but due to increased supply in the city average rate was under pressure." In a January 2013 report by Jones Lang LaSalle on the hospitality sector in the National capital region, they say that the market is going to be flooded with supply. The report had stated that 19 hotels were currently under construction in the capital with a total 4,785 rooms being built.

Source: Economictimes.com

Aman New Delhi hotel renamed The Lodhi

NEW DELHI: At midnight on Thursday, the elitist Aman New Delhi hotel in the western fringes of Lutyen's Delhi, was renamed The Lodhi, a throwback to its former name (Lodhi Hotel) when it was owned by the government.


The renaming follows the hotel's owner, real estate firm DLF's decision to sell back Amanresorts — the luxury hotel chain — to its original owner Adrian Zecha for $300 million. DLFBSE -4.96 % will retain the marquee Delhi property, but will give up the Aman brand name, since retaining the brand would have meant paying a massive fee.

Once a red brick-colored government hotel with a socialist hue all over it, the 1965 property metamorphosed into a popular melting pot for the cream of Delhi during its four-year romance with Amanresorts. Its patrons include Rahul Gandhi and Robert Vadra, who are often seen at its health club, bars and restaurants.

The hotel also has a luxury apartment block in its compound, where some of India's richest businessmen and executives, including DLF promoter Rajiv Singh, stay. Despite its aura, the hotel has not been the best of performers, though it made profits in 2011-12 after losses of .`101 crore in 2010-11. The perception of it being an expensive hotel — with rooms starting at $650 (over Rs 35,000) for a night and meals that can set you back by Rs 10,000 — made it somewhat inaccessible and high brow.

Robyn Bickford, a sprightly Kiwi who is joint general manager of the property with her husband Manav Garewal, agrees. "It was seen as a very remote, very elitist hotel. The perception is that it is very expensive," she says. With the renaming, she adds, all that will change. The hotel, of course, will face its set of challenges, now that the Aman tag is lost and 'Amanjunkies' — people who swear by the resort chain — seek other places to stay. "That, and the fact that selling a standalone property in Delhi, without a strong pull factor, will be difficult," says a hospitality consultant who did not wish to be named.

Bickford and her team, though, are not perturbed. They are keen to change the mystery around Aman, and have been at it for the past one year "since the decision to retain this property while selling the other Aman hotels was taken by DLF". The dark-alley restaurants have become more bright with the use of natural light and corridors now have a dash of artwork and installations.

Traditionally, the pricing has been high for the property, and that, says Bickford, will stay for now. "We have decided to hold the rates till March 2014 to see how it does and then we will take a call." What has changed over the past year — since they took a call to start changing the property slowly — is the mix of foreign and Indian guests. Now, 30-40% of the guests are Indians.

The rates for Indian residents have been kept 40% lower than the rack rates and this summer, it might drop even further, attracting more Indians, maybe some business travellers as well. Bickford recalls that with Aman, there were a lot of restrictions — no pricing flexibility, very high management fees and marketing was handled out of Singapore.

The hotel has also decided to open itself up to the younger lot in the city and has turned trendy. For one, it will use the social media — Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest — to attract the mid-to-late-20s crowd, making it a hub for young people. It has been working with artists and fashion designers, doing trunk shows, putting up art around the hotel that is mostly on sale. "You can have a meal for two for Rs 3,000 with a drink or two," she says.

"The challenge for us is to sell this new hotel as a 'not really expensive hotel' and appeal to the younger set as well." The 40-room hotel, with 28 apartments is spread over 7 acres and was rebuilt with Aman specifications when DLF bought the chain for $400 million in 2007. It spent Rs 400 crore to rebuild it. But once it was decided that the Aman tag will go, irrespective of who buys the chain, DLF went about refurbishing the property.

When DLF bought the chain in 2007, the Indian economy was riding high and the company had big plans in the hospitality space. It had tied up with Hilton to build 100 hotels. When the downturn set in, the plans were put on the backburner as their core real estate business was suffering and needed all the attention that they could give to get it back on track. By 2009-10, the company made its intentions clear to sell non-core assets to reduce its mounting debt.

"The Aman brand would have given them a much better marketing presence because of its global network," says Aashiesh Agarwaal, real estate analyst at EdelweissBSE -3.36 % Securities.

Source: Economictimes.com