‘We used the pandemic period to upgrade the hotel’

“In my career, I have seen big or small crises but Covid19 pandemic superseded all in terms of the intensity of impact it had on economic growth and human lives globally,” says Jai Chugh, General Manager, DoubleTree by Hilton Gurugram Baani Square. In fact, of the three years of his tenure, two were during the pandemic. “The journey has been quite emotional as the first two years at the property went in sustaining it from the strong tides of the pandemic,” he adds.

However, Chugh stood strong at the helm of affairs. “To sail through these challenging times, a lot of time and resources were pressed into uplifting the hygiene and safety standards and training as well as skill development of the team members. When lockdown was imposed, we kept engaging with the team through e-meets to track their health and safety and supported each other in every possible way. We also used this period to upgrade many areas of the hotel. Post-lockdown, the hotels were allowed to operate but with restrictions but we managed to do well with no financial losses in 2020 and 2021 despite limited business,” he says.

DoubleTree by Hilton Gurugram Baani Square has 201 rooms, of which six are suites and there are four dining outlets. Glasshouse is the all-day dining restaurant offering a la carte and buffet choices while Pose – The Fashion Bar is a chic bar with indoor as well as outdoor seating. Vibe – The Sky Bar is the highest rooftop bar in Gurugram, making it ideal for corporate gatherings or socialising with friends, Chugh informs, while the patisserie, Café O Lait, offers cakes, pastries, fruit juices, tea and coffee.

This hotel has two indoor ballrooms, four meeting rooms and two outdoor venues for banquets. “Lastly, our well-equipped round-the-clock fitness centre and rooftop pool offering skyline views of the Millennium City are the major attractions for our staying guests,” the General Manager shares.

Transformation from Hilton Garden Inn to DoubleTree by Hilton

Located next to the open-air shopping centre Baani Square, the property was previously called Hilton Garden Inn. Chugh was given the responsibility of converting it into a DoubleTree by Hilton. “As a global company, Hilton has strong brand standards and support team hence, the transformation became easy. The hotel underwent a series of renovations and upgrades, including a reconfiguration of the lobby to provide more space and seamless access to the café and all-day dining restaurant which were upgraded with new flooring and ambient lighting. The guest rooms now feature 55-inch Smart TVs and updated contemporary design touches in line with the DoubleTree by Hilton brand,” shares Chugh.

On relocating from Trivandrum to Gurugram

Speaking on his transfer from managing a hotel amid scenic beauty, Hilton Garden Inn Trivandrum, to one in the midst of Gurugram’s urban hustle bustle, Chugh avers, “There has not been much difference except geographical changes as both hotels are part of Hilton and so the foundation, values and culture have remained the same.”

Target segment

The hotel aims to target the corporate segment for volumes, especially in view of the recent growth in demand that the country has witnessed across all segments. “It will be supported by the retail segment in terms of rate growth which includes domestic travel and staycations. Group demand has also played a crucial role in the recent months where our hotel was able to rally rates on the back on high demand from social as well as corporate events,” he explains, adding the hotel is expecting to see a further spike in group trend beginning October 2022.

As most organistions across the globe have resumed travel, occupancies are getting a big boost. “This is helping us push the market retail pricing. In stark contrast to the last depression the market witnessed in 2008 where the rates took a long duration to recover, the market has been able to recover rates faster along with the demand this time round,” he adds.

Being environment-friendly

An important aspect that has come into centre-stage post-pandemic, however, is sustainability. Speaking on the issue, Chugh says, “DoubleTree by Hilton Gurugram Baani Square is fully committed to contribute and serve guests with a sustainable journey from the time of check-in till check-out.” As part of the Hilton’s Travel with Purpose initiative, the hotel is committed to reducing its environmental impact through green practices in maintenance, services and products. Few of the initiatives that the General Manager listed out are reduction of single-use plastics such as plastic water bottles and straws in rooms, restaurants and event spaces, the use of biodegradable food containers for events and food deliveries, the use of recyclable disposable bags and stationery and LED lights in all public areas and censor lights in some of the back areas. “Our guest rooms have thermostats with occupancy censors adjusting temperatures and we are also encouraging long staying guests to change linen every third day and towels on request,” he shares.

Eyes on future

With the pandemic seemingly away from our lives, Chugh has set his sights on future. “With the demand and ADR trends for April 2022 going above and beyond 2019 levels for most of the major markets in India, we are expecting to close 2022 at a better position as compared to 2019,” he says. Expecting the aggressive growth trend seen in the recent past to normalise by the end of the year and become linear, Chugh opines, “This growth will be majorly backed by pricing as the demand is already at a high level. The hotels will be trying to displace the low rated demand which was dominant in the market and helped the survival and replace it with the higher value demand with an expectation to create a balance between value of demand and volume of demand. With the demand revival, our plan would be to revive the corporate segment and continue pushing for retail demand to achieve ADR growth simultaneously.”