Re-Imagining South Asia’s Largest Hospitality Ecosystem
A DELHI boy, who chose hospitality for a career, carved a niche for himself in a fiercely competitive global environment, and returned home to India after 30+ years, to lead Indian Hotels Company (IHCL), through good and, very recently, troubled times. Ladies and gentlemen of the fraternity, it is a pleasure to bring to you Puneet Chhatwal, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Indian Hotels Company (IHCL), in this interesting exclusive interaction BW HOTELIER had with him.
Over three and a half years at IHCL, how has your journey been? A turn around, a pandemic and now a successful charter to revival — your thoughts on this?
It is an honour to be part of a company as revered and renowned as IHCL. The company has seen a turnaround and was able to deliver nine consecutive quarters of profitable growth till February 2020. The Taj brand was rated as India’s Strongest Brand across all sectors by Brand Finance in 2020, and the company has reached a portfolio of 220+ hotels with over 26,000 rooms across 100+ locations. IHCL has also transformed itself from just a hotel company to a hospitality ecosystem that expanded into new segments and unlocked the power of many of its existing and powerful ancillary brands.
Then came the unprecedented pandemic, which forced us to think and work differently. Our employees came together with resilience and fortitude to overcome this crisis. In response to the pandemic, the company moved quickly and devised a fresh strategy, “R.E.S.E.T 2020”, to tackle the new industry scenario. R.E.S.E.T is IHCL’s five-point agenda that provides a framework to achieve revenue growth while optimising expenditure and strengthening balance sheet and at the same time, continuing on our path of excellence. This yielded positive results and we achieved quarter-on-quarter growth and delivered positive EBITDA in the last two quarters of FY 2020-21. However, the current second wave has again impacted travel and uncertainty continues to loom in the current times. Our strategy once again is to continue to focus on alternative streams of revenue whilst keeping the community and employees at the centre of everything we do.
IHCL’s Taj Hotels are synonymous with hospitality, providing not just world class products, but world class experiences. How do you define Tajness in your own words?
Our philosophy of “Tajness” is the company’s soul. We have redefined Tajness as Trust, Awareness and Joy. ‘T’ stands for the trust that our guests, associates and all stakeholders place in us. ‘A’ refers to awareness, which entails being cognisant of what is happening around us and what we need to do as responsible members of the community. To do something effectively, we must enjoy what we do; we must do it joyfully and ’J’ stands for that.
It is this spirit of Tajness that has helped our associates to showcase their innate grit that has and continues to assist us in navigating the pandemic.
What according to you would be critical for our industry to bounce back — from survival to revival and which segments are going to drive the performance of hotels in India?
Domestic travel is going to continue playing a dominant role in the recovery. Last year till March, it was primarily leisure travel driving the business, boosted by new trends such as staycations, driving holidays and even workcations, where guests work from hotels at exotic locations while spending leisure time with family and friends. Intimate Weddings has been another segment contributing to revenues with people opting to book the entire palace or resort to create their own bio-bubble. Both corporate and MICE travel, will however, take some time to revive.
If you can share with our readers a brief overview of IHCL/Taj Hotels? Your hotel brands.
With the aim to become a hospitality ecosystem, we re-imagined our brandscape. The refreshed brandscape has enabled IHCL to expand its portfolio across different customer segments via various brands to address different price points and requirements.
The brand portfolio comprises the iconic Taj hotels, which operate in the luxury segment. SeleQtions is a “named” collection of individual hotels, each with a unique character. Vivanta is in the upscale segment for the sophisticated and contemporary traveller. And our re-imagined Ginger brand is pioneering the lean luxe segment. amâ Stays & Trails, which is India’s first branded homestay portfolio, is a group of heritage bungalows, guesthouses and homestays at unique locations across the country.
How has the performance been until now?
We have come a long way since March last year when complete lockdown resulted in zero revenues. Once restrictions started easing, we did see a steady increase in occupancies month-on-month, especially buoyed by the festive season. However, the severity of the second wave, has resulted in a slowdown in business, which we hope will be temporary on all counts.
How do you position IHCL/Taj in India, South Asia and globally?
The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) is South Asia’s most iconic and largest hospitality company by:
- Market capitalisation;
- Number of hotels;
- Number of locations;
- Gross Revenue;
- EBITDA etc.
It occupies a unique space of its own. It is the largest operator of authentic Grand Palaces. It also has the largest resort portfolio in the country. This helped us drive revenues during the pandemic when international travel stopped. Our hotels are spread across the length and breadth of the country encompassing almost 100 locations so guests will always have easy access to an IHCL hotel anywhere in India.
IHCL is India’s only hospitality company to have marquee hotels in key international locations like London, New York, Dubai, San Francisco, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Cape Town to name some. The company has award winning and highly acclaimed restaurants including Michelin Star restaurants in San Francisco and London.
The Taj brand, as previously highlighted, was rated as India’s Strongest Brand because of the special emotional connect and strong brand resonance it has with its guests worldwide.
The journey so far — Presence across countries, current & pipeline. Your views.
IHCL has a portfolio of 220+ hotels including 50+ under development globally across 4 continents, 12 countries and in over 100 locations.
The company stayed committed to growing its pipeline by signing and opening hotels even during the pandemic. We opened Taj Skyline in Ahmedabad, Taj Chia Kutir Resort & Spa in Darjeeling, and The Connaught — IHCL SeleQtions in New Delhi over the last financial year. We are focused on our promise to open one hotel a month in this financial year as well. We just announced the opening of Vivanta Trivandrum and are slated to launch Taj Wellington Mews, Chennai —another first in the country- This will be an all women-run luxury residences property.
It would also be nice to hear from you about your air catering business - TajSATS and its new venture, ANUKA.
TajSATS is the market leader in airline catering. During the pandemic, the company diversified into the non-aviation space to leverage new revenue opportunities. A new brand called ANUKA was launched, which is a multi-cuisine virtual restaurant available on the Qmin app, IHCL’s culinary and food delivery platform. Another extension to this is ANUKA Comfort that caters to residential apartments as well as institutions. TajSATS also launched ASA, an array of handcrafted artisanal chocolates that is available on some e-commerce platforms and in the Qmin Shop.
What are the changes that the pandemic has brought to IHCL hotels in terms of how business is being conducted?
There is, of course, an increased focus on enhanced hygiene and safety measures for both guests as well employees. We introduced a group-wide initiative “Tajness – A Commitment Restrengthened” to this end. This includes heightened measures and protocols that have been implemented across all our brands and hotels. We also accelerated the adoption of technology and introduced I-ZEST — IHCL’s Zero-touch Service Transformation initiative to adopt digital processes for certain customer experiences such as check-in and check-out, digital keycards and QR codes for menus at restaurants among others. Social distancing is being incorporated in all areas of hotel operations. AI-fresco dining has been gaining popularity and many of our hotels have created differentiated outdoor dining experiences to meet this requirement.
We have re-imagined our business by developing alternate revenue streams. We launched Qmin — IHCL’s culinary and food delivery platform across 14 cities in India along with its own mobile app. The brand was extended to a gourmet Qmin Shop at President hotel in Mumbai, which is the first of many other Qmin Shop outlets planned across the country. We will also be rolling out a Qmin food truck in the coming weeks.
We revamped India’s very first exclusive business club — ‘The Chambers’ with an enhanced offering. Keeping the demand for small and exclusive social interactions in mind, we introduced a new initiative called Rendezvous, which gives members an opportunity to host events that could be celebratory, engaging and stimulating through conversations, panel discussions and intimate gatherings.
Another product that we have put on fast-track is the amä Stays & Trails brand, which is seeing increasing popularity, with travellers looking for private and exclusive bungalows to relax and rejuvenate with loved ones safely. We currently have a portfolio of 40 bungalows at very interesting locations like Goa, Allepey, Lonavala, Coorg, Chikmagalur, Trivandrum and Munnar, with many more slated to open through the year.
We will continue to launch many more customer- centric offers and campaigns that are in line with the dynamic and current consumer trends.
How do your hotels provide the best brand experience to your guests and what do IHCL hotels do to be slotted amongst the top experiential hotel companies?
Our brands have always been renowned for their warmth and sincere care. In addition, our hotels and authentic experiences provide a very strong sense of place, which is rooted in the local culture and traditions of the destinations they are present in. Be it our Grand Palaces, our exceptional resorts, or our luxury safari lodges, these are unique and differentiated products and experiences.
What are your plans to capitalise the emerging opportunities in the domestic and global markets? Please throw some light on your plans for the coming years.
Our focus, at the moment, continues to be the Indian sub-continent. We want to consolidate and strengthen our leadership position here first and are on a growth trajectory with more than 50 hotels in the pipeline.
We will selectively consider growth opportunities in key international markets that are relevant for the Taj brand. However, any opportunity must fit in with the brand ethos and also present a viable financial proposition.
We would like to hear about your recast Executive Leadership Team members in your own words.
At IHCL, we believe in giving growth opportunities to people from within the organisation. So, we have senior people from within the company, who have moved into new roles in the Leadership Team and are now part of the Executive Committee of the organisation.
Having led various hotel companies during your exalted career, what is Puneet Chhatwal’s secret to create a unique atmosphere for your business and team?
Transparency and collaboration are instrumental in creating an environment that helps any business thrive. These two critical elements ensure in building a healthy culture that is important for the success of any organisation.
As the President of the Hotel Association of India, what are your plans for raising the voice of the industry to the policy makers? The recent union budget shows, HAI has to do a lot more decibels to be heard in the right corridors and quarters.
We will continue to engage in dialogue with all relevant stakeholders. We have been talking to the central as well as the state governments continuously and making various representations on issues concerning the industry. Hope is not a strategy and persistence is the mantra. This approach works at all times. We have also started a magazine called HAI Engage that will highlight the needs of the industry and initiate discourse on important topics regarding the sector.
What attracted you the most to pursue a career in hospitality and how did you get your start in hospitality? To Puneet Chhatwal, what makes a good hotelier and what has been your success mantra?
I have always been fascinated with hotels. My early memories associated with hotels are all those trips to the iconic Machan at Taj Mansingh for the all-time favourite late night Kona coffee.
My interest eventually led me to pursue a career in hospitality by studying hotel management and then starting my career with Ashok Group of hotels. Subsequently, not only was I blessed with the opportunity to receive higher education in a Euro-American format but also acquire three decades of experience across both sides of the Atlantic. This journey has been ably supported by Indian emotional intelligence throughout my career of almost four decades.
Any successful leader must embrace change and think like an entrepreneur. This approach always works, especially during a crisis like the current one. It is also universal and applies to all industries, not just hospitality.
Taj Chia Kutir Resort & Spa, Darjeeling
How do you unwind yourself?
My work is my passion. So, I never feel the need to distinguish between work and leisure and unwind. However, spending time with friends and family is always therapeutic and I enjoy that.
Tell us about your favourite domestic tourist destination?
With its rich heritage and history, I would like to discover India much more.
I have travelled a fair bit for work and from what I have seen, I like the beaches of Goa, the splendour and magic of Rajasthan, and the unexplored and mystical North East, to name a few destinations.
Puneet Chhatwal’s message to the industry and the impressionable who are looking to pursue a hospitality career.
Hospitality is one of the most fascinating industries and offers great career opportunities. It is a people’s business — it has glitz and glamour.
However, it is still a business which has infinite opportunities and unlike any other business it is important to focus on the customers without losing sight of profitability and growth.
