Technology is Key to Developing the Hospitality Sector: Sumit Kant

By Rashmi Pradhan NAVI MUMBAI is an exciting market for the hospitality sector with fast development and upcoming new branded hotels. Speaking to BW Hotelier, Sumit Kant, VP and General Manager, Four Points by Sheraton, Navi Mumbai, Vashi, began by stating, ’The overall performance of the hotel has been very encouraging.- We are witnessing a growth of 13 per cent in RevPAR and the occupancy hovers around 85-87 per cent. Our endeavor is to increase the weekend occupancy. We have come up with some exciting weekend package which has shown very good response and helped us in taking up the RevPAR. We are also constantly looking at increasing the ADR through focused revenue management.’ Kant said leisure travelers comprise 12 per cent of his occupancy whereas 88 per cent was business travelers. The hotel’s aim is to increase the weekend occupancy via things like weekend packages specially designed taking into consideration guests’ requirement. Speaking to us about trends in the hospitality industry, Kant said, ’The industry has evolved in the past few years and is trying to keep pace with the widely traveled and knowledgeable guest’s requirements. There has been a tremendous increase in women travelers and the focus for the coming years will be on the millennial segment. Guests have become self-sufficient and want to be engaged. We have seen many changes technology-wise and surprisingly and interestingly, Gen-X is also becoming tech savvy. Mobile check-in, robotic butler are interesting additions.’ He further informed, ’There will be further innovations technology-wise. There will be a need for seamless technology. More and more hotels will start using robots for the delivery of certain services. Stringent security measures will have to happen in data management and its protection. We would see smart buildings; the guests will opt for hotels with better air quality and that will have to be displayed in rooms. The guests will start patronising more the hotels which are environmental friendly and sustainable.’ In addition, Kant believes that the hotels who give emphasis on the guests’ health and wellbeing will have an edge. Multisensory gastronomy will play a vital role in guest experience. Guests will look at natural, less processed food. Diet by DNA will be the new trend, whereas the guest’s diets will have to be designed by connecting to the guests’ genetic make-up. The author is Assistant Editor of BW Hotelier.