Weddings are Really an Important Part of Our DNA: Renu Basu, SVP, Global Sales, IHCL

It is apt to say that weddings are driving the hospitality business in many states in India and if it is at one of the Taj properties then it has to be iconic.

Speaking to BW Hotelier during the Vogue Wedding Show in New Delhi, Renu Basu, Senior Vice President, Global Sales, The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL), feels that the wedding business works on word of mouth recommendations and Taj Hotels have been a favoured location for signature weddings.

“Taj Hotels has always been a pioneer in hosting memorable weddings for over a century. Taj has always been synonymous with signature wedding celebrations at exotic destinations. To infuse further creativity into weddings, Taj Hotels launched the Taj Wedding Studio last year that brings to life the art of planning a dream wedding, inspired from the very best in the industry. Keeping with the pioneering spirit of the brand and taking this experience a step further, we have continued to cater to our loyalists over the years. Taj Wedding Studio promises to bring alive the wedding experience and inspire creativity in every aspect of family celebration,” she added while listing out how the Studio offers superlative experiences and personal interactions to curate an event under the guidance of the industry experts; an array of available destinations from palaces to idyllic resorts to city centre hotels, latest banqueting trends, planning celebrity weddings, food and beverage pairings from the 350 restaurants available within the brand.

Steady growth

The Group has seen a steady growth of approximately 18-20% YOY with an estimated cost of a wedding anywhere between INR 5 lakh to 5 crore – making it a huge potential earner. “The increase in disposable income and the rise of the middle class has turned the Indian wedding industry into an extravagant affair. The trend of combining weddings with holidays (destination weddings) is slowly catching up in Tier II & Tier III markets leading to the steady growth of the industry,” she said.

In demand

The key Taj hotels in demand for weddings are Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai; Taj Land’s End; Taj Palace New Delhi; Taj Surajkund; Vivanta Dwarka; Taj Bengal; Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur; Taj Krishna, Hyderabad; Taj Falaknuma Palace; and Taj Exotica, Goa.

Wedding Trends

According to Basu, community weddings are in great demand as they have a larger cross influence. “Weddings are Really an Important Part of Our DNA. Many times multi-cultural friends and alliances in the same community influence the celebration. There is an aspirational value attached to every event so a ceremony like ‘sangeet’ has become part of the wedding ceremony repertoire. Wedding shoots, western style dinner, destination wedding in the traditional set of weddings are in great demand,” she added.

Sales Mission

Post the first edition of the two-day Taj B2B Sales Mission held last year in New Delhi that saw 38 hotels participate, Basu informed that this year the number has increased to 57 hotels. Speaking about the sales mission, Basu said, “Seeing last year’s success, we decided to have a sales mission this year again because our hotels are growing. This ultimately is creating a need for the General Managers and Director of Sales and Marketing to meet their customers to understand sales. Our main objective is to educate our travel trade partners on our new hotels and to familiarise them on the product and engagement. With this, we will also continue with the international sales mission in Dubai, UAE, London, Middle East and Saudi Arabia.” This year the sales mission is to be held on 17th August in Mumbai and August 20-21  in New Delhi. Therefore, the Taj Sales Mission, under One IHCL, will have a different brand architecture with the re-launch of Vivanta and Ginger Hotels; a new boutique brand called SeleQtions alongside the wedding and MICE market.

New Launches

For Taj Hotels, India is a significant growth market to re-launch Taj Connemara Chennai in September followed by the opening of Taj Aravalli in Udaipur, Taj Rishikesh; Taj Theog near Shimla; and most importantly Ginger Hotels in Surat, Patna and Madgaon in Goa along with two new hotels in Dubai early 2019.