THE WESTIN Chennai Velachery has appointed Debopriyo Sen as their new Director of Sales & Marketing. With over 11 years of rich experience in the hospitality industry, Sen brings with him profound knowledge and skills in developing growth strategies for brands and implementing them to deliver business results.
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RITESH CHOUDHARY has been appointed as the Director, Food and Beverage, at The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai. Choudhary has been associated with the Taj Group of Hotels for over a decade during which he has worked in various capacities from August 2004 to October 2013.
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By BW Hotelier CHEF YATENDRA Rawat has been appointed as new Executive Chef at The Westin Chennai Velachery. With 18 years of experience in the industry, Chef Rawat brings with him numerous offerings to his new role. He started his culinary journey as Kitchen management trainee after completing three year culinary diploma from IHM Gwalior. Since then, he has been associated with hotels like Oberoi, Hyatt, Raffles, Moevenpick and Carlson Rezidor in varied culinary positions. In 2007, he joined Australian luxury casino first flagship hotel ’Crown Towers’ -and later an integrated resort and casino complex ’City of Dreams’ : offering 2000 rooms and over 20 F&B outlets as pre-opening team member in Macao. By 2010; he was Officiating Executive Chef & Chef de Cuisine of 320 Rooms with 6 F&B outlets at Hard Rock Hotel in same complex. Before joining Westin, chef Yatendra was involved with Moevenpick hotel, Kochi as pre-opening Executive Chef. Chef Rawat’s culinary forte lies with Trans-ethnic, pan Asian and western cuisines that got refined during his professional tenures in Indonesia, Singapore, China, Thailand and Macao. He played active roles in the prestigious ’Wine and Food gourmet summit’ and celebrated ’Raffles Wine & Dine’ in Singapore and Macao rubbing shoulders with celebrated Micheline star chefs from all across the globe. He is a trained ISO certified Food safety and hygiene manager and has attended a number of workshops and seminars associated with hospitality and kitchen management. Chef Rawat has received accolades right from the time he was in IHM, where he represented his institute as team leader for all India student chef competitions and won prizes in varied categories. He has conducted culinary workshops and lectures in prestigious ’Raffles culinary academy’, IFT Macao and different IHMs in India.
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By BW Hotelier SAMHI HOTELS Pvt. Ltd, India’s leading hotel Asset Company, today announced acquisition of Ascent Hotels Pvt Ltd. Ascent owns the 220 rooms Hyatt Regency hotel in Pune as well as 102 serviced apartments operated under the same brand. Ascent Hotels Pvt. Ltd. is owned and managed by the real-estate and hospitality conglomerate, RK Jatia Group. Following successful addition of 6 new hotels to its operating portfolio in 2015 including two acquisitions, this allows SAMHI to strengthen its portfolio which will continue to expand during 2016 both due to pre-scheduled openings as well as new opportunities for acquisition. Ashish Jakhanwala, Founder & CEO of SAMHI (see photo) commented ’with acquisition of Ascent we get a high quality hotel asset in a key metropolitan centre such as Pune and also strengthen our partnership with Hyatt Hotels. Pune has right ingredients for growth and we are confident of leveraging those with a high quality hotel asset’. Speaking about the new development, Adarsh Jatia, Managing Director of RK Jatia Group shared, ’While the market for hospitality remains bullish in Pune, the sale of Ascent Hotels reiterates the decision to focus resources and bandwidth on our marquee development in Mumbai. After the success of the Four Seasons Hotel Mumbai, the new project marks the expansion of the Four Seasons’ footprint in India. We are developing two 55 storey towers - The Four Seasons Private Residences, the first branded and serviced hospitality led residential development in Mumbai, which will be ready to launch later this month; and another Four Seasons hotel and serviced apartments tower with a luxury retail component.’ Vascon which is an existing shareholder in Ascent will continue to be an investor through convertible debentures. "We are excited about improvement in performance of Pune hotel market and partnership with SAMHI will help us add value for our shareholders" commented R. Vasudevan, MD of Vascon. The sale is consistent with the RK Jatia Group’s focus on developing luxury mixed-use formats under the aegis of Provenance Land Pvt. Ltd. - India’s first bespoke lifestyle developer. Provenance Land (formerly Magus Estates) has created and managed luxury hospitality and real estate projects since 1980. Mr. Jatia aims to consolidate presence in Mumbai, where Provenance Land is executing a $250 million expansion to the Four Seasons Hotel in Mumbai at their prime 6-acre land-parcel in Worli. In addition to this, the company is also working on other Greenfield projects which will be announced in 2016-17. Five year old SAMHI, which recently announced INR441cr equity investment by Goldman Sachs has rapidly expanded its portfolio of branded hotels across India and boasts of over 2,500 rooms in 16 operating hotels with a total portfolio of over 4,500 rooms by end of 2016. The Company is one of the few hotel asset companies to have attracted high quality institutional capital including from investors such as Sam Zell led Equity International, International Finance Corporation (member of the World Bank Group) and GTI Capital besides the latest round from Goldman Sachs.
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By BW Hotelier THE WESTIN Chennai Velachery announced the formal launch of their Chinese a-la-carte restaurant, christened-Five Sen5es. Reflecting the contemporary elegance and bringing out undiscovered facets of Sichuan cuisine, the restaurant is best suited to provide a complete and distinctive dining experience. Located in the upper lobby level overlooking the courtyard, Five Sen5es gets its legacy from EEST, a signature Pan Asian restaurant. The venue offers a delectable range of dishes providing an unforgettable Chinese cuisine to savor the taste buds with delectable Dim Sum and appetizer assortments along with select Japanese, Thai, Indonesian cuisines as well. Executive Chef Yatendra Rawat, The Westin Chennai Velachery said on this occasion, he said ’We are excited to introduce Five Sen5es, where one can indulge in an array of uncomplicated yet authentic dishes that offer a modern spin on traditional recipes from China. We look forward to creating a distinctive dining experience for our guests’ Shrikant Wakharkar, General Manager, The Westin Chennai Velachery said, "Five Sen5es is yet another impeccable addition to the Westin Chennai Velachery, the restaurant has an inviting look and has been created keeping in mind the traditional touches while maintaining the contemporary feel. Five Sen5es is one of the successful specialty dining concepts of the brand Westin Hotels & Resorts and is inspired from nuances of contemporary Asian dining. We are pleased to be the first Westin Hotel in India to introduce the restaurant.’
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By BW Hotelier DR MAHESH Sharma, Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism & Culture and Civil Aviation launched the ’24x7 Toll Free Tourist Infoline in 12 International Languages including Hindi and English’ available on the existing Toll Free Number 1800111363 or on a short code 1363 at a function in New Delhi. This project is being implemented by the Ministry of Tourism (MoT), Govt. of India through M/s. TATA BSS who have been associated with the work after open bidding process. The languages handled by the contact centers include ten International languages besides English and Hindi, namely, Arabic, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish. A ’Live Demo’ of this multilingual Infoline Service in Japanese, Chinese, Russian and Italian languages was also presented on the occasion. The Minister also announced that very soon his Ministry will launch an ’Incredible India Mobile App.’ to facilitate tourists in a better way. Addressing on the occasion, Sharma said that the launching of this multilingual Infoline has marked the fulfillment of the promise made to the people by the present Government for according priority for safety and security of tourists. This Infoline service will provide information relating to travel and tourism in India to the domestic and International tourists/visitors and to assist the callers with advice on action to be taken during times of distress while travelling in India and if need be alert the concerned authorities. He said that now tourists traveling in or planning to travel to India can seek help and information for a hassle free experience. He said that the calls made by tourists (both international and domestic) while in India will be free of charge. The international tourists in India and also international callers who speak the aforesaid languages will be directed to the call agents proficient in the respective language. Vinod Zutshi, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism in his address said that the focus will be on IEC i.e. Information, Education and Communication for the tourists followed by a helpdesk and then safety and security of the tourists. The website of Incredible India is also being revived to make it more tourist friendly. Ministry of Tourism in order to provide information services to the incoming tourists and domestic tourists has setup this Tourist info line. This service will primarily serve those who know very little about India or about travel within India, and those who do not understand Indian systems and often not even English. Srinivas Koppolu, MD & COO, TATA ’BSS gave the details of the functioning of Infoline and how will it be very beneficial for tourists. Dr. Ravi Kant Bhatnagar, Addl. DG (Tourism) dwelt upon the need for such a valuable Infoline and informed about the various aspects of it. Photo: -Dr Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism & Culture and Civil Aviation speaking at the launch of the 24X7 Tourist Infoline in New Delhi.
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By BW Hotelier ACCORHOTELS HAS appointed Arif Patel as Vice President Sales, Marketing and Distribution for the India region. An industry Sales and Marketing veteran, Arif brings to AccorHotels, over two decades of experience with leading brands that include ITC hotels and Oberoi hotels. Arif was most recently the Regional Director of Sales & Marketing, South Asia for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. A proven leader, Arif brings with him a wealth of experience in Sales, Revenue, Digital and Social Media Marketing, Loyalty and Distribution Management, Branding and Strategic partnerships. Speaking on his new appointment Arif Patel said, ’AccorHotels boasts of some of the most enviable and renowned hotel brands in the industry. I am pleased to be joining AccorHotels at an exciting time of growth in India with several of its leading initiatives such as digital transformation and innovative distribution strategy. Jean Michel Cass-, Senior Vice President, Operations, AccorHotels India added, ’Arif’s in-depth knowledge and experience in leading the sales and marketing role with global brands make him an outstanding addition to our senior leadership team. We are confident that his leadership skills and expertise will be instrumental in the growth of AccorHotels in the region.’
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By BW Hotelier AASHIMA SHARMA has been appointed as General Manager at Park Hyatt Chennai. Sharma has had a progressive journey with Hyatt, having joined the erstwhile Grand Hyatt Delhi as Business Development Executive, and fast-tracking her trajectory of growth thereafter, from Associate Director of Catering to Director of Catering & Conventions. In 2003, Sharma moved to Grand Hyatt Mumbai in the pre-opening phase as Director of Catering & Conventions, and after a little over two years, she was entrusted with the role of Director of Rooms in the same hotel, a key milestone in her career encompassing all aspects of rooms operations in addition to Spa. To broaden her professional horizon with an overseas experience, Sharma moved to Grand Hyatt Shenzhen during the pre-opening phase as Executive Assistant Manager ’ Rooms to open this flagship Grand Hyatt in China. Her role encompassed driving recruitment; training and setting up operational standards. She returned to India in 2010, at Sofitel Mumbai BKC as Hotel Manager from where she joins the Hyatt family as General Manager of the vibrant Park Hyatt Chennai. Sharma has been a part of several pre-opening support teams including Hyatt Regency Kolkata, Park Hyatt Goa and Park Hyatt Vietnam. Sharma leans towards wellness and remains grounded with her morning ritual of quiet contemplation and meditation practices inspired by Jon Kabat-Zinn’s mindfulness and Bob Proctor’s Abundance. She is very excited to be back with the Hyatt family and take on her new role at the vibrant Park Hyatt Chennai.
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By Rashmi Pradhan AFTER ROLLING out the instant booking for hotels in the US and the UK markets, TripAdvisor has now expanded instant booking for hotels to nine more English-speaking countries, including India, Australia, Canada, Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore and South Africa. Travelers in these markets are now able to conveniently book a hotel on all of TripAdvisor’s platforms, desktop and mobile, without leaving the site. TripAdvisor expects global rollout of instant booking for hotels in the first half of 2016. TripAdvisor’s partnership with Priceline Group, which was announced in October 2015, as well as its subsequent integration of its Booking.com inventory have helped accelerate TripAdvisor’s instant booking expansion due to the online travel agency’s extensive global property listings, localized content and quality customer care. TripAdvisor is working to integrate inventory from its other valued instant booking partners so that their supply is available to book on the platform in the near future. ’We are excited to help even more travelers around the world conveniently plan and book the perfect trip on our site as we rollout instant booking to more global markets,’ said Stephen Kaufer, President and CEO, TripAdvisor. ’The momentum we are building is remarkable and we look forward to continuing our expansion throughout 2016 with the help of our trusted partners.’ Speaking to BW Hotelier, Nikhil Ganju, Country Manager, TripAdvisor India, said, ’TripAdvisor has always focused on increasing user experience and this booking feature will help the user to plan their travel better. It is an extremely exciting feature and enables price comparison as well. It is a market place for hotel bookings offering multiple brands and multiple prices to choose from. The hotel bookings is powered by Booking.com.’ He added, ’TripAdvisor allows users to not only compare prices, but now through its instant booking platform, book through hotel and online travel agency partners without leaving the TripAdvisor site. Hotels available for instant booking have a prominent ’book’ button and users that click this button can easily complete their reservation on TripAdvisor, with the transaction and customer care provided by the partner.’ TripAdvisor now works with 8 out of the top 10 hotel brands in the world and these respected suppliers have joined a growing list of more than 70 hotel chain, groups and online travel agency (OTA) partners that will power bookings on the platform. TripAdvisor’s instant booking partners include Accor, Best Western International, Carlson Rezidor, Choice Hotels, Hyatt Hotels, Langham Hospitality, La Quinta Inns & Suites, Mandarin Oriental, Marriott International, Priceline Group, Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Wyndham Worldwide.
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By BW Hotelier KEYS HOTELS has announced its association with mobile commerce platform Paytm Wallet as its partner. The partnership will enable customers of Keys Hotels to manage their bookings and payments using Paytm. Currently 20-25 per cent bookings are on online platform and this association will further push the online bookings. The customer can use this facility for all the brands under the Berggruen Hotels umbrella namely Keys Prima, Keys Hotels & Keys Lite. Keys Hotels has been constantly investing in technology and digitization which is helping the brand grow on a fast pace in multiple customer segments. Vikas Chadha, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer, Keys Hotels, (see photo) said, ’At Keys, we aim at consistently delighting our customers by providing the options to choose at every touch point in his/her journey with the Keys brand. Our association with Paytm is yet another humble attempt to bring smiles to our customers by providing swift and easy new age payment option. With the association of both brands, we hope to exceed and do exemplarily well thereby exceeding customer expectations.’
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