The company that operates two hotel brands – Park Regis and Leisure Inn, said India offers a great opportunity for expansion as it is one of the major growing economies in the world. “After launching Leisure Inn Grand Chanakya Jaipur, we are looking at opening our second Leisure Inn property in Gurgaon in January 2014. The other locations which we have signed management contracts are in Raipur, Hyderabad, Goa, Gurgaon, Delhi NCR and Greater Noida,” Rohit Vig, Managing Director India, StayWell Hospitality Group, said. The Group has also signed up with hotel owners in Chennai, Jodhpur, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru.
At present, StayWell has taken management contracts routes for expanding its horizon in India. “We have not ruled out the possibility of investing in some key projects but that would only be in our next phase of development and we have earmarked US$50 million for this,” he added.
Vig feels that India offers a great growth opportunity for accommodation providers. “The country provides enormous growth opportunities in all segments and StayWell has accordingly structured its growth chart in this market. Our plans for India are realistic and reflect the potential growth not only in metro cities but also in the tier II and tier III cities which has higher and faster growth potential as there is a big gap in supply and demand ratio for branded hotels,” he added.
Replying to a question over the intense competition in the market, he said that competition is always healthy and we do see most global brands expanding across every segment and one needs to keep pace with developments, especially with competitors. “As a relatively new group and as compared to some of the large global brands, we are a very hands-on company and every owner we work with has direct access to any of our team members across the board. We believe in building strong relationships from the day we sign the contract and ensure we work hand in hand with our partners,” he added.
StayWell has a transparent model of working and carefully chooses like minded associates and developers to work with. “The company has in principle initially opted for the management and lease route but open to investing in the future should it feel the conditions are right and the partners have the same values,” he informed.
Along with expansion, the Group is also working to establish it as a preferred brand. “We are in the initial phase of establishing our brand credentials. We are looking at an aggressive online strategy supported by innovative offline marketing and promotional activities to grow our visibility. Our offering is strongly driven with key USP‘s and F&B being a differentiator and using that to position or hotels as midscale full service properties. Our brand elements will be standardised and recognisable so the customers can relate to all the StayWell brands as they travel across the country to our hotels,” he informed.
