New Delhi: With a strong revival in travel, Taj Hotels is going to aggressively expand its footprint over the next 2-3 years. While the lion’s share of this growth will be domestic, India’s largest hospitality group is also looking to have a bigger footprint in countries that have a strong Indian diaspora and/or are large destinations for home travelers, including North AmericaEurope and Middle East, The Tata group company currently operates two hotels each in the US, UK and Africa; Three in the United Arab Emirates and eight in India’s immediate neighbourhood.
Taj parent company Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) currently has a portfolio of 242 hotels across brands, with 63 under development across four continents in over 100 locations. It plans to have 300 operational hotels by 2025 by opening one property every month. To achieve this while being a debt free company, IHCL MD-CEO Puneet Chhatwal is planning a change in ownership-management contract properties. “IHCL will focus on restructuring its portfolio to achieve a 50:50 mix between its owned/leased and managed hotels, which currently stands at 54:46,” he added.
Regarding the focus on international expansion, Chhatwal said: “We are exploring strategic partnership opportunities in key global markets such as the UK, US and Europe, which have substantial customer crossover with India. The Middle East, with locations like Mecca – where IHCL has a Taj hotel in the pipeline, – Riyadh, Jeddah, Abu Dhabi and Aluha, will continue to be a strong focus area for us over the next few years to grow our brand. ,
“The company will continue to expand and strengthen its presence in the Indian subcontinent, in cities that are on popular travel routes, especially among Indian expatriates. We will continue to have a strong focus on markets such as Dubai, where IHCL recently opened the Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, The Palm (the third Taj in the city) and has another hotel in Deira Creek in the pipeline. IHCL is the only Indian hospitality company with major global destinations such as London and New York besides other prominent hotels in Sri Lanka, Dubai, Maldives and South Africa,” said Chhatwal.
Since the pandemic has shown how domestic tourism is, IHCL is now trying to develop new destinations and is going to open hotels in Lakshadweep and Diu. The company’s “Ahwaan 2025” strategy envisages increasing IHCL’s existing portfolio of 242 hotels to 300 hotels. Under this scheme the number of Taj will increase to 100; Vivanta and Selections at 75 and Lean Lux Ginger at 125 hotels.
“This will include a combination of management contracts for Taj, Selections and Vivanta hotels, while the expansion of Ginger will be driven primarily through operating leases. We will continue to invest in strategic properties by unlocking capital through partnerships for long-term growth,” said Chhatwal, who has signed on 50 new hotels and opened 25 new ones in the last two years. The group plans to own 500 properties for its homestay brand “Ami Stages & Trails” by 2025.
Taj parent company Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) currently has a portfolio of 242 hotels across brands, with 63 under development across four continents in over 100 locations. It plans to have 300 operational hotels by 2025 by opening one property every month. To achieve this while being a debt free company, IHCL MD-CEO Puneet Chhatwal is planning a change in ownership-management contract properties. “IHCL will focus on restructuring its portfolio to achieve a 50:50 mix between its owned/leased and managed hotels, which currently stands at 54:46,” he added.
Regarding the focus on international expansion, Chhatwal said: “We are exploring strategic partnership opportunities in key global markets such as the UK, US and Europe, which have substantial customer crossover with India. The Middle East, with locations like Mecca – where IHCL has a Taj hotel in the pipeline, – Riyadh, Jeddah, Abu Dhabi and Aluha, will continue to be a strong focus area for us over the next few years to grow our brand. ,
“The company will continue to expand and strengthen its presence in the Indian subcontinent, in cities that are on popular travel routes, especially among Indian expatriates. We will continue to have a strong focus on markets such as Dubai, where IHCL recently opened the Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, The Palm (the third Taj in the city) and has another hotel in Deira Creek in the pipeline. IHCL is the only Indian hospitality company with major global destinations such as London and New York besides other prominent hotels in Sri Lanka, Dubai, Maldives and South Africa,” said Chhatwal.
Since the pandemic has shown how domestic tourism is, IHCL is now trying to develop new destinations and is going to open hotels in Lakshadweep and Diu. The company’s “Ahwaan 2025” strategy envisages increasing IHCL’s existing portfolio of 242 hotels to 300 hotels. Under this scheme the number of Taj will increase to 100; Vivanta and Selections at 75 and Lean Lux Ginger at 125 hotels.
“This will include a combination of management contracts for Taj, Selections and Vivanta hotels, while the expansion of Ginger will be driven primarily through operating leases. We will continue to invest in strategic properties by unlocking capital through partnerships for long-term growth,” said Chhatwal, who has signed on 50 new hotels and opened 25 new ones in the last two years. The group plans to own 500 properties for its homestay brand “Ami Stages & Trails” by 2025.