FHRAImagazine

August 2012

magazine A MONTHLY ON HOSPITALITY TRADE

Vol 12 Issue 8 Pages 84 `50

By DDP Publications

Goa!

Welcomes All Goa’s hospitality is attracting investments and more travellers

The Leela Goa

Staying ahead of competition

Venue for the FHRAI Convention

47 Annual FHRAI Convention th

Goa, 6-8 September 2012 Convention theme - ‘Employment Generation: Engine of Inclusive Growth’ Supported by:

August 2012 Cover Story

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Take a bow!

Goa hospitality A s one of the foremost gateway cities of

the country, Goa’s hospitality is leaving no stone unturned in benchmarking the state as a round-the-year destination.

Picture on the cover: The Leela Goa

30 Cover Story

24 News You Can Use

contents

This MONTH

President’s Message FHRAI Desk News Updates FHRAI Convention Movements Events Products & Services

8 10 24 56 72 74 78

FEATURES Technology: Strengthening back office Identifying software that can help IT 40 Departments to tackle back office issues in hospitality

46 Dine Out: 7° Brauhaus, Gurgaon

ITtalk: IT by subscription New technologies like ‘cloud 42 computing’ and ‘SaaS’ offer tangible benefits Guest Column: Diversity will sustain India’s success!

While growth appears to be 44 hibernating, increasingly diverse travel demand and supply will keep India well-positioned

52 Explore: The Leela Goa

64 Marketing: Like & share

Dine Out: The Bavarian touch The Bavarian Microbrewery & 46 Kitchen Restaurant - 7° Brauhaus claims to be the first authentic German restaurant in India

Chairman Publications Sub-committee Vijai Pande Editor Deepa Sethi - deepa@ddppl.com Assistant Editor Sanjeev Bhar - sanjeev@ddppl.com Desk Editor Neelam Singh - neelam@ddppl.com Sub-Editor Ramya J.S. D’Rozario Advertising Gunjan Sabikhi - gunjan@ddppl.com Delhi Prateek Sahay - prateek@ddppl.com (+919650911388) Shovan Kanungo - shovan@ddppl.com Shradha Kapoor - Shradha@ddppl.com Mumbai Harshal Ashar - harshal@ddppl.com (+919619499167)

72 Movements

creative Design Alpana Khare Neeraj Aggarwal FHRAI - Marketing S.P. Joshi

Chef Talk: Satiating gourmet desires The Leela Goa Executive Chef 50 identifies with the need of customers and has approached F&B accordingly

FHRAI B-82, 8th Floor, Himalaya House Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi 110001 Tel: 91-11-40780780, Fax: +91-11-40780777 Email: fhrai@vsnl.com

Explore: Staying Ahead The Leela Goa is differentiating 52 itself from its competitors by providing unique services at better value propositions 74 Events Education: Bridging the gap The yawning gap between hotel 64 management graduates’ and hoteliers’ expectations should be reduced to a bare minimum

Printed at Cirrus Graphics Pvt. Ltd. B 62/14, Phase-II, Naraina Industrial Area New Delhi 110028 This issue of FHRAI Magazine contains 80+4 pages cover All information in the FHRAI Magazine is derived from sources, which we consider reliable and a sincere effort is made to report accurate information. It is passed on to our readers without any responsibility on our part. The publisher regrets that he cannot accept liability for errors and omissions contained in this publication, however caused. Similarly, opinions/views expressed by third parties in abstract and/or in interviews are not necessarily shared by FHRAI Magazine or DDP. However, we wish to advice our readers that one or more recognised authorities may hold different views than those reported. Material used in this publication is intended for information purpose only. Readers are advised to seek specific advice before acting on information contained in this publication which is provided for general use, and may not be appropriate for the readers’ particular circumstances.

Contents of this publication are copyright.

No part of FHRAI Magazine or any part of the contents thereof may be reproduced, stored in retrieval system or transmitted in any form without the permission of the publication in writing. The same rule applies when there is a copyright or the article is taken from another publication. An exemption is hereby granted for the extracts used for the purpose of fair review, provided two copies of the same publication are sent to us for our records. Publications reproducing material either in part or in whole, without permission could face legal action. The publisher assumes no responsibility for returning any material solicited or unsolicited nor is he responsible for material lost or damaged.

This publication is not meant to be an endorsement of any specific product or services offered.

The publisher reserves the right to refuse, withdraw, amend or otherwise deal with all advertisements without explanation. All advertisements must comply with the Indian and International Advertisements Code. The publisher will not be liable for any damage or loss caused by delayed publication, error or failure of an advertisement to appear.

Marketing: Like & share Viral marketing is being used as an 66 aggressive marketing strategy to approach customers and engage them actively Etcetera: Honouring travel trade excellence Taj Group organised the Taj Travel 70 Awards to applaud, reward and celebrate the excellence of its travel trade partners

FHRAI Magazine is published, edited and printed monthly

by DDP Publication Pvt. Ltd. On behalf of Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Associations of India and published from DDP Publications Pvt. Ltd. 72 Todarmal Road New Delhi 110001 Email: fhraimag@ddppl.com Tel : 91-11-23731971 Fax: 91-11-23351503

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Welcome to Goa! Dear Readers, The 47th Annual FHRAI Convention, draped here at the magnificent Leela, Goa, has been organised by your Convention Organising Committee, ably headed by Mr. Vivek Nair, committee Chairman and abetted by Mr. Sunit Kothari, co-Chairman. The convention shall unfold delightfullyduring September 6 - 8, 2012.

Let me take you through my past few month’s trail, from which I have added my two bits to this convention, since it’s said that a convention is what its president influences it to be. Join me to eulogise for whatever we relish and appreciate during our stay here to the executing ability of the wonderful convention organising team. But if you do find any incongruities, hold me alone responsible.

I had heard from our past presidents that the biggest event FHRAI played host to was in the mid 80s, when the IH&RA (International Hotel & Restaurant Association) Congress was held in New Delhi. I received their bond last year when we renewed our membership of FHRAI. Early this year, I sent an email to Mr. Jack Nader, IH&RA Secretariat, whether they would join us in Goa, come September. I went all the way to Paris, this April, to meet their committee member, Mr. Chawki Madaoui and today, we not only have their President, Mr. Ghassan AIDI as our keynote speaker but other distinguished experts on hospitality also to speak. They have also shifted their three-day board meeting from Geneva to Goa. IH&RA today has members representing more than 2,00,000 hotels and 6 million restaurants in five continents.

Last year, my ex-Principal at IHM, Dadar, Mr. K V Simon introduced me to Mr. Joe McInerney, President, AH&LA. We exchanged a few common notes, since like me, he too wore three hats; President of the biggest Association in the

country; of an Educational Institute; and of a Trust Fund. President of AH&LA (over 10,000 members) was the first to confirm that he would speak to all of us here in Goa. I met Mr. Hasmukh P Rama after we visited his international standard ‘Auro University’ in Surat last year. I requested him that as an ex-President of AAHOA (Asian American Hotel Owners Association, having more than 11,000 members, who together own more than 20,000 hotels in the United States), he should help me coax Mr. Alkesh Patel, the current President of AAHOA to speak at our Goa convention. I also requested Hasmukh bhai to help us get his brother, Mr. Raman P Rama, the incoming President of HFTP (Hospitality Financial & Technology Professionals with 4,300 members worldwide) along with the current President, Mr. Frank Wolfe to speak to our Goa convention’s delegates.

Mr. Simon had referred Mr. R P Rama to me last year. All four have flown down all the way from US, especially to be amongst us, here in Goa. Our Convention Chairman and Honorary Secretary, Mr. Vivek Nair has not only been our FHRAI past President but also the Chairperson of the WTTC II (World Travel & Tourism Council, India Initiative) last year. When I met Mr. Sujit Banerjee, their Secretary General at the TAAI convention in Istanbul, Turkey, (I attended since FHRAI is a core-member of FAITH’s with TAAI), he readily agreed to be a part of our convention. Recently at the Union Tourism

Secretary’s meeting in Delhi,WTTC-II’s current Chairperson, Mr. Vikram Madhok confirmed that he shall address us too at the convention.

You shall have the opportunity to meet up with almost all past Presidents of the FAITH coregroup Associations here. We pledged to be present at each other’s events.

I was hopeful that SATSA (Southern Africa Tourism Services Association) and Cornell University School of Hotel Administration could have been here. FHRAI had joined hands with Cornell to get organise their first summit in India in Mumbai. Both are now each other’s Associate - Friends.

At the FHRAI Convention last year in Bangkok, our dynamic Tourism Minister Shri. Subodh Kant Sahai had remarked that he wouldn’t attend the next one if it is held outside India. In the NTAC meeting, when I invited him as the Chief Guest, before he could react, I reminded him of his words and said we are holding our convention in Goa. Now, you cannot refuse to inaugurate it. So did our Secretary, Tourism, Shri. R H Khwaja who agreed to deliver the valedictory address and Smt. Usha Sharma along with Mr. Sanjay Kothari and Mr. Anand Kumar from the Ministry of Tourism, confirmed their presence in Goa for our convention.

Do come up to meet me and my FHRAI Team over these three days. I hope you enjoy and take back fond memories from this Convention.

Kamlesh Barot President FHRAI kamleshbarot@revivalhotel.com (facebook.com/kamlesh.barot; twitter: @KamleshBarot)

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FHRAI Convention gears up to welcome all in Goa

The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) which represents over 3,900 members including hotels, restaurants and associates is set to welcome all in Goa for its 47th Annual Convention from September 6-8, 2012, at The Leela Goa. The convention organising committee is upbeat about the fact that the Hon’ble Union Minister of Tourism, Shri Subodh Kant Sahai and Chief Minister of Goa, Shri Manohar Parrikar, have consented to preside at the inauguration session of the Convention. The theme for the Convention is – ‘Employment Generation: Engine of Inclusive Growth’.

The Convention Organising Committee is headed by Vivek Nair as its Chairman who is the Honorary Secretary of FHRAI and is Co-chaired by Sunit Kothari, member of the HRA(WI). They share their perspective on the Convention.

Why Goa?

Goa is the gateway to the country and is arguably the best destination for tourism in India. FHRAI for many years hasn’t had any event in the state. It was thought that FHRAI needs to identify with this state and find out the various elements of hospitality. It also presents an opportunity to learn from the state’s development in making the destination a luring one for one and all.

Theme

In the 12th Five Year Plan, there is a lot of thrust on employment generation. Huge budgetary allocations are being made in those areas which raise opportunity for employment. Considering the fact, the Convention aims to highlight the integral aspect of hospitality, i.e., its essence to generate employability. The theme for the Convention is self-explanatory. The aim is to highlight the need for skilled and unskilled manpower which is going to escalate in 3-5 years with lots of hospitality project development. Also, there will be enough scope to bring different sets of employment which can holistically address unemployment concerns of any town or a city.

Mr. Kamlesh Barot, President (FHRAI), says, “Keeping in mind the ambitious plan to double the foreign tourist arrivals from the present level of 6.2 million to 11.70 million at the end of the 12th Five-Year Plan (20122017) and increasing the level of domestic visitors, an estimated 1,80,000 guestrooms are to be added to the present inventory. Thus, with this renewed thrust on tapping tourism’s intrinsic potential as a catalyst

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Vivek Nair Honorary Secretary FHRAI

for equitable and sustainable economic development, the choice of our theme is both apt and opportune. We are confident that the vivid multi-stakeholder dialogue facilitated at this forum will make a substantive and enriching contribution in shaping the national discourse on this vital issue.”

Brainstorming Sessions

The Convention will also touch upon the issues that will cater to the increased demand for trained manpower required by the new accommodation units, the use of social media in marketing, sustainable development practices in hospitality, new trends in design of hotels and resorts and investment opportunities in various States, etc. , The Tourism Ministry Secretary and other senior officials will also join this 3-day event packed Convention to discuss and brainstorm policy issues. FHRAI applauds the Hunar Se Rozgar Tak scheme – one of the best schemes implemented with the initiative of the Ministry which can proliferate into a big step in strengthening India’s manpower upliftment. FHRAI also expects to see that hospitality can reap benefits of the scheme in getting staff addressing the employability needs of smaller towns, Tier III and IV cities. It should be taken to the District Panchayat Level which can increase its scope right from the grassroot level.

Through diligently structured business sessions, the delegates are expected to witness engaging discussions involving key policy-makers, industry icons, renowned experts and inspirational entrepreneurs on a multitude of strategic, competitive and policy issues of contemporary interest to our sector.

Highlights of the Convention

At this year’s Convention, senior representatives from premier international organisations such as Dr. Ghassan Aidi, President of The International Hotel and Restaurant Association (IH&RA); Mr. Joe McInerney, senior professional from American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) and Mr. Frank Wolfe, President, Hospitality Financial & Technology Professionals (HFTP), will participate in the Convention in Goa, adding a unique global dimension to the event. Other associations who are going to participate would be AAHOA, WTTC-II and FAITH. This Convention will prove to be a great opportunity for all associations to mingle, discuss strategies and exchange ideas to partner each other in learning new concepts.

FHRAI welcomes them all.

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State and Central Governments

Hand-in-Hand Vijai Pande Chairman Publications Sub-committee FHRAI vijaipandit@yahoo.co.in

For years, we have been looking for a pro-active Tourism Minister to come at the helm to make some drastic changes by bringing a fresh approach towards tourism. If not huge changes, the Union Tourism Minister Shri. Subodh Kant Sahai has shown the spark we have been waiting for. He has taken an appreciable initiative by starting a round of discussion with the Chief Ministers of every state to take on issues related to tourism head on. It is heartwarming to see that a Union Minister is going beyond and taking steps to ensure that states start performing in real sense by finding out the critical issues that is stopping them to achieve possible tourism targets. It all started with meeting Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh on July 21, 2012. The Tourism Minister has always motivated us by being part of all tourism related activities and we are happy that he will be with us again during the national convention in Goa. We had the opportunity to witness his presence and active interaction with the Chief Minister of UP, Shri. Akhilesh Yadav, State Tourism Minister Shri. Mool Chand Chauhan and other senior government officials of UP. The good thing was that tourism fraternity was invited to be a part of this mega discussion so that they can share their plights and also contribute by sharing new ideas to propel tourism in the state.

By organising this meeting, the Tourism Minister has started a new era for the development of tourism.

But our willingness to change something for the better will ensure that we achieve goals in the manner we tend to think. Tourism needs to be seen as a critical segment and should not be perceived as a matter of luxury.

It is also heartening to see that the young CM of UP is showing his willingness to take tourism very seriously. His aim is clear and he showed his approach by sorting out some of the issues during the meeting. He instructed the DG Tourism to work aggressively on the UP Tourism Policy and address critical problems on an urgent basis. The government should prepare such type of strategies which can benefit the region to boost tourism. My

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suggestion to the Tourism Ministry would be to take feedback from the foreign tourists, identifying the fhrai Desk problems they are facing in the state while travelling and also take opinion from the travel trade in passing on the best experience to them.

During the meeting, one point that emerged strongly was that there are some regions/states in India which are unable to develop their tourism properly and deserves support from the Centre. There are several issues behind this such as, inconsistent political conditions, undeveloped education system, limited facilities for transportation, less facilities for tourists and poor condition of the state tourism offices. These states are UP, Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal. The central government is required to help these states by giving special packages and should monitor them regularly. It will initiate all states to build progressive tourism strategies as well.

Likewise, we hoteliers/tourism industrialists should also make a Proforma to take feedback from our guests – domestic as well as foreign tourists. Then we should send a synopsis of the feedback to FHRAI for an analysis, so that the association can take the matter with the concerned ministries and also raise them during other such meetings in future. Tourism represents the image of a country and also that of the governments. Hence, this industry should be given utmost priority.

In terms of promotion, our Union Ministry organises various international road shows and various promotional activities. Also, the ministry should allocate budget in a manner that all states are given equal opportunities. We hope that this kind of approach will bring about a holistic development for tourism in the country where all states will reap the benefit.

The western region of our country is known to be very aggressive in adopting a modern approach in promoting industries. Let us join together in Goa and learn from each other through sharing our thoughts. Your presence will ensure that Ministry of Tourism will take notice of your problems.

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Concessions to hospitality industry What about the existing businesses?

S M Shervani Vice President, FHRAI

Many of us have been asking for the hotel business to be declared as an industry so that we can avail Key Issues of suitable concessions/benefits therein. Our view has been that it is important that the states declare tourism as an ‘industry’ and offer suitable concessions/benefits to tourism ventures. These concessions contribute to the cause of tourism promotion and consequent upliftment of the socioeconomic conditions of people. It also leads to higher revenue for the state governments in the long-run.

It is no secret today that the hotel industry creates the highest employment opportunity as compared to the agriculture and manufacturing industry. For every million rupees invested in the travel and tourism business, 78 new jobs get created; the same investment in agriculture adds 45 jobs and in manufacturing - 18.

This fact is recognised by the Prime Minister’s Advisory Council and in the coming years, if proper benefits are provided by all states, the tourism industry will create huge employment and will generate higher revenues for the Government.

Many state governments have declared tourism as an industry. They are Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Orissa, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep and Puducherry.

Some of the concessions/benefits and fiscal incentives being offered for tourism sectors are as follows: • Tax Benefits: Relief from Sales Tax for a period of five years from the date of commercial operation or use and exemption from building tax.

• Transport Subsidy: Transport Subsidy on plant and machineries for the actual cost of transportation from the place of purchase upto the location of installation will be reimbursed or relief in Octroi for initial three years.

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• Power Subsidy: (a) Partial reimbursement of expenditure on power for a specified period (say 5 years) from the date of commercial production. (b) Subsidy on purchase of power generating sets. (c) Exemption of Electricity Duty for electricity generated.

• Water charges: Concession in water charges like waiver of water tax for initial three years, or to be as in the case of Industrial units.

• Financial Incentives: Augmenting availability of funds from State Financial Corporation and nationalised banks and subsidy on interest charged by financial institutions for term and working capital loans taken by entrepreneurs for a specified period (say five years) from the date of commissioning of the units subject to timely repayment of the loans.

• Manpower development and training: Subsidy on manpower development, such as training employees/workers for managerial and technical training for upgradation of their skills in promotion of tourism to a government recognised institution or Registered/Licenced Firm shall be given, (it can be 50 per cent of the actual expenditure, subject to upper ceiling limit of Rs 3,000 per trainee).

• Legal/Documentation: Waiving stamp duty on legal documents involving legal mortgages of property such as security and also making collateral security on equitable mortgages acceptable.

• Insurance: Insurance subsidy of 60 per cent of the premium for first two years.

• DPR/Feasibility Report: Subsidy on preparation of feasibility/Project report (50-75 per cent) • Fixed Assets: Concessions on Fixed Assets: (i) Allotment of land at premium rates or Industrial rates/long term lease (ii) Land for construction of hotels with a subsidy of 25 per cent of the cost of acquisition (iii) Subsidised rent to be paid by travel agents to the extent of 25 per cent (iv) To give priority to new units in the matter of allotment of building materials like cement, iron & steel, etc. continued on page 22...

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Infrastructure Status for the hotel industry M D Kapoor Secretary General, FHRAI

FHRAI’s Perspective

Our readers will be aware that it has been a long-standing demand of the hospitality industry that our sector be accorded “infrastructure” status. In his budget speech this year, the then Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had announced that the government has approved a harmonised master list of infrastructure with the goal of removing ambiguity in the policy and regulatory domain and encouraging much-needed investment in the country’s core infrastructure.

However, we are disappointed that the list of infrastructure subsectors which has been notified by the Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure, has only included “Three-star or higher category classified hotels located outside cities with population of more than one million”. FHRAI strongly believes that this restrictive stipulation will negate the intended beneficial impact accruing from this otherwise welcome policy initiative, as it virtually excludes a vast majority of our industry from within its purview.

The Indian hospitality industry has been grappling with multiple headwinds such as continued uncertainty in the global economy, a visible domestic economic slowdown, record inflation and high interest rates. In the face of these multifarious complex challenges, the sector urgently requires a stimulus from the government to help us regain our growth momentum. Granting “infrastructure” status uniformly to the sector as a whole, can give a much-needed impetus by allowing the industry to avail of a range of fiscal concessions and incentives such as – • Higher debt-equity ratio of up to 4:1 • Financial assistance, including “Take-out” financing arrangements from specialised infrastructure lending agencies such as IDFC, IIFCL, etc.

• Longer repayment tenures of up to 15 years as opposed to the current norm of 5-7 years • Lower interest rates on term-loans for project finance • Issuance of infrastructure bonds by financial intermediaries in the sector • Enhanced limit for raising External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs) under the automatic approval route The hotel industry is highly capital intensive with large sunk costs and a long gestation period. The steady increase in borrowing costs over the past few years, is seriously undermining the financial viability of individual projects across the country, and even more worryingly, is clouding the investment horizon for the entire sector.

A recent white paper published by HVS, presented inteirnational comparison (refer graph) in the average cost of debt for hotel projects, which starkly encapsulates the distinct disadvantage which Indian firms face, vis-a-vis their global peers.

Allowing the industry access to the aforementioned incentives, will provide our entrepreneurs the financial flexibility to more efficiently realign their existing debt service obligations, and also instill in them, the requisite confidence to continue to innovate and re-invest for future growth and expansion. In fact, FHRAI believes

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that such a positive move can be a structural game-changer as it will not only boost vital investment, but also enable our companies to adeptly navigate the inherent cyclicality of this sector and streamline their present high-cost structures, in favour of a more competitive business model. The FHRAI President Kamlesh Barot’s recent assessment that this would concomitantly also have a salutary impact on lowering hotel tariffs and thereby position India as a more affordable international tourist destination, has found wide resonance among the media and sector analysts.

The hospitality and tourism industry is a key employment generator, earns valuable foreign exchange and is a significant contributor to the national GDP. Therefore, it is our legitimate aspiration that the government will support our continued growth with a progressive and forward-looking policy framework. This is particularly true in the context of the renewed thrust which the Hon’ble Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has himself laid on leveraging tourism’s intrinsic potential as a catalyst for promoting inclusive and sustainable growth.

In the recently released landmark report of the Working Group on Tourism for the 12th Plan, it is envisaged that India’s share of international tourist arrivals should be at least 1 per cent by the end of the 12th Plan period, requiring an annual growth of 12.38 per cent during 2011- 2016. The target for FTAs has been set at 11.24 million and DTVs are estimated to be 1,451.46 million. Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEE) from tourism is slated to rise to US$ 30.3 billion, while the sector will support 77.5 million jobs by 2016. To ensure that we accomplish this shared goal of enabling India to take its rightful place among the world leaders in tourism, concerted efforts by both the government and industry, would be imperative. On our part, the hospitality industry is gearing up to undertake additional capital investments of a staggering Rs 1,27,600 crore to alleviate the projected shortfall of about 1,82,000 hotels rooms over the next five years. The government, in turn, must commit to facilitating a flexible and cohesive policy and regulatory landscape.

The FHRAI President, Honorary Secretary, Chairman of our MOT Subcommittee and the Presidents of our Regional Associations, have all vigorously articulated FHRAI’s position on securing “infrastructure” status for the industry before the government, and we remain optimistic for a swift and positive decision on this key issue.

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FHrai recommendations on

Tourism in UP Vijai Pande, Chairman – Publications Sub-committee, FHRAI

It is quite encouraging for the state of the Uttar Pradesh that its young Chief Minister, Shri.

Akhilesh Yadav, has shown interest towards developing the tourism of the state. On July 21, 2012 in Lucknow, a press conference was organised jointly by the UP Government and Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, to talk in presence of Shri Akhilesh Yadav, Hon’ble CM of Uttar Pradesh, Shri. Subodh Kant Sahai, Hon’ble Union Tourism Minister and Shri. Mool Chand Chauhan, State Tourism Minister, UP. Representatives of tourism trade associations were also present in the meeting.

The event was well attended by some senior officials in the tourism department. It was attended by Shri.

RH Khwaja, Union Secretary for Tourism, Government of India, Smt. Usha Sharma, ADG Tourism, GOI, Shri.

Javed Usmani, Chief Secretary, UP, Shri. Rakesh Garg, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, UP, Ms. Anita Singh, Principal Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, UP, Shri.

BS Bhullar, Principal Secretary, Transport, UP, Shri. Rajiv Kumar, Principal Secretary, Municipal Corporation, UP and Shri. Manoj Kumar Singh, Secretary cum DG Tourism, UP who gave a presentation on the roadmap of UP Tourism for the 12th Five Year Plan.

The Chief Minister of UP and Union Tourism Minister stressed on the need for a concerted effort to develop various tourism circuits like Sufi circuit, Buddhist Circuit and Hindu circuit. FHRAI has put forth its strong viewpoints on the needs that can propel the state’s hospitality industry. Surendra Jaiswal, President, UPHRA and Garish Oberoi, Honorary Secretary, HRANI & UPHRA were also present at the meeting.

Recommendations to the government

• T he various places of tourists’ interest should be actively promoted by the UP Government throughout India • In the general budget of the UP state, the allocation for tourism budget should be increased which is at a dismal low

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• L and bank schemes by the development authorities should identify spots for hotels and tourism products • Establishment of UP Tourism Board • Five years Income Tax holiday for new 5-star hotels, which will attract investors to the state • Establishment of Tourism Finance Bank is important to fund tourism activities in the state • Importance may be given to cleanliness and hygiene in core tourism areas • To build an international Airport at Agra and to make a triangular sector connecting Agra, Lucknow and Varanasi.

• Professional PR agencies of repute and track record may be hired for this.

• A state level committee should be formed along with the office bearers of UPHRA for better co-ordination and overall development of tourism roadmap.

• A tourism crafts mela on the lines of Surajkund or Pushkar Mela can be started under the aegis of UP tourism in Greater Noida area taking advantage of the NCR region • All food items and services should be taxed at uniform 5 per cent VAT, thereby, encouraging the consumer as well as the traders to pay taxes honestly.

• Luxury tax limit should be increased to at least Rs. 4,000 per room per night from the present limit of Rs. 1,000.

• A nodal agency is required for a single point clearance for different licenses. Also a single composite license along with a single fee may be introduced.

• The electricity supply should be streamlined on the priority basis for the tourism sector. The sanction of new connection and extension of load should be approved merely on the presentation of the application and the necessary security deposit.

• The increase in the FAR should be available from the plot size of 10,000 sq. ft. and more The Ministry of Tourism has planned to conduct the International Buddhist Conclave in Varanasi during September 29-30, 2012 with a view to showcase Buddhist Heritage of India. The Tour Operators and scholars from the SAARC region will be invited to participate in this Conclave, as it is an important source market for India.

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UP tops the chart in domestic tourist arrivals Uttar Pradesh welcomed 1573.17 lakh tourists in 2011-12. With 1554.30 lakh domestic tourists, it ranked number one in the country and with 18.87 lakh foreign tourists, it ranked fourth in the country.Keeping in mind the importance of tourism sector, the Government of Uttar Pradesh has initiated Manoj Kumar Singh s o m e m a j o r p ro j e c t s proposed to be implemented through Public Private Partnership (PPP). According to Manoj Kumar Singh, Secretary and Director General, Department of Tourism, Government of Uttar Pradesh, the Department fully understands that it is the private sector players who have to play a major role in expansion and growth of this largest service industry.

which was not only attended by senior officers from concerned departments but was also attended by all the important stakeholder organisations.The Department is committed to create a platform for regular interaction of all the important players of tourism sector with an objective to achieve the full potential of this important sector in the state,” he revealed.

The state actively plays the role of facilitator and catalyst in creating an enabling environment. “Taking a lead, the Department organised a meet between the Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh and Minister, Tourism Government of India, on July 21, 2012 at Lucknow,

Projects proposed to be implemented through Public Private Partnership (PPP)

• International Airport at Agra • I nternational Airport at Kushinagar - Kushinagar (major Buddhist Destination) It is proposed to be constructed on 615 acres of land that has already been acquired by the State Government.

•H elium Balloon Ride in Uttar Pradesh - As an added attraction, the Department of Tourism has proposed to develop Tethered Helium Balloon Ride facilities at Shilpgram, Agra; Gulistan Complex, Fatehpur Sikri and Sant Ravi Das Ghat, Varanasi in the State.

•W ayside Amenities in Uttar Pradesh - The Department of Tourism is trying to promote wayside amenities on important National Highways, State Highways, and important roads connecting places of tourist importance. The objective is to provide better facilities to the road user especially clean toilets and potable drinking water.

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– SEL Show at Residency, Lucknow - Efforts are being made for the renovation of Sound and Light programme at Residency, Lucknow.

– Tajganj Development Project • Mathura-Vrindavan: A scheme of Rs. 31.76 Crore has been sanctioned for the development of the area • Tourist Facilitation and Security Organisation: To facilitate the tourist in Buddhist Circuit, the department is promoting safe and honorable tourism, and hence, Tourist Facilitation and Security Organisation are being set up at Shravasti and Kushinagar in Buddhist region this year.

• Mega Events: a) International Buddhist Conclave at Sarnath in the month of September 2012 is being organised by Department of Tourism with help of GOI. b) In the year 2013 Uttar Pradesh will be Hosting the biggest religious congregation of the world i.e. Kumbh at Allahabad.

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MOT launches Golf Caddy training under HSRT

The Ministry of Tourism, in pursuit of ushering the employment generation potential of tourism extending the purview of present training programmes, launched Golf Caddy training on July 16, 2012 on a pilot test basis. It has partnered with Women’s Golf Association of India (WGAI) in this initiative. The DLF Golf Club has volunteered to train the women Golf Assistants, while the Qutub Golf Club will be training men who are aspiring to become Golf Assistants in Delhi and NCR. “As announced at the recently held oneday workshop on the Hunar Se Rozgar Tak Yojna on July 4, 2012, we are now extending its scope for skill development to enhance employability among the semi-skilled, unskilled and working professionals in the travel and hospitality sector. Golf Caddy training initiative, in partnership with WGAI, is a step in this direction, presently on a pilot test basis that will gradually be rolled out to other parts of the country,” said Sanjay Kothari, former Special Secretary, Ministry of Tourism.

“The Ministry of Tourism had launched Hunar Se Rozgar Tak (HSRT) in 2009-10. Initially, the initiative covered only two trades, namely Food Production and Food & Beverage

Services. Segments namely Housekeeping, Bakery and tourist transport drivers were added later. We will soon launch a rafting training programme in J&K and are keen on rolling out further training projects to revive the languishing skill of heritage conservation, stone masonry and cover as many new related segments which are essential to enhance a tourist’s experience,” he added.

Left to right: V S Singh, Treasure, WGAI; Aakash Ohri, Head - Golf & Infra, DLF; Sanjay Kothari, former Special Secretary (MOT), Kavita Singh, President, WGAI and Champika Sayal, Secretary General, WGAI

The objective of the Caddy Training project is to identify prospective candidates to be trained as golf assistants, wherein the shortlisted c a n d i d a t e s w i l l u n d e rgo a n extensive and detailed training p ro g ra m m e o f s i x we e k s o n various aspects of golf. The training module would focus more towards practical learning about the game of golf along with some necessary theoretical classes, to enable quicker and stronger understanding about the sport to the aspiring golf assistants. It will help create a pool of certified Golf Assistants, who can assist national and international golfers during golf tours in India.

...continued from page 14

(v) Twenty-five per cent outright subsidy on Capital investment including cost of land, construction cost of building, M/c & Equipment, etc. (vi) Construction of cafeterias and kiosks for unemployed with nominal rent (vii) Grants/subsidies on equipment/furniture expenditure (viii) Concessions in the cost of import of equipment in support of adventure/recreation tourism (ix) Subsidy for replacement of tourist coaches and cost of airconditioning fixtures (up to 50 per cent) • We should seek the extension of five year tax holiday for new hotels of 2, 3 and 4 star category and Convention Centres in the NCR of Delhi and some neighbouring districts of NCR. The tax holiday scheme expired on 31.07.2010. Holiday for of 2, 3 and 4 star category hotels located in all UNESCO declared World Heritage sites (except Mumbai and Delhi) for hotels operating w.e.f. April 1, 2008 to March 31, 2013. We should ask for it on all India basis.

• Relaxation of External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) by the Ministry of Finance for setting up new hotel projects.

• Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) upto 100 per cent in Hotel and Tourism related industry under the automatic route.

• Enhancement of FAR in Delhi from 150 to 225 for hotels excluding Lutyen’s Zone.

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has de-linked credit for hotel projects from Commercial Real Estate (CRE), thereby enabling hotel projects to avail credit at relaxed norms and reduced interest rates.

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• Basic customs duty on inflatable rafts, snow-skis, water-skis, surf-boats, sail-boards and other water sports equipment has been fully exempted from customs duty as announced in the Union Budget 2009.

• An investment linked deduction Under Section 35 AD of the Income Tax Act has also been announced in the Union Budget 2010-11 for establishing new hotels of 2-star category and above, all over India thus allowing 100 per cent deduction in respect of the whole or any expenditure of capital (excluding land, goodwill and financial instruments) incurred during the year.

Since most of these concessions are available to new projects, it is time that we represent to the Governmen that existing hotels/restaurants should be given concessions or subsidised loans to improve, renovate and expand their businesses. This would not only result in improving India’s hospitality product and infrastructure available, but also help the existing hotels to compete well with the new projects resulting in overall improvement in the product being offered to International tourists. Increasing the FSI of existing hotels and sorting out the multiple taxes problem in the form of GST, along with the same benefits being extended to our renovated upgraded property will go a long way in promoting our industry.

I hope the incoming FHRAI President and the new Committee would concentrate on these aspects.

(The writer is the VP – FHRAI and MD - Shervani Hotels and Rodeo Restaurants. He is also the President of HRANI.)

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Lemon Tree Hotels goes for IDeaS revenue optimisation Lemon Tree Hotels has tied up with the IDeaS Revenue Solutions for its 19 properties panTech India. The latter is one of the leading providers Solution of pricing and revenue management software, services and consulting. Nikhil Sharma, Assistant Vice-President Operations for the hotel group said, “Our target is to increase inventory from 2,000 to 8,000 rooms over the next 4-5 years. As we grow, we also need to ensure we have the best systems in place to drive and effectively manage revenue across all properties during our growth cycle. We are strengthening our approach through pricing and revenue management. We chose to work with IDeaS based on their proven ability to deliver the financial benefits of revenue management as well as the operational benefits.”

Lemon Tree Hotels is the pioneer of the mid-market hotel segment and is already the 4th largest hotel owning company in India, with 2,000 operational rooms and another 1,600 under development. By 2016-17, Lemon Tree Hotels will co-own and operate over 8,000 rooms, making it one of the largest hotel owners in India and the dominant player in the mid-market hotel segment. Sivaprasad Gangadharan, Regional Director Subcontinent Sales for IDeaS informed, “There was not one capability or feature that Lemon Tree focussed on during the evaluation period. They spent detailed time on all aspects making sure that IDeaS can deliver their needs. We supported the hotel group with a well planned and executed technology strategy that IDeaS is very pleased to be part of and we look forward to helping Lemon Tree drive better revenues.”

In working with IDeaS, Lemon Tree Hotels is utilising IDeaS Revenue Management System (RMS) to enhance forecasting capabilities and define each hotel property’s pricing strategies and structure, based on market conditions and hotel positioning.

Additionally, IDeaS RMS delivers Lemon Tree Hotels an expandable platform to build a strong organisational-wide revenue culture. “IDeaS has a team of over 200 people in India focussing on revenue management demonstrating strong commitment to business in India.”

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HFTP India Chapter formed Hospitality Financial Technology Professionals (HFTP) India Chapter has been officially formed on June 28 at HiTec 2012 in Baltimore, USA. Founded Tech in 1952, it is the global professional association Forum for financial and technology personnel working in hotels, clubs and other hospitality-related businesses. Ravish Jhala, Secretary, HFTP India Chapter informed, “HFTP India chapter will bridge the gap between the professionals in India and other parts of the world by providing a platform of networking and educational resources from all parts of the

Current office bearers of HFTP

HFTP Global Board •F rank Wolfe, CEO, HFTP Global (Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals) • L isa Funk, President, HFTP Global (Dow Hotel Company) •R aman P Rama, Vice President, HFTP Global (JHM Hotels) •D aniel Conti, Secretary, HFTP Global (The Ritz Carlton Golf Club and Spa) • J erry Trieber, Treasurer, HFTP Global (Crestline Hotels and Resorts) HFTP India Chapter Board •P rakash Shukla, President, HFTP India (Taj Hotels) •R ajesh Chopra, Vice President, HFTP India (The Oberoi Group) • J immy Shaw, Board Member, HFTP India (Waterfrontshaw) •R avish Jhala, Secretary, HFTP India (Trident, Bandra Kurla) •V ipil Gupta, Treasurer, HFTP India (Taj Hotels, North India)

world. HFTP is a source and resource for the hospitality industry in fields of finance and technology.”

The Indian hospitality industry is in a growth mode and a lot is changing in the finance and technology fields. Prakash Shukla, President for this newly formed chapter, said, “With brands from USA and other countries entering the market place with the local Indian brands, there is going to be a need for Hospitality Finance and Technology Certified Staff members and HFTP has two certifications CHAE (Certified Hospitality Accountant Executive) and CHTP (Certified Hospitality Technology Professional).We found that there is a need for a platform where such professionals can join hands and grow together.”Through this Chapter formation, networking and education will come to the fore where the needs of its members for personal and professional development would be achieved.“HFTP can be a vehicle to facilitate the exchange of information in India.

Since there is no such association in India, we want members to take advantage of the resources available to the global members and also be able to use our resources at the HFTP Research Center in Houston at University of Houston on industry trends or any topic that a member would question on,” Shukla added.

Regarding the configuration of the Chapter, Jhala said, “HFTP India Chapter will have different sets of membership viz. Principal Members, Agent Members, Education Members, Allied Members, Industry Members, Apprentice Members, Student Members and Retired Members.”

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Hospitality finds opportunity as Rupee value falls There might be gloom over the present Indian economic scenario with the falling value of the Up & currency (against the US dollar), but that is not down making hospitality business to tone down their proposition to aggressively tap the onset of peak tourism season. The hospitality industry has identified the positive side of it keeping the gloom away. The fall in the Rupee has forced outbound Indian tourists to search for domestic options, which has turned out to be a boon in disguise for the hospitality industry in India. While on the other hand, leisure travellers from abroad are lured to India as hotels have become cheaper. With the Rupee falling to 55.20 to a dollar, foreign nationals have to pay roughly $180.13 for a day’s stay in a five star hotel room priced at Rs 10,000 compared to $195.08 in January. Hence, the depreciating Rupee is making hotel rooms cheaper for foreign tourists.

Jagan Lachsher, Hotel Manager, Pullman Gurgaon Central Park, says, “Foreign tourist interest has increased due to the fall in Rupee value.

Pricing of higher-end hotels is fitting in their budget. India is now on the foreign tourists’ radar and will definitely see an increase in their arrivals.”Traditional tourist destinations such as Goa, Kerala, Rajasthan, Delhi and Agra have benefitted and will also witness an increase in foreign tourist arrivals during the peak season time, he adds.

According to J P Morgan analysts, INR depreciation is equivalent to tariff reduction. It improves pricing power henceforth – a lower INR has in effect amounted to a US dollar tariff reduction for incoming tourists, who typically account for over 60 per cent of demand in the luxury hotels category (5 star and above).

Confirms Ajay K Bakaya, Executive Director, Sarovar Hotels, “Yes, price hike can be foreseen during the season, i.e., SeptemberFebruary. In the leisure segment, Rupee depreciation will increase the value of money. However, leisure segment is limited in India and real results can only be seen in the season.” Bakaya also points out that business travellers are unlikely to be impacted because of the rupee slide. Fearing that hoteliers should not read too much about the devaluation of the Indian currency, Oliver Martin, Regional GM, The Claridges Hotels & Resorts, warns, “There will be a natural price hike for this season as demand always goes up tremendously. However, this has nothing to do with the US Dollar tariff and hoteliers need to be quite sensible to such situations to not get the clients upset.”

Hoteliers feel the currency impact will be felt only if demand for hotel rooms increases significantly, more so in the business season starting September. Lachsher points out, “The period between September-February traditionally witness some growth. However, with increased inventories in most key destinations, including ours and the European economic downturn, this year, the growth rate impact may be lesser than usual.”

Reiterating the price hike concerns in the peak months, Scott Thomson, GM, Hilton and DoubleTree by Hilton New DelhiNoida-Mayur Vihar, argues, “I don’t think the INR changes should be interpreted as a tariff reduction.” According to him, additional tariffs and costs should be removed wherever possible to help simplify conducting business. “The hotel chain always reviews pricing throughout the year to make sure that we are optimising our returns and are in step with the market. The same will be done this year as well,” he sums up.

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Five states in ADB funding kitty

Ludwig G Reider

Recently, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Centre have signed a $74.8 million loan to improve road connectivity within the six north eastern states of the country. This will be ADB’s first transport sector project in the north east region to develop and implement road investments. To help develop the country’s tourism sector into a driver of sustainable and inclusive economic growth, ADB is assisting the Centre in preparing a roadmap to develop tourism infrastructure in the next ten years.

Elaborating on the process of identification and development of the projects, ADB Asia Pacific Projects Team Leader Ludwig G Reider said, “We emphasise on access and connectivity. The financing is done through grant allocations made by State and Central Governments and loans by international lending institutions like ADB.” In line with the government’s efforts to facilitate inclusive growth, ADB’s main focus is to fund humanity-based tourism, heritage tourism and rural tourism for sustainable tourism, he added.

Sharing the plans of the Bank, Reider informed, “At the moment, the Bank has provided funding and loans to Government of India to undertake tourism infrastructure investments in five states – Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Sikkim. This is the first phase of funding.”

This is a 10-year roadmap to come up with $6 billion worth of tourism infrastructure, of which about $300 million is in the process of being utilised. He revealed, “The idea is to create clusters along with circuits and then improve tourism holistically. The modus of execution is that there is a framework but it is up to the state to put their hands up and say they will do it. So in the first phase, we have these five states. Between them, we have invested $300 million for investments,” he revealed. On development of tourism, the scope of hospitality will increase manifold in the north east states where organised hotel segment is yet to flourish.

Reider believes that despite the recognition at the policy level of the critical role of the private sector in tourism, an enabling framework to mobilise the private sector for tourism infrastructure development, as well as developing complementary facilities is not yet fully in place. “All areas of tourism service provision suffer from a significant shortage of human resources. However, the most critical constraint to harnessing the tourism potential and sustained marketability of the country’s vast tourism endowments is inadequate infrastructure,” he opined. According to Reider, the basic connectivity infrastructure (air, road, rail and water access) outside the main gateways and key destinations is inadequate. Lack of infrastructure is also hindering the diversification of tourism North products and contributing to a highly seasonal East pattern of tourism with resulting adverse impact on viability of investments by the private sector.

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Take a bow!

Goa hospitality

Amidst a lot of negative reasons that have, of late, held Goa in the limelight is not deterring the state to shed its superlative position in the Indian hospitality.

As one of the foremost gateway cities of the country, its hospitality too is leaving no stone unturned in bringing a cohesive approach of assimilating various segments and benchmarking it as a round-the-year destination MEGHA PAUL View of the sea from The Leela Goa

L

ively beaches sparkle with silver sand while the sun shines on them.

The sun goes down and yet the beaches sparkle, not with sunshine but with the bright lights of the beach shacks. This is Goa, an ultimate destination for the discerning international and domestic traveller. Over the last year, Goa has embarked on a 360-degree targeted campaign, proactively pitching the state as a holiday destination to European countries, Scandinavia, Russia, CIS countries and the east, including Japan. Domestic visitors have helped the tourism industry prosper

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in a big way. In 2011, a total of 22.25 lakh domestic tourists visited Goa as against 22.01 lakh domestic tourists who turned up in 2010.

This year till March, the sun-lit state has received 5.02 lakh domestic tourists and 1.76 lakh foreign tourists already.

Against this backdrop, where the tourism industry is flourishing, the hospitality industry cannot be lagging behind despite having a fair share of problems of its own, especially when juxtaposed with other similar destinations across the world.

Tourism undoubtedly is the most important demand driver for hotels in Goa, but MICE is the segment which keeps business going in the state

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Leisure & MICE Tourism undoubtedly is the most important demand driver for hotels in Goa, but MICE is the segment which keeps business going in the state. During March to May, which are the shoulder months, the hotels host ample conferences and conventions.

Franco Rienzo, GM, The Zuri Franco Rienzo White Sands, Goa Resort & Casino, feels the line of distinction between a leisure and business property has diminished in Goa because of the major developments in the MICE segment over the last 10 years. It has, thus, become challenging for a resort in Goa today to cater simultaneously to the leisure traveller and the business traveller. How effectively a resort adapts to this development will

Zuri Goa Mayaspa

Zuri Goa Façade

determine its success in the long-run. According to Sumant Jaidka, Chief Operating Officer, Lemon Tree Hotels, conferences/training programmes/incentives are usually planned in summer. Lately, there has been a fall in corporate and leisure movement due to the increase in air fares and on account of the economic instability in Europe. Conference bookers are quite cost conscious and look for value-for-money options.

Talking about the evolution in the hospitality sector in Goa, Shridhar Nair, General Manager, The Leela Goa, says, “With regards to the positioning of hotels, an interesting transition in the hospitality sector has been witnessed. Till around 10 years back, the tourism industry, especially the five star hotel segment, was thriving on European and Russian tourists who would visit Goa between October till March. Now, the trend has changed with the significant growth in the spending habits of the Indian tourists who are flocking to Goa in the summer and monsoon months between April and September. Apart from this, the opening up of the economy has also resulted in a spurt of MICE and corporate activity in Goa, and this has led to hotels getting busier in the so-called off-season months.�

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Deluxe Room, Zuri Goa

Improving hygiene standards, especially along the beaches and in shacks is vital to the growth of hospitality in the state

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Image Makeover

Sumant Jaidka

Lobby of the Kenilworth Resort & Spa, Goa

Rajeev Sharma

Be it new rules and regulations on the beach, news reports of the ceiling falling off or rape cases, Goa as a destination is going through a lot of churning. Major issues still revolve around providing basic facilities to tourists such as toilets on beaches, overall cleanliness of beaches, crowd management in tourist areas, garbage disposal norms, improving the power situation, increasing water harvesting, etc. On whether these incidences have marred the reputation of the state in some manner, Rajeev Sharma, General Manager, Kenilworth Resort & Spa, Goa, informs, “To a certain extent, yes. But the current steps being taken by the present administration for ensuring security and safety of the tourists by initiating prompt action, increasing patrolling of the troubled areas, identifying the troublemakers and putting across in strongest terms to the politicians supporting such miscreants, that in case they indulge in any unlawful activity, action shall be taken against them, has reduced such incidents considerably. To make it more effective, tourist help centres should be opened up at various points and a separate wing of Tourist Police should be raised to patrol areas majorly thronged by tourists.”

Jaidka opines, “In order to correct this negative publicity, the state government should run a focussed marketing blitz highlighting the steps they have taken to improve Goa’s safety and security such as CCTVs and increased patrolling. They should drive an image of fun and relaxation and showcase the customer experience of tourists in Goa.”

Porch of the Kenilworth Resort & Spa, Goa

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Tourist help centres should be opened up at various points and a separate wing of Tourist Police should be raised to patrol areas majorly thronged by tourists

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Incorporating ‘Goan’ Blend

Pool area of The Leela Goa

Jaidka believes that the hospitality sector should take certain steps in order to keep the flag of Goan hospitality high and help the image of Goa to evolve further, which includes marketing where hotels should invest in building Goa as a destination.

They should run marketing programmes to highlight the international experience one gets in Goa. “Improving hygiene standards, especially along the beaches and in shacks is vital to the growth of hospitality in the state.

Audit hotels and ensure they match their

Shridhar Nair

Night shot of the club exterior The Leela Goa Club Lounge Pool The Leela Goa

star category – the tourist should get what he pays for and nothing less. It is essential to meet expectations and give visitors a reason to come back again,” he explains.

Introducing hotel schools so that Goa can build talent and nurture it and launching new destinations/beaches in the area would give visitors another reason to spend leisure time in Goa, Jaidka feels. Lemon Tree in Goa also makes an effort to keep the Candolim beach clean along with the local authorities.

The Leela Goa, has adopted many initiatives in supporting the cause of preservation of the valued natural assets such as regular cleaning and maintenance of the pristine public beach, installation of state-of-the-art sewage treatment plant that recycles waste water for the gardens, commissioning of the organic waste converter within the property to re-process the garden waste into manure, comprehensive rain-water harvesting plan, etc. The hotel has also managed to cover all its 75 acres of land with a dense green cover of gardens and lagoons thereby ensuring a huge support system for various species of both bird and marine life.

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Competition from the Far East Goa needs to develop more innovative points of interest to not only retain existing markets but also create new ones, Rienzo argues.

“Value-driven experiences are the need of the moment to counter the threat from competitively priced alternate markets like the Far East.

Other initiatives would include better-regulated pricing controls and policies to provide fair transport options (taxis), more effective garbage management practices, better law and order, and better infrastructure within the state beginning with the development of a larger airport to handle the high volume of incoming air traffic. Preservation of heritage sites is also high on the list. If Goa’s hotels and administration comes together to work on this, it is not a difficult task to achieve,” he believes.

On whether hospitality in Goa still continues to be a dearer proposition for an average Indian traveller, Sharma claims, “Rationality in pricing is the need of the moment as we are now competing with destinations in

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Travel & Tourism Association of Goa According to Francisco De Braganca, President, Travel & Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG), TTAG’s role is more to take care of the interests of the travel trade and the various issues the tourism industry is facing today. The growth of tourism in Goa has not been matched by the growth of infrastructure in Goa. To boost tourism, Goa needs at the earliest a good international airport, scheduled to be open by early next year, better and wider roads, an efficient system for clearance of garbage and a sewage system in the coastal belt. Goa also needs a Tourism Board so as to formulate, plan and execute various policies on a more professional and dedicated

basis. “Goa has to change its image.

It has its own charm– scenic natural beauty, serene beaches, the sea and a lovely local population with a liberal outlook presenting a unique blend of the east and the west. This makes Goa different from other states in India. It also has an exciting hinterland. TTAG, on its part, takes up all issues faced by the industry to the government with repeated interaction with the authorities. The new government is trying its level best to do as much as possible to take up all these challenges.

But change cannot happen at once.

Infrastructure is not something which can be created overnight,” he adds.

the Far East like Thailand and Malaysia. If we continue on the current path, we will be in danger of out-pricing ourselves. Goan hospitality is certainly not a dearer option. It is priced at the same level as any other city in India or even less.

Lemon Tree Room

Fuelling Employment

Viewpoint

Hotel & Restaurant Association of Goa Talking about the role of his association, Gaurish Dhond, President, Hotel & Restaurant Association of Goa (HRAG), said, “We have conceptualised various marketing strategies for the hospitality industry and consciously encouraged diversification into other non-conventional modules such as monsoon tourism, hinterland tourism, adventure sports tourism, etc. Wedding tourism is another huge market which we are aggressively promoting. We play a pivotal role in advising and guiding the government with regards to the policy formulations for the industry and have used our good office in convincing the government on various issues ranging from the reduction of the tax structure for the hotels during the off season to improving the infrastructure and basic amenities in the state.”

Regarding the issues that haunt hospitality in Goa, Dhond laments, “There are many issues that need to be dealt with on a priority basis to take tourism in Goa to the next level. Goa desper-

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ately needs a fully equipped International Airport with all the required state- Gaurish Dhond of-the-art facilities. Well-designed and highly effective garbage disposal and recycling plants all over the state are other major requirements. A sophisticated convention centre to promote and facilitate MICE tourism in the state is also needed. There is a huge dearth of trained man power and skilled labour for the hotel industry in the state.” Nevertheless, the government is determined to overcome all these obstacles and is moving in the right direction. “Quite a few PPP model projects have been finalised in various sectors of tourism and that is, indeed, a step in the right direction. We have made plans to expand and increase the existing infrastructure which will not only open new employment opportunities but also help us cope up with the expected increase in tourist inflow,” he adds.

In spite of being the tourism hub of the country and the land of celebration, clouds of unemployment loom over the state. “Goa has comparatively higher rate of unemployment in India and this is a complete irony,” feels Rienzo. However, when one analyses the situation, the irony disappears. The Goan youth is a perfect blend of all that is required in a good hotel professional and yet that potential is rarely actualised. The fancy of cruise liners employment has caught on and the youth is passionate in adopting this seemingly glamorous career. As a result, he does not venture into quality hospitality education and misses out on plum offers that require both skill sets and mental endurance and abilities. The cascading effect, as one may term it, is that the lower positions do not attract the local lad anymore as it is not lucrative as compared to what a cruise liner would offer for the same position. There is always an element of status quo playing at the back of the mind and he is thus caught up in a vicious cycle of indecisiveness, he laments. “We need to create better, more attractive opportunities for individuals in Goa to follow hospitality as a trade. Government support/funding is critical in providing the same as well as initiatives such as better quality institutions need to be commissioned.”

Jaidka says, “Unlike other states, the state economy of Goa is driven by mining and tourism. Therefore, the onus of responsibility lies on these two sectors for fuelling employment. The government on its part is trying hard to develop various industrial pockets like Verna for developing industries. As a hotelier, if it happens it would be a win-win situation for all as it would help in generating more employment for the people through not only the industries but also the growth fuelled by industries in the above sectors.”

Needless to say, the 47th Annual FHRAI Convention that is being held in Goa is bringing this critical element of employment generation as its theme. Rather, it should be the modus operandi for the rest of the country to bring hospitality to the forefront for an inclusive growth of the tourism industry.

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Strengthening back office Identifying the need of IT to bring a more forceful approach in tackling back office issues that can directly reflect on guest services has made FCS Computer Systems (S) come up with products suiting the growing hospitality demands.

SANJEEV BHAR

T

he hospitality sector has specific technology for its various needs. Identifying some of the critical IT needs, FCS has over the years evolved various solutions. The company, of late, has concentrated a lot on back office guest service solutions and launched some products that can create better service-oriented approach. Sudip Mukherjee, Senior Director of Sales & Operations, FCS Computer Systems (S) (India Branch), says, “FCS is known to offer a complete suite of solutions that addresses hospitality-specific needs.

Our focus is on providing solutions that focusses on increasing hotel productivity and efficiency that directly translates to enhance customer experience. It has come up with a service tracking system which helps in registering minute information about customers which get updated into PMS. Further, the information can be shared through mobility devices. This way a service-oriented approach can be brought into practice.” According to him, in India, the product is gaining recognition from industry leaders by domestic as well as international hotel chains. “Now,

Back office solutions

• e-Connect: Job dispatch and interdepartment work order management • e-Engineering: Ad-hoc messaging, preventive maintenance and asset management • e-Concierge: Concierge management • e-Recovery: Incident and compensation management • e-Housekeeping: Housekeeping management

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even independent hotels have started recognising the benefit of such a system.”

The fact is that no system should stay isolated as information holds the key to success in today’s dynamic environment.We help companies to integrate by providing vital interface

In India, FCS marked its presence in 1997. “In the last two years, our year-onyear growth has been 40 per cent and since 1997, it comes to an average growth of 18-20 per cent per annum.

We launched a few products that are doing exceptionally well,” claims Mukherjee. He informs, “In October 2011, we launched e-Housekeeping and e-Recovery. Two years back, we came up with e-Connect and launched e-Engineering about 1½ year back.

For housekeeping, FCS e-Housekeeping offers a multi-language web-based application dedicated to streamline the entire room assignment, cleaning and maintenance process in the department.

“Conventional phones are still being used for updating the status of the rooms. Here technology for housekeeping can certainly benefit a lot by inducing maximisation of productivity,” Mukherjee remarks.

Similarly, e-Engineering is meant for the engineering department, where capital equipment need preventive maintenance from time to time, in a scheduled manner.

“In order to create a wow factor back end processes have to be strengthened. Our approach is that PMS and POS should talk to each other. We ensure integration of our products seamlessly with one another by sharing the same login and database for

consolidated data and workflow management.

The fact is that no system should stay isolated as information holds the key to success in today’s dynamic environment.

We help companies to integrate by providing vital interface,” explains Mukherjee. Here, he adds that interface helps to organise and bring about a service quotient which is vital for the hospitality business.

For managing customers better, e-Connect, as part of our e-Solution Platform, offers an automated guest service request and inter departmental work order dispatch system that sends jobs via various handheld devices and/ or printers for different departments.

Further, FCS’ e-Recovery tracks the status of complaints, accidents, injuries and emergency incidents at the hotel for not only guests but even non in-house guests and staff, along with resolution action items that are automatically assigned to the relevant personnel. “We believe that once a data is entered, the PMS should be able to recognise the guest when he checks in the second time. It should recognise membership customers as well.

The important point is that the system should be such that it alerts the hotel staff about a customer, his/her likes and dislikes of room to an extent of knowing the guests’ food preferences and so on,” sums up Mukherjee.

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IT by subscription The buzz about ‘cloud computing’ and ‘SaaS’ is not a hype. These new technologies and business models offer tangible benefits.

FHRAI Magazine reviews the concept of using software as a service.

Software technology and data networking services have evolved to a point where it is viable and affordable to install software at a data centre for use by one or more geographically dispersed hotel(s) as a shared service.

Hotel chains have been the first to adopt this new option, to reduce cost and improve utilisation of skilled manpower (see article - Share IT - in the July 2012 issue of the FHRAI Magazine) by establishing their own data centre.

ITtalk Q

The owners, whose hotels are operated by management companies, have concerns about ownership of data and hence, do not approve of an IT solution where data reside anywhere other than in their property. A SaaS provider, who provides centralised IT infrastructure to the management chain, while guaranteeing access to data to the owner is a viable option.

The benefits of subscribing to, instead of owning, IT infrastructure are too significant for any hotelier to ignore trends in cloud computing and SaaS.

A We Reply

Q. How advisable and convenient is using a Virtual Firewall than using a traditional Firewall? If the idea is an ‘in thing’, how to go about and what would be the commercial and technical benefits? Also, what are the demerits of this solution?

Johnson David, Head IT, Mirah Group

Johnson David

Amlan Ghose, MD, Prologic First, says...

To provide similar benefits to independent hotels, a new class of service providers is offering ‘cloud computing’ services on a subscription basis. Apart from reducing up-front investment, such services (widely referred to as Software as a Service or SaaS) free the hotelier from the complex task of IT administration.

Doubts about security of data are an inhibitor to adoption of ‘cloud computing’. The fact is that, data back-up procedures and disaster recovery plans at many hotels are prone to risks. A qualified and credible service provider’s service level commitment is likely to be less risky.

You Ask,

Amlan Ghose

Virtual Firewalls are a blessing for large organisations with many networks that need to be protected from both– the outside world and between networks. Multiple Virtual Firewalls can be consolidated into a single server improving manageability, while providing protection to each of the many networks in the organisation.

I will not agree that Virtual Firewalls are the ‘in thing’ yet. They may, in future, be so. But, I would rather wait and watch till they are proven.

Hotels can afford to wait. A typical hotel has just two networks - one each for administration and guest use. This is not the level of complexity that merits early adoption of Virtual Firewalls.

In your case, a more appropriate time to evaluate the option will be when you centralise your IT infrastructure into a shared data centre for the entire chain, where users access applications and data using a browser. And, users of each property may wish to be firewalled against malicious attacks from the outside world and from cross property log-ins.

‘

Why invest scarce capital in IT infrastructure if you can subscribe to it instead? The benefits outweigh the risks

‘

reduce cost

When your hotel needs electricity, you do not commission a power plant.

You merely subscribe to it. In the same way, IT is required by hotels.

So, why must hotels install servers, licence software and then administer and maintain the system?

Hey, are you sure my data is safe on the cloud?

I just saw my Guest History sheet on the Olympics Channel!

Readers can send us any ‘Hospitality IT’ related question to find its answer. We can be reached at - fhraimag@ddppl.com

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Diversity will Sustain India’s Success

While growth appears to be hibernating, increasingly diverse travel demand and supply will keep India well-positioned for long-term prosperity.

Julie Parodi June brought another lacklustre month of report reservation performance card compared to prior year.

Bookings, in total, for India fell short of those made in June 2011 by -14.2 per cent. While decreases are never a welcome sight, it shouldn’t bring feelings of doom and gloom.

First, we must remember that India experienced extraordinarily high, doubledigit growth during 2010 and 2011.

Hence, keeping up with the resulting cumulative volume achieved so early on would be a challenge by itself. Secondly, the global economy has likewise lost steam in its recovery. Powerful emerging markets like China and India are growing at a slower pace than before, Europe remains riddled with sovereign debt issues and the United States’ economy has stayed sluggish. Add to this the uncertainty that stems from fluctuating currency exchange rates, higher than usual unemployment rates and potential changes in government policies. Thus, it should not come as a shock that booking growth isn’t continuing to accelerate at record-breaking speed.

All that being said, however, the travel industry continues to out-perform most economies and continues to have a strong and foundationally sound demand base; especially for travel industries like that of India, whose demand is derived from a combination of growing sources.

A Strong Mix of Travellers

We hear of the benefits that a diversified investment portfolio brings over time, and similar principles apply to a destination’s travel portfolio. An advantageous aspect of India’s travel demand is that it stems from a strong mix of domestic and international travel. India is known for its grand and expanding population, and one that encompasses a growing middle-class that will continue to fuel domestic stays. Also, having a high mix of inbound arrivals from other strong markets around the world, helps to insulate against declines from any one or more internal or external sources, due to any reason. Another plus is that along with leisure travellers, there is a high degree of business travel. Corporate traffic tends to be more consistent and a key driver of rate growth. Business and leisure travel from various feeder-markets helps to keep the type of steady demand that enables firm rates. This type of source variety is one reason why India’s rates have been able to hold firm against prior year and are making progress overall. June’s ADR (average daily rate) came within -4.7 per cent of prior year, representing the smallest gap within the last six month period.

The best way to maximize the potential of this varied and growing demand base is to have the type of varied room supply to support it; and that’s precisely what’s taking place in India as well. The majority of business class hotels fall in the upper mid-scale to luxury segment range. Leisure, on the other hand, serves a wider scope of interests and spans a much broader range that extends

from luxury through to economy. Much of India’s supply has been concentrated in the luxury segment, capturing high-end business and leisure travel. Many hotel groups in the mid-market range are entering the scene, aware of the relative lack of lower-priced options and eager to fulfill that need.

Going Forward

While current comparisons against prior year show India lagging behind Asia Pacific and global results, prior year circumstances play a role in some of that performance. There are indeed areas in Asia Pacific that are continuing to do relatively well, such as Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and South Korea. However, Japan is a key market that has made great strides since the staggering chaos faced last year. From a global perspective, there are additional aspects of moderate but generally steady growth from South America combined with Europe’s subdued activity as a whole.

in India’s Favour

A few other aspects are in India’s favour as well. For example, India not only has a longer average length of stay at 3.46 nights than other countries in the region and the world, but it’s growing at a faster pace. This, too, is a product of having a varied mix of travel, with longer stays often driven by guests travelling further distances and those able to spend more and/or have been offered the sort of value packages that allows them to stay longer.

india, regional, global – % change over prior year gds & ads channels combined

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net reservations

net ADR

net revenue

india

Jun ’12 vs ’11 Jun YTD ’12 vs ’11

-14.2 -6.8%

-4.7% -6.3%

-13.8 -11.0%

asia pacific

Jun ’12 vs ’11 Jun YTD ’12 vs ’11

-7.6% 2.1%

2.1% 0.6%

-3.0% 3.1%

global

Jun ’12 vs ’11 Jun YTD ’12 vs ’11

-9.1%

2.4%

-6.8%

-4.0%

4.6%

-0.3%

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net avg length of stay (nights)

June 2012

June 2011

% Chg

india

3.46

3.28

5.4%

asia pacific

2.85

2.77

2.7%

global

2.14

2.14

0.2%

net avg Booking Lead Time (days)

June 2012

June 2011

% Chg

india

20.07

19.22

4.4%

asia pacific

20.30

19.24

5.6%

global

17.13

16.63

3.0%

Similarly, India’s booking lead times continue to be relatively long and are staying longer than last year by a solid margin of +4.4 per cent. This speaks of growing pockets of consumer confidence, which will continue to grow from an increasingly affluent middle class, along with solid meeting demands that are also growing. India is home to the many company headquarters, regional offices, manufacturing plants and operation/service centres and also hosts various types of conferences and conventions.

Perhaps the final key ingredient for optimising this growing demand and supply equation is having updated infrastructure and transportation capabilities to make travelling to and around India an easy, affordable and comfortable experience. Remember, destinations are competing against the value and total experience that can be had elsewhere. Hotels, travel intermediaries and travel associations can team up to support these improvements.

Clearly, India holds all the ingredients for building up an even mightier travel industry. Hoteliers, however, need to be doing all they can during this period to secure their place in this promising future. How familiar are you with your guest profiles? What is your actual, not assumed, business/leisure mix? Do you know who your most profitable customers are? Which ones are your loyal, return guests, who stay the longest, spend more and on what? Where do they come from and what appeals to them most? It is only by understanding this that you can address what marketing, rate and distribution strategies will be most successful for increasing business from your current customer base and adding to it from additional sources. Likewise, take this opportunity to ensure that the look, feel and amenities of your hotel align with the type of clientele you seek. Among all this, never forget basics.

Top service is a must for any level of hotel, and every item your hotel has to offer must be well-maintained and functioning at its best. Without excelling at those basics, sustaining the customer base you’ve spent time and effort to build will soon be sustaining your competitors.

(The writer is Senior Director of Strategic Planning and Editor, The Pegasus View. The views expressed by the author are personal.)

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The Bavarian Touch Shifting an entire culture of food and beer from the Bavarian region of Germany to Gurgaon has made 7˚ Brauhaus a unique place for diners. The authentic Bavarian Microbrewery & Kitchen Restaurant claims to be the first authentic German restaurant in India and promises to become a trendsetter in this brewery restaurant/pub concept.

SANJEEV BHAR

R

eplicating a different geography in the Indian hospitality space even in the thoughts would be a challenging affair. But for the first time, hospitality entrepreneur Sunil Mathur has overcome this thought and made it into a reality. He, as one of the directors of Seven Souls Hospitality, established an authentic Bavarian Microbrewery & Kitchen in Gurgaon, which is now being recognised as one of the finest restaurants to relish food and guzzle authentic German beer. Titled 7° Brauhaus, it offers in-house German microbrewery plant and machinery as the integral part of its interiors.

Sunil Mathur

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Being passionate about food and drinks, he was drawn from his petrochemical engineering background towards the restaurant business. Mathur, Managing Director of the 7° Brauhaus, recalls, “After taking a break from my professional job in Nigeria, I decided to settle in India and do something

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where my heart is.” He knew the popularity of microbreweries in Belgium, Austria and Germany. For the sheer liking towards beer, he wanted to explore this area of his palate, and therefore, made a trip to Germany. “I checked authentic Bavarian brewery and the concept of brew pubs. It was a sight of amalgamation of characteristics where a restaurant and beer pub has a unique dimension. The Germany trip opened up a new horizon for me and I was assured of this concept,” he informs.

Varieties of Sausages

7� Brauhaus offers following authentic German sausages: • Bratwurst • Knaxx • Original Munich • Nurnberg Bratwurst • Snail Sausages • Krakauer • 4 Wiener

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The gamut of customers range from Europe to South East Asia nationals, who fancy innovative food

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Replicating a Bavarian brewery

Brewing is an ancient form of making beer. Brew pubs would have Chestnut trees around to keep the cellars cool during the summer. Mathur says, “To replicate that feel, I got the original tree trunk from Germany and sent it to China along with the original leaves and fruits. There, the leaves and fruits were replicated.

We installed the fixtures in such a way that it now gives a feel of a real Chestnut tree.” Keeping the original tree trunk has added a dimension to the restaurant which is located at the South Point Mall in Gurgaon Sector 53.

Being on the top floor, the restaurant has been fabricated in such a way that right at the centre, it attains a height of 55 ft giving it a huge look than it actually is. The creation of the entire structure was a big challenge and it finally opened its doors in April this year. “Majority of our customers have been expats living in the vicinity. The gamut of customers range from Europe to South East Asia nationals, who fancy innovative food that Delhi NCR fails to deliver,” claims Mathur.

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Keeping the décor engaging

To make the restaurant look like a brew pub of Germany, the flooring has been done with a Bavarian style approach. “It was a tough call to replicate such a concept on a large scale right from the tree to the furniture used.

In fact, real maple wood table tops and oakwood chairs give a real feel of the brewery that I had experienced,” he explains.

Mukesh Singh

The copper lamp shades hanging over the dining tables shed a radiant light that bounces off the table top wood, which creates a magical atmosphere. Mathur adds, “We have tried to make the dining area resemble like a microbrewery. The kitchen of the restaurant is near the entrance. The middle of the restaurant has been designed as a bar where one gets to taste the freshly brewed beer.”

On entering the restaurant, the sheer greenery inside greets guests with a large brewery ensemble right at one end of the set up next to the kitchen.

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Marketing microbrewery

According to Mathur, he wanted to give customers the feel of dining in a brewery.

“We have two brewmasters who ensure that everything that is served is perfect. For the brewery we have tied up with German brand Caspary, which is known for its equipment and expertise for setting up microbrewery,” he informs.

Beer varieties

The restaurant presents hand-crafted beer and even offers unlimited beer complimentary during Sunday brunch which has become quite a hit proposition among customer groups.

One can have the following fresh interesting choices: • 7� Lager • 7� Wheat • 7� Special (Brewmaster’s choice, which he changes according to the season; he has even created innovative spice flavoured beers)

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In fact, the company has tied up with Caspary to market the concept of microbrewery-cumrestaurant. “We are planning to expand this concept in India and for breweries the expertise of Caspary will come into force. We plan to take on a pan-India approach in owned, copartnership and franchisee formats of restaurants.”

The company is open to partner with hotels as well to manage only the brewery part from conceptualisation to design to interiors.

German delight

fhrai desk

Apart from freshly brewed beers, the restaurant has pepped up the mood of the guzzlers with authentic German cuisine

Apart from freshly brewed beers, the restaurant has pepped up the mood of the guzzlers with authentic German cuisine.

Mukesh Singh, Executive Assistant Manager and Executive Chef of the restaurant, says, “As far as the restaurant sale is concerned,

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we have given importance to German cuisine which is about 70 per cent of our menu, followed by continental dishes, i.e., 20 per cent. Rest goes to Indian cuisine.” The restaurant, thus, becomes the first and only authentic German restaurant in India, claims Mathur.

“In June, our restaurant sold around 270 kg of sausages,” informs Singh. He adds, “We have been selling 25 plates per day of pork knuckles like the variety of sausages we are selling as one would not even find many of these in the best of city star hotels.

We have even a brew master from Germany who has 32 years of experience.”

The flavour of the food has been kept authentic keeping the essence of German cuisine intact. The fact that Gurgaon happens to be the home of foreign nationals, it has become an ideal spot for get-together during the day and for evening dine outs.

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Satiating gourmet desires Established way back in 1991, The Leela Goa has gone through a lot of changes.

It is quite apparent from the way food & beverage has been approached by the hotel to cater to its growing audience over the years. Kayomarz Bharucha, Executive Chef, The Leela Goa, identifies with the responsibility that the hotel has in order to satiate the customers’ expectation each time they dine at the hotel.

How differently has the hotel approached its F&B offerings considering it represents chef talk an international destination and with time, food is to be presented innovatively to cater to international travellers?

Over the years we have consistently tried to get the best products and make innovative dishes. From time to time, we have had expat chefs in our team bringing in the latest that is happening in the F&B sector and adopting the best practices in the industry. We have a Thai chef at present and, I believe, we have great pastries and breads.

Our wine and spirit collection too, is at par with some of the best hotels. Considering that we have so many repeat guests who year after year prefer to choose us as their preferred holiday destination, it becomes our responsibility to satiate their gourmet desires.

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Tell us about the hotel’s various restaurants and the cuisines being served. What is The Leela Goa’s specialty according to you for the customers?

We have ‘The Restaurant’ which is a multi-cuisine outlet serving Asian, Western and Indian food. At the Italian restaurant, the ‘Riverside’, exotic meats such as snails, octopus and even the prized Angus and Wagyu meats are available. The famed French delicacy, Foie gras is also served. On the other hand, ‘The Susegado’ is a beach grill and seafood restaurant. ‘Jamavar’ serves Indian and Goan cuisines. For our club guests at ‘The Lounge’, our chefs prepare customised dishes as per their requirements. The menus have been planned to be creative, interesting and include gourmet items.

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Goa is an evolved market. In such a scenario, how challenging is it to keep re-inventing food? What have been the recent additions in the F&B repertoire?

We are constantly updating ourselves with the latest trends in the international market. Last year we redesigned the coffee shop with live kitchens and beautiful interiors (now called ‘The Restaurant’), offering al fresco dining options as well. I think no other hotel in Goa has a restaurant to match this.

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How has the Goan cuisine changed or evolved over the years? Do you emphasise on promoting this form of cuisine?

Goan cuisine has not changed much over the years. The fish curry, Xacutti, Vindaloo, Cafreal, Rechado don’t need to change. What may change is the presentation of the food or the spice levels may be adapted to suit individual tastes.

We have a section in the menu in ‘The Restaurant’ and ‘Jamavar’ that offers popular Goan dishes. At the beach restaurant too, we serve the favourite Peri Peri and Rechado alternatives for fish and seafood. Goan cookery demonstrations also help us promote this cuisine.

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Do you view food as a concept to propel the hotel’s sales? How do you use it as a marketing tool?

Food & Beverage contributes about 30 per cent of the hotel’s revenue. Special menus are featured on our in-house ‘Culinary Highlights’ which give our guests added varieties and options to choose from. Being a destination resort many of our guests come down to celebrate special moments of their lives and we give them an unforgettable experience, of which food is an integral part.

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Which factors generally contribute to high food revenue in a hotel?

We capitalise on food revenues during Christmas, New Years, Valentine’s Day, Easter and other festivals apart from private dinners and barbeques celebrating birthdays, anniversaries and so on. We offer food pairing along with wines, contributing the incremental food revenues we achieve.

In terms of food, which imminent challenges would be faced by the chef talk hospitality as India progresses to become a strong contender to offer superlative hospitality?

Erratic government regulations on importing food products, declining catch of some local seafood and rising food inflation are the challenges that we, and the industry as a whole, face.

Also, today’s guests are well travelled and want to see more variety along with the Indian selection.

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How has your experience been so far with this property?

The experience with this property has been great. The hotel has collaborated with many international chains over the years and this has improved and influenced my career. The owners’ thrust on creating an excellent product has, of course, left its mark on all of us who are fortunate to work here. And with the recent renovation, we now have a state-of-the-art product and I’m proud to be associated with one of the leading hospitality groups in the country.

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Staying Ahead It is the age of the customer and hotels have realised that the guest (or customer) is in a position to choose from varied options. Every hotel will have to work hard to reach out to the guests and The Leela Goa is differentiating itself from its competitors by providing unique services at better value propositions. NEELAM SINGH

O

ver the years, Goa has grown into becoming one of India’s premier tourist destinations. The spurt in tourism has made the market very competitive.

Luxury hotels are constantly innovating to ensure that they remain most preferred by guests. ‘Since 1991, The Leela Goa has been a market leader in Goa’, Shridhar Nair, GM, The Leela Goa, announces proudly. He believes that more competition has led to an increase in the quality of service being provided “We have to be careful to ensure that we do not remain complacent on the infrastructure front since our guests have much more options for destinations to choose from than before.”

Unique Location More competition has led to an increase in the quality of service being provided

Nair elaborates, “Owing to its unique geographical position (located between the quaint river Sal and the gusty Arabian Sea) along with its exquisite architecture, The Leela Goa is an iconic hotel in South Goa. Spread across 75 acres, it has a beautiful lagoon meandering through the entire stretch of the property, a 1 km virgin beach, a 12-hole golf course and landscaped gardens separating the beach from the guest room villas.

Guest-focussed Service

Despite having a lot of factors responsible for its success so far, the legendary guest-focussed service delivered by its staff topped the list. Nair vehemently says, “Over a period of many years, our staff worked tirelessly in positioning us as the most preferred luxury resort by both our Indian and foreign guests. We have a very high repeat guest percentage (almost 35 per cent) and they acknowledge that it is our staff and the service that pulls them back to the hotel.”

Preserving the Environment Focussing on maintaining the natural identity of the place, The Leela Goa is home to hundreds of species of both birds and marine life. A lot of migratory birds like cormorants and egrets apart from herons, kites and kingfishers prefer to call Leela their home.

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Innovating Constantly

The Leela Goa commands an average year-end occupancy of 75 per cent which makes it the marketing leader in Goa in terms of both ARR as well as the RevPar, shares Aejaz Shaikh, Director of Sales & Marketing, The Leela Goa. Keeping pace with changing times, The Leela Goa recently underwent a major renovation and upgraded all the 200 rooms in the hotel. Shaikh further informs, “We have successfully completed a US $20 million refurbishment of the property increasing our room inventory to 206 from 186 with ultra-modern amenities. We have also introduced a new dining experience - The Restaurant - designed by Jeffrey Wilkes of Malaysian firm Design Wilkes. This multi-cuisine restaurant with interactive live kitchens serves an array of global cuisines.”

In its effort to stay ahead, Sheikh reveals, The Leela Goa has also inducted BMW 5-Series sedans into the hotel’s fleet of cars which enable our guests to enjoy a truly personalised journey and elevates their experiences to a new level.

Future Plans

Talking about the present proposition, Nair says, “The Leela Goa is very vulnerable to the external economic environment. But, we are quite confident of our position in the international market owing to our past performance and guest relations.” He opines that keeping guest comfort and the latest international luxury hotel trends in mind help enhance the hotel’s performance. Thus, the private luxury villas and the presidential suite are slated to

Shridhar Nair

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Keeping guest comfort and the latest international luxury hotel trends in mind help enhance the hotel’s performance

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undergo upgradation in April 2013. Along with this, the plan of adding yet another 40 rooms to the hotel and a new spa village complex with 20 treatment rooms is also in the offing.

With the global economic slowdown and the debt crisis in the European markets, inbound traffic from these parts of the world may be impacted. The hotel is wellprepared for these shifts. “We have already started focussing on CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) countries and other emerging international markets,” Shaikh informs.

In a climate where the hospitality industry is constantly luring customers with discounts, Nair believes that discounting cannot be a route to encourage higher occupancy. He says, “We have a very strong and loyal repeat guest base, especially for the winter months and we are very sensitive towards looking after their needs, thereby ensuring that we remain their preferred hotel for holidaying.” The hotel has been constantly raising its bar by increasing its ARR. “We are constantly innovating with our product and guest service, thus offering a higher value to our discerning guests,” he adds.

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Adding MICE Dynamics

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The MICE market segment has evolved considerably for luxury hotels in Goa over the last eight years. Earlier, there were two distinct seasons for Goa which were the peak season (October – March) and the off-season (April – September) which has now changed almost dramatically with the MICE segment pushing volume business through conferences/ conventions and weddings over the so called off-season.

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“For The Leela Goa – the MICE segment has become very important, both in terms of volume as well as revenue. This segment contributes to nearly 30 per cent of our total yearend revenues and helps fill up volumes in the months from April to September. We anticipate a Y-o-Y growth of around 14 per cent in this segment for the hotel,� Nair explains.

Shaikh believes that the potential growth opportunity will essentially come from the MICE and package segment.

Destination weddings are typically high revenue-yielding events for the hotel and they constitute good volumes for the hotel hosting them.

Need of the hour

The hotel has also welcomed the fact that this year, the state government decided to relax the luxury tax for the summer months as it has given a positive boost to the domestic market which includes weddings and conferences. Shaikh insists that focus on infrastructural challenges, i.e., new airport, domestic and international connectivity, tax reforms, etc., is the need of the hour.

However, Nair concludes, the government needs to be much more proactive in solving major issues that affect the hotel industry which includes the poor power situation, water crisis, airport infrastructure and garbage disposal norms apart from others.

(With inputs from Sanjeev Bhar)

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Hospitality performance: South Region

T

here has been a tremendous growth of the hospitality industry in the South over the last year. Several international hotel chains such as the Hilton, Hyatt, Movenpick, Westin, Marriott, Novotel, Wyndham, Sheraton, Radisson, Aloft, etc., have established their significant presence in South India. Equally, Indian hotel majors like the ITC – with their two large hotels, i.e., Gardenia in Bengaluru and Grand Chola in Chennai (due to open in the near future with over 600 rooms), Leela – with the Leela Palace in Chennai due to open shortly with a large inventory of rooms, Taj group – with their Vivanta brand hotels in Yeshwantpur Bengaluru, Bekal Kerala and Begumpet Hyderabad and the Green Park group – with their new 5-star hotel Marigold in Hyderabad.

In Chennai alone there will be around 3,000 extra rooms in the 5-star segment within the next 3-6 months – with new 5-star hotels of the Westin, Park Hyatt, SRM, etc., adding up to the other hotels mentioned above. Hyderabad has witnessed an explosion in the number of hotels in the 5-star category over the last twelve-eighteen months. Bengaluru, too, has seen a huge addition of rooms particularly in the luxury segment. In Kerala, several hotels in the 3 and 4 star categories have applied for Ministry of Tourism Classification over the last one year which reflects the steady growth of the hotel industry in this state, these hotels

Though provided industry status by the respective state governments in the South, hotels are not provided infrastructure status

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being particularly tourism oriented. The Union Territory of Pondicherry has also witnessed rapid additions of hotels both in the Heritage and Classified segments, the latest being the Accord Metropolitan Hotel which has recently opened in the 5-star category with an inventory of over 100 rooms.

Key issues

The main issues being focussed and discussed with the respective state governments are: a) Though provided industry status by the respective state governments in the South, hotels are not provided infrastructure status, concessional interests on loans, industrial tariffs for electricity, increased Floor Space Index (FSI) and other such benefits normally given to other manufacturing/export oriented industries. b) Reduction of Exorbitant Bar Licence fees in some of the states, particularly Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. c) Extension of bar timings to 24x7 in case of 4-star and above hotels and till 1 am for other category of hotels since the present bar timings entails the closing of bars by 12 midnight. This restricts foreign tourists, airline crew and business travellers who normally arrive by late night international flights particularly from western destinations.

States like Tamil Nadu have also been requested to permit the serving of beer and wine in specialty stand-alone restaurants that are coming up in the metro cities and are being frequented by people opting to experience Continental, Mediterranean and other specialty cuisines for which wine and beer are normal accompaniments. d) Tamil Nadu Government has been requested to favourably consider our long standing plea of applicability of the 12.50 per cent Luxury Tax on Actual Room Tariff and not on Published Room tariff as is being done presently. Hotels most often sell maximum number of rooms at the Best Available Rate of the day and they also offer special rates to corporate clients, foreign groups and airline crew

K Syama Raju President South India Hotels & Restaurants Association (SIHRA)

based on the high volume allocation/ utilisation of rooms provided to them.

Hotels also apply this strategy since they earn valuable foreign exchange during those periods which, in turn, give the hotels benefits such as EPCG imports, duty free imports, etc. Such special room rates are normally 40 per cent to 50 per cent lower than the published room tariff. Hence, the application of Luxury Tax on the notional Published Room tariff renders such special room rates meaningless. By a calculation done, it has been found that though in Tamil Nadu, Luxury Tax applicable on Hotel Room Tariff is 12.5 per cent, the tax when worked out on the actual room rate is 25 per cent and this creates an unreasonable impact on the price. e) VAT on food sold is high in some of the southern states which adversely impacts the cost, and therefore, burdens the common man, hence reduction is sought.

Biggest achievement for SIHRA

a) After years of persuasion from SIHRA, the Tamil Nadu Government has not only relaxed the bar timings permitting licensed bars to operate till 12 midnight as against 11 pm earlier, the government has also taken the first step towards providing permission for round-theclock bar service for 5-star and above hotels, though on the payment of double the licence fees. A plea has been made

by SIHRA to extend 24x7 bar facility to hotels of lower star categories as well and a favourable result is anticipated. b) As a result of strong recommendations made to FSSAI by SIHRA through

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FHRAI, in respect of the contradictory provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006, FSSA has removed nine of the offending provisions.

SIHRA growth

SIHRA has grown in numbers in the past year with almost 100 new members added. However, there has also been attrition which to some extent neutralises the growth. SIHRA presently has 1,120 members and has been very active in conducting professional development programmes and topical workshops and seminars at all the states and this has really kindled the interest of members. This is evident through their active participation in good numbers and the feedback they have given. The regional association has also been proactively taking up with respective state governments, the major issues confronting the industry. President – SIHRA and his team of Executive Committee Members have, in the last one year, conducted successful Inter-Active Meetings and Press Conferences in the various southern states. This has given an excellent

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SIHRA will be launching an aggressive drive to increase the Membership number by organising sustained campaigns fillip to the image of the Association, thereby attracting more prospective members to the SIHRA fold.

SIHRA will be launching an aggressive drive to increase the Membership number by organizing sustained campaigns in various states and also by holding a Regional Convention.

SIHRA’s swanky new well-located office in Chennai will be fully equipped with all the facilities required to cater to the need of our existing and future Members and this will be a bonus to the Membership.

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Agenda on cards…

The Agenda for the Association for the next year which will commence after the forthcoming AGM of SIHRA to be held on September 22, 2012, is being chalked out currently. There will be a greater thrust to achieve the desired objectives and goals of the Association, particularly in a year, i.e., 2012-2013, that the President-ship of the parent Association FHRAI moves down to SIHRA.

Viewpoint on FHRAI Annual Convention’s role

The FHRAI Convention plays a very major role in bonding the Members of the Association together which leads to the strengthening of the Association.

The Convention also provides a learning ground for members through the interesting and meaningful panel discussions and seminars that are conducted during the various sessions.

Yes, the Annual Convention of FHRAI does achieve its objectives.

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Hospitality performance: North Region

T

he northern region of India is blessed with many attractive tourist destinations which excel in heritage, architecture, leisure and religious tourism. Taj Mahal is the most famous, the beauty of Kashmir is well known all over the world and we are glad that it has again started to attract tourists in large numbers.Varanasi is an important tourist destination which is instrumental in exposing Hinduism to the world. Hills of Uttarakhand and Himachal are very popular with domestic tourists with Rishikesh and Haridwar fast becoming destinations attracting international tourists. Haryana with the growth of cities like Faridabad and Gurgaon has become an attractive business destination while Rajasthan has already put India on the tourist map and continues to lead with its fort, deserts, culture and cuisine.

Key issues

There are many challenges like expensive land and multiple taxes. Every state has a different tax. Apart from this, there are cumbersome licensing processes, with over 100 licenses required for hospitality set ups. Another important issue pertaining to India is the FSI (Floor Space Index) which is low if compared to other countries. As a result, the cost of the project goes up, and therefore, the ultimate burden lies on customers who have to pay for expensive rooms.

We as an association should segregate our business into budget, medium, premium and luxury sectors and address the problem of each category separately

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Apart from this, lack of infrastructure in terms of roads and bridges, power and sanitation and electricity are some other issues that plague the hotel industry. We have represented these issues to the concerned governments and authorities to take up the necessary action regarding them. We are touched by their positive response and open discussions.

Biggest achievement for HRANI

Following are the achievements of northern region association: Organising 1st Convention – ‘Hospitality Industry – Vision 2020’ in Amritsar • Reduction of VAT on sale of liquor in Haryana from 26.25 per cent to 15.75 per cent • HRANI initiated Food Safety & Standards Act 2006 seminars in northern India in Delhi, Nainital, Rudrapur, Chandigarh, Lucknow and Agra • Organising interactive sessions on sustainable tourism for 276 working employees from member hotels • HRD and training drive • Dialogues and Meetings with various functionaries in related governments • Ensured better railway connectivity between Delhi and Kathgodam through deliberations with the Railway Ministry.

HRANI growth

A Northern wing of national body Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) is the first Trade Association of the hospitality sector in India and has entered into 61st year of its service to the industry and the people therein.

It was founded by legendary Rai Bahadur M.S. Oberoi in 1950 with 27 members and thus sowed the seeds of tourism in the country putting the hotel & restaurant business on an organised platform to grow as an industry. Last year, we witnessed the highest growth and added 145 members. Today over 1580 hotels, restaurants, travel agents, tour operators, upcoming hotel & restaurant projects, manufacturers, suppliers, etc.,

S M Shervani President Hotel and Restaurant Association of Northern India (HRANI)

from Delhi, Chandigarh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir are our member.

Agenda on cards…

The agenda of the association is to organise our next convention and seminars in our North Indian states. We, as an association, should segregate our business into budget, medium, premium and luxury sectors and address the problem of each category separately.

As we approach the 61st year, the association will continue to lead the charge in providing services to our supportive members. The association would make concerted efforts to help our members as well the fraternity on the whole.

Viewpoint on FHRAI Annual Convention’s Role

According to us, the annual convention of FHRAI is very interesting and educative for the hospitality fraternity. The sessions held during the convention are informative and educative.Large numbers of delegates attend the conventions from all over India. It provides a venue for all of us to get together, exchange ideas and listen to the experts. It helps us build new relationships. I feel that it is a must for new entrants in this field.

FHRAI has been holding conventions for over 50 years and is the oldest forum for the hospitality industry to be together as its successful conventions have proven over the years.

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Hospitality performance: west Region

S

ince 1950, HRA(WI) is the oldest and first operating hotel association in the country.

Even FHRAI, the apex body, was formed in 1955. MOT set up its first office six months after HRA(WI) was setup and the Mumbai, IHM was operational four years after HRA(WI) started. As a region, the western part is diverse both ecologically and geographically. We have the best beaches in the world, hill stations, national parks, flat plateaux, vineyards or forts just to name a few attractions. Not only the maximum tax collection of the country but more than half of the national Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), come from Maharashtra and Gujarat. This has translated into a robust and strong hotel industry offering a range from the lowest segment to super luxury hospitality.

Every major international and Indian chain has multiple properties in the western region, which is visible from the fact that HRAWI can boast of its ‘Special Invitee’ member chains of the Taj, Oberoi, ITC and its ‘Member of Honour’ who owns The Leela Group. This is on account of the fact that half the country’s air traffic comes from the western region and it, in addition, has a welldeveloped infrastructure of sea and rail links. Moreover, the fundamental issues like electricity and water are available uninterrupted all across the region, which is remarkable. All these factors have contributed towards a mature hospitality industry existing here.

Key issues

Irrespective of being competitive, the region is still facing issues that draws HRA(WI)’s attention: Entertainment Tax on restaurants and hotels where music is being played • Need for the government to accept late night timings of our industry • Abolishment of Prohibition in our states • Abolishment of Service Tax in addition to Luxury Tax on hotels and VAT on food sold • Need for repealing archaic laws of the various police and municipal departments • Initiation of

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the HDPB (Hospitality Development and Promotion Board) meetings formulated

by Maharashtra, besides only two other states of India.

Biggest achievement for HRA(WI)

There are many achievements but tackling issue faced by the cable television and Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS) has been a noted one. In recent times, the case of Public Performance License (PPL) that we took up would rate as the most contemporary achievement. We have so far hosted 16 annual regional conventions and have been doing so for over 50 years.

Last year, HRA (WI) launched a trade show for, of and by the industry called the Hospitality, Food & Tourism India (HFTI).

We intend to host this initially every two years. The event brought together all trade bodies under one roof and created a professional atmosphere to conduct business. The event was held at the prestigious upmarket Nehru Centre at Worli.

HRA(WI) growth

The HRA (WI) has 1,361 members currently. We are evolving as an organisation and inducted 89 members last year alone. This year, we are opening our membership to the Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) category in keeping with the modernisation of the F&B business. We have the largest member base of 4 HRAs in the country even after admitting only one member per establishment, unlike admitting restaurants within hotels as independent members as the other three regions do.

The biggest advantage we bring to our members is the ability to get classified and take advantage of the Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) licence in order to reduce capital cost of imports for both new hotels and existing ones. We are contemplating to provide an insurance cover for our members this year.

Bharat Malkani Joint Secretary Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India - HRA(WI)

Agenda on cards…

The association is developing a laboratory for its members to ensure that they meet the FSSAI requirements that are now in place. The first laboratory will be in Mumbai. On successful accomplishment, we would repeat the same model in the entire region. We are in discussion with the law makers to amend some existing archaic laws to ensure the long-term sustainability of the hospitality industry.

We intend to continue to make western India the preferred destination for tourists.

Viewpoint on FHRAI Annual Convention’s Role

The role of FHRAI’s annual convention is to bring its members together on a national platform and share the acquired knowledge with all. This is disseminated through business sessions that cover a wide number of topics from housekeeping to food, marketing, social media, etc. It also serves as a platform to engage with the policy makers on a one-to-one level, to bring to them the issues faced by the industry. Apart from the above, it’s an excellent networking opportunity for the trade industry to engage in business discussions at an even keel.

FHRAI achieves all this and, in addition to the above, helps foster a strong bond between members. This interaction by members from all corners of India is one of the greatest successes of the national convention.

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Slowly Down the

Ganges

The ‘Bengal Ganga’, India’s only river cruise that travels from Kolkata to Varanasi offers once-in-alifetime experience on one of the most important and glorious rivers of the world, the Ganges; a journey that opens up an entire civilisation’s belief, lifestyle and culture.

The Bengal Ganga experience gives visitors an elegant travel experience with the cultural and spiritual growth of India’s development alongside the sacred river. Also the Mother Ganga guides us to look within and beyond ourselves.

Design of the Ship

‘Bengal Ganga’ was designed as a replica of the colonial style ‘Clyde’ steamers. At the height of the Empire, similar ships were used by a succession of important officials and celebrities of the day, most notably recorded as being used by Viceroys of India and the Prince of Wales. Shining Teak and brass-lined 28 state rooms ensure a fantastically comfortable and elite travelling style. ‘Improvements’ to meet today’s needs such as the saloon bar, dining room and observation deck are other additions to enhance the experience.

Maiden Voyage

Bengal Ganga’s maiden voyage started in September 2009. There was never a dull moment from start to finish: broken propellers and rudders a regular occurrence, with hindering weather, and the constant battle against unprecedented urban development forming ‘barrages’ of aerial wires and bridges. The resilience of the crew and the full backing of West

Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh governments in tandem with the Indian Waterways Authority of India resulted in a speedy and efficient round trip, arriving back in Kolkata on schedule.

A trip alongside history

Covering 1,200 km, the route offers a sumptuous feast of cultural and historical precedence: Kolkata, Chandernagore, Bandel with British, French and Portuguese architecture; terracotta temples at Kalna; Murshidabad with its Mughal palaces, museums and mosques, Raj Mahal; the Munger School of Yoga, Nalanda, Vikramshila, the 8th century ancient Buddhist University; Bodh Gaya where Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment; Patna museum, Sarnath, and the oldest living city in the world Varanasi, the list is long and rich.

Full of Life

Whatever your interests, there is nothing that Mother Ganga can’t tempt you with. Village life, colourful festivals, amazing archaeological sites, museums, temples, wonderful scenery and a rich tapestry of natural history that can be observed as the ship proceeds steadily along. This ‘diamond in the rough’ harbours some of the large endangered mammals such as Blue Bull (nilgai) and Blackbuck Antelope, wild boar, jackal, Bengal Fox, Jungle Cat, Rhesus Macaques, grey Langurs and for those with sharp eyes good chances of Indian mongoose. Not only the banks, but the channel itself hosts over ninety species of fish, smooth Indian Otters, Terrapins and tortoises as well as healthy populations of River Dolphins. Thousands of migratory ducks can be seen, as well as Indian Skimmers, Storks, River Lapwings, Kingfishers and birds of prey.

Having a fully trained crew, improved cuisine and excellent housekeeping, the Bengal Ganga experience with the knowledge and enrichment given by the Mother Ganga herself provides an unforgettable journey.

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FHRAI Awards Asha Juneja, Assistant Secretary General, FHRAI

FHRAI Awards, instituted in the year 2000, have achieved a high recognition and prestige among our members. Initially, FHRAI Awards were introduced in the following two categories:

Environment Awards

• Environment Champion of the Year among Large Hotels ( 4-star, 5-star, 5-star deluxe and heritage hotels) • Environment Champion of the year among Small Hotels (3-star, 2-star, 1-star, government approved and unapproved) • Environment Champion of the year among Restaurants (only for standalone restaurant)

Individual Awards

• Young Hotel Entrepreneur of the Year • Young Restaurant Entrepreneur of the Year Later, as the industry recognised our efforts in encouraging young managers from hotel & restaurant members, we were requested to expand the categories. Then we added different categories covering GMs and managers of different departments. At present, the FHRAI Awards consist additional categories that are mentioned here under: The Jury of FHRAI Awards comprises FHRAI Office Bearers (President, Three Vice Presidents, Hony. Secretary, Hony. Treasurer and two Joint Hony. Secretaries). To evaluate the winner, there is a Rating

Individual Manager Awards

• Young Hotel GM of the Year • Young Hotel F&B Manager of the Year • Young Hotel Chef of the Year • Young Hotel Front Office Manager/ Rooms Division Manager of the Year • Young Hotel Housekeeper of the Year • Young Hotel Sales & Marketing Manager of the Year • Young Hotel Revenue Manager of the Year • Young Hotel Restaurant Manager of the Year • Young Hotel HR Manager of the Year • Young Hotel Training Manager of the Year • Young Hotel Engineer of the Year • Young Restaurant Manager of the Year • Hospitality Journalist of the Year Sheet for each category. The applications are first compiled and then sent to the Jury for evaluation. On receipt of the evaluation from July members, the winner in each category is going to be decided.

Every year, FHRAI Awards function is organised along with FHRAI Annual Convention (barring two Conventions in 2008 and 2011).

This year, it will be held on September 8, 2012, at Goa before the Valedictory session of the 47th FHRAI Annual Convention during September 6-8, 2012 at The Leela Goa. This year we have received 133 applications for FHRAI Awards in different categories which are being evaluated by the Jury Members.

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Human Resource

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Bridging the Gap It is high time that the yawning gap between hotel management graduates’ and hoteliers’ expectations is reduced to a bare minimum. SHAIL BAROT

The Opportunities

India’s 5,000-year culture, multi-hued religion, pre- and post-independence history, coupled with wellness and Ayurveda, beguile the luxury and budget segment travellers, both domestic and foreign touching 600 million and 6.29 million, respectively, last year. Expecting these figures to almost double in the next five years, as foreseen by our Tourism Minister, our tourism and hospitality industry in India is set to move into an active mode.

The tag of an elitist industry needs to be removed from the mindset of the masses by emphasising the job creating opportunity as well as the foreign exchange earning capability of the hospitality industry.

According to the Department of Tourism, the industry has created approximately 53 million jobs already and has prospects of creating another 44 million in the next five years. Being the largest employer today, employing 8.27 per cent of the employable, which contributes to 5.83 per cent of the GDP, are we not capable of a preferred ‘Export Industry Status’? Right from the unskilled to the semi-skilled, our industry absorbs everybody. Can there be a better job creation opportunity than this?

Many Challenges

The Department of Tourism’s Incredible India and Atithi Devo Bhava campaigns with Amitabh Bachchan and Aamir Khan, respectively, selling the deserts and heritage monuments, have kept the interest of domestics and non-domiciles alike, to traverse the delicate infrastructure domains of India.

When a foreigner visits our embassy in his country for a visa to India, travel advisories

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released were against Indian travel because of a remote terror incidence in some corner of this huge sub-continent scared him. The immediate sell-off is to travel to a neighboring country even though the lure of being treated like a ‘Maharaja’ is overpowering. Overcrowding and cleanliness both make India unattractive for domestic tourists too. Against all odds, we still service 606.29 million guests. This royal treatment doesn’t happen as a matter of fact, but it is the warmth of ‘Indian Hospitality’ provided by our people working in our properties.

One of the primary challenges faced by the Indian Hospitality Sector is ‘Management of Labour’, which not only is the core to this ‘Maharaja treatment’, but also is a major sourcing, training and retention challenge for everybody from the hospitality sector.

Effective Personnel Management

skills and accumulating practical experience for their future careers. These courses should be designed to match the industry’s requirement for skilled and proficient employees. While the success of a hotel is its quality of service, it is crucial for hotels to hire employees who have honed hospitality skills and knowledge and are ready to work with minimal training after employment.

Difficult Path

Yet, the career path for hospitality students is even more difficult and challenging than others. Positions in hotels, especially those in the back of the house operations and banquets, are known for long hours and difficult schedules, uncomfortable working conditions and unreal salary scales. It is not uncommon when some trainee staff decides to give up a career in the hotel and prefers to work in a different service sector or even a different industry altogether, which offers a better lifestyle and work atmosphere.

To meet the expectations of warm and courteous Indian service for these tourists, This attrition has become a perennial human resources management (HRM) needs problem for hoteliers; regardless of the to play an essential part in appointing and increasing number of students passing supporting talents to deliver superior service out from catering colleges every year, the quality. Many hotels in India might not have increased job opportunities in the industry qualified HR managers and adequate have widened this gap, thus hotels are employee policies. Furthermore, always short-staffed and very few hotel chains approach waste a lot of resources in hotel management colleges for recruitment. recruitment. As a result, hotels are always short of trained staff.

While the success A solution is to approach hotel of a hotel is its management colleges during quality of service, the campus interviews on a it is crucial for To curb the attrition rate it predetermined date as a group hotels to hire is recommended to adopt of 5-10 hotel members of an employees who the ‘Buddy system’ where a association. have honed new entrant is latched on to hospitality skills an experienced buddy in the Educational institutions have and knowledge same department, to offset provided a systematic process this final phase of ragging and developed curriculum to that a student’s career goes assist students in developing

Some Solutions

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through, before he firmly roots into the hospitality ground.

Although, hotel schools have prepared students with adequate learning to develop a career in the hotel industry, there still exists a gap between hotel management graduates’ expectations and the reality of the job. Such gaps may dissuade job seekers from entering or continuing with their career in the hotel industry. Hoteliers should provide current and realistic information about working conditions, career advancement opportunities and job rewards (including salary and benefits) that the student should expect from the hotel.

Hotel owners as well as HR executives should visit schools as guest lecturers.

These lecture need to be delivered to students of 9th or 10th standard, when choosing a career option is of utmost importance. This lecture would enlighten prospective hotel management students to understand what goes behind a hotel or restaurant in a better way.

analysis

With this article I appeal to all my fellow association members to conduct a tour of your own property with students who aspire to work in the hospitality industry. Internships and management trainee programmes need to be conducted to mould a student towards becoming an employee who can roll out the ‘Maharaja treatment’ to its hotel guest.

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Although, hotel schools have prepared students with adequate learning to develop a career in the hotel industry, there still exists a gap between expectations and reality

As an example, the ITC group of hotels has a management trainee programme, WelcomLegionnaire Programme that focusses on evolving entry level hospitality graduates into world class managers. This programme is one of its kinds in the world and is financed by the hotels division of ITC Ltd. and its details can be found in its site with the tag - WelcomLegionnair Programme.

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On similar lines, our Association hand-held the Ministry of Tourism and launched the scheme of Hunar Se Rozgar Tak, fully funded by the government for the creation of employable skills among the youth belonging to the economically weaker sections of the society. This initiative was taken to bridge the gap of skilled manpower in the hospitality sector.

With a sudden demand for hotel rooms in India, skilled labour is what supports every hospitality organisation.

Together with the association, and by following simple solutions, it is possible to achieve zero manpower crunch for the hotel industry in the coming five years.

(The writer is the Director, International Business Development, Vie Hospitality.

The views expressed by the author are personal.)

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Like & Share In the age where time is limited and attention poor, approaching customers – loyal or potential– for sharing any information and engaging them is a challenge. QBA restaurant has approached facebook in an effective manner to overcome this hurdle. SANJEEV BHAR

T

he restaurant business has come of age in India. It is no longer deliberating on promotional advertising–the conventional way. Online approach has become the call of the day. With this perspective, QBA has started targeting this medium in order to get its share of reach to far off places who wouldn’t even know about the restaurant. Following its first campaign online, the group gave away 25 t-shirts to many of its online visitors who liked the restro-bar online on facebook and shared it with their Innovative network friends. The campaign titled ‘Tag Like Share’ ran from approach has June 13 - 28, 2012, promoting a live acoustic musical evening become a vital at its restaurant - @LIVE. Following this, the restaurant is now aspect in today’s known to many in a short span of time pan India.

way of life

“Innovative approach has become a vital aspect in today’s way

of life. Hence, even in advertising, one has to touch on those nuances where people find a brand as an entity reflecting them. We ran this campaign – Tag Like Share – on facebook to bring eyeballs to our promotion,” informed Rachit Kapoor, Media & Marketing Manager, WG Hospitality, which owns the brand QBA restaurant and bar, Spice restaurant and bar, @LIVE bar and restaurant and nU.Delhi grill and bar.

Every night, QBA organises DJ nights and the restaurant boasts an attractive count of 500 customers which increases during the peak time of November and December. “Following the recent campaign, we are receiving 100 per cent increase in footfall,” adds Kapoor. With four different outlets in New Delhi, the group plans for 3-4 events each month.

Themed events like live performances have attracted the attention of customers and the details about the same is uploaded on the facebook page to keep the loyal customers informed about QBA, who may be in far off cities ‘Tag Like Share’ statistics (Ran from June 13-28, 2012)

Unexpected results

• Q BA had users participating from varied/distant places.

Such as: Visakhapatnam, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Pune, Hyderabad and so on.

• The group increased its total ‘likes’ on its FB page by 550 approx. (This figure is about to increase in QBA outlets page.)

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Directly from the creative

Estimated (min.)

Likes

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400

Comments

493

600

Shares

547

800

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>1000

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Every night, QBA organises DJ nights and the restaurant boasts an attractive count of 500 customers

Direct, Yet Indirect

The online approach these days is a way which can be both direct as well as indirect. “Telling people to ‘like us’ in an indirect manner and also, to share what the customers like is convenient. This is an easy way for us to approach the audience and market our brand well,” he says. The fact that there have been many people from across the country who liked the concept and shared it further to their friends meant, a brand that might not be known to some immediately caught the attention. Now, Kapoor believes whenever they will visit Delhi, they would like to explore QBA.

Creating an Identity

Established in 2004, QBA has its own following. Yet, the strive to add on more people day after day is a lure that made it come with its facebook page which now has over 8,000 followers. “I keep a track of the developments on the page, add new things that are taking place or are being planned at our outlets, or share experiences and so on.

The immediate connect with people has been a learning experience for us. Based on the quality of response and participation, we further respond to the query made or suggestion offered,” informs Kapoor. The live conversation with users of the QBA outlets page had used instant teasers on FB. “Here, users would participate in the contest as we were announcing the winners there and then. Also, users were excited and were willing to participate in the contest,” he adds further.

“There are even instances where some other pubs have copied our concepts in terms of design and language,” Kapoor says. “We have objected in writing, but they are not willing to pay heed.

Somehow facebook doesn’t have any clause related to someone copying other’s creative approach on the networking portal. Even associations representing restaurants don’t have a provision to handle such cases,.” he continues.

Rachit Kapoor

Nonetheless, the group is upbeat about the campaign ‘Tag Like Share’. “We have received positive feedback on the campaign and for the first time, we realised how much we can achieve through this approach by connecting to those who have might not heard about us yet,” sums up Kapoor.

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Etcetera

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Honouring travel trade excellence

L

ast month, Taj Group organised the Taj Travel Awards to applaud, reward and celebrate the excellence of its travel trade partners at Taj Palace, New Delhi.

The award ceremony, initiated in 2010, is aimed at recognising the Destination Management Consultants for their significant contribution to the Taj Group and their support to promote Taj hotels in India.

The Taj Travel Awards is the only award ceremony initiated by a hotel group to acknowledge and felicitate the trade officials for their support and contribution. The event drew prominent trade officials from across the city to enjoy a splendid evening together. It was hosted by Deepa Misra Harris, Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Taj Group. The evening showcased entertaining performances put together by the renowned singer, composer, actress, Manasi Scott, who enthralled the audience by performing her latest singles. This was followed by a brilliant performance by India’s famous classical Sufi singer Zila Khan. The celebrity band, The Other People from Mumbai also performed during the evening. R H Khwaja, Secretary General, Ministry of Tourism, graced the occasion as the chief guest.

Kuoni India

Banyan Tours

Speaking on the occasion, Harris said, “The endless efforts of our trade partners and their dedicated commitment to the brand has unstintingly supported our efforts in positioning India as a preferred destination amongst an audience looking for service delivered in Designer Holidays the renowned Taj style. This evening is a platform to express our gratitude for their relentless support.�

Few eminent trade partners who walked away with the honours were Vikram Madhok from Abercrombie & Kent, Jamshyd Sethna from Banyan Tours, Sarvin Warden and Samir Uberoi from Designer Holidays, Arjun Sharma from Le Passage to India and Dipak Deva from Kuoni India.

Abercrombie & Kent

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Le Passage to Ind ia

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within the hospitality trade Rahul Verma

Atal Saran Bhargava

General Manager Nidra New Delhi

Director - Sales & Marketing Radisson Blu Hotel Jaipur Airport

Vandana Dutta Director – Business Development The Claridges New Delhi

Vandana Dutta has been appointed as Director – Business Development for The Claridges, New Delhi. She has over 12 years of experience in Hotel Sales. She was working as Director of Sales for the hotel for the past three years.

i Rahul Verma has been appointed as the General Manager of Nidra, New Delhi. Until recently, he was working as an Associate Consultant with Hotelconsult.

i

Verma has spent 30 years with an array of hospitality brands pan India. A graduate from Lucknow University, he has a Diploma in Hotel Management from DIMS, New Delhi and a degree in Hotel Management from MDI (Management Development Institute), New Delhi.

Verma started his career with Welcomegroup’s Maurya Sheraton, New Delhi. He worked with brands such as Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza and Le Meridien.

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Radisson Blu Hotel Jaipur Airport has appointed Atal Saran Bhargava as the Director of Sales & Marketing. An alumnus of IHM Mumbai 1994 batch, Bhargava has an experience of over 17 years, 14 years in the hospitality industry and 4 years in Telecom postpaid business.

His experience ranges from Corporates, FIT, MICE, Travel Trade to online business.

Prior to Radisson Blu Hotel Jaipur Airport, he worked with Ramada Jaipur, Sarovar Hotels, Mansingh Group of Hotels and Reliance Communications Ltd.

i

His new role will include planning and strategising the marketing plans for the hotel, directing all sales and marketing efforts towards achieving the operational goals of the hotel.

In her new role, Dutta will be responsible for all sales and marketing activities, along with responsibility of brand management and positioning of the company as a boutique hotel. She will also be responsible for generating revenues for further business, strategic efforts and leverage the presence of global partnership to drive more commerce.

She has been associated with properties like Radisson Blu Mahipalpur and Le Meridien.

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Rimi Dutta

Rejin Thomas

Chandrayi Basuthakur

Country Head-Sales WelcomHeritage Hotels

Director of Sales Courtyard by Marriott Chennai

Director of Sales The Claridges Surajkund Delhi NCR

WelcomHeritage Hotels announced the appointment of Rimi Dutta as Country Head-Sales. In her new role, she will be responsible for sales and creating awareness for the brand.

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Rejin Thomas is now the Director of Sales of the Courtyard by Marriot, Chennai. He started his career with The Leela Palaces Hotels & Resorts as a sales account manager and as the associate head of Sales at the Hyderabad Regional Office. He was part of the group for five years. This was followed by a successful stint as the Director of Sales for Hyderabad Marriott Hotel and Convention Centre/ Courtyard by Marriott, Hyderabad.

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Rimi has nine years of experience in the hospitality industry. She pursued her MBA from Indian Institute of Tourism & Travel Management, Gwalior. Prior to her present venture, she was associated with Swissotel Hotels and Resort. She has also worked with Ananda in the Himalayas, Ramada and The Leela.

He will now be responsible for revenue generation for the hotel, take charge of the rooms and banquets and also take care of the reservation covers for the day.

Chandrayi Basuthakur has recently been appointed as the Director of Sales of The Claridges, Surajkund, Delhi NCR. She brings with her 15 years experience in the hospitality sector.

Basuthakur formerly held positions at the Taj Group of Hotels as well as Oberoi Hotels.

In her new role, she is supposed to expand the business of the property, while ensuring superior client service. She will manage all core sales operations along with its policies and strategies.

Ashley James

Michael W Schauss

Front Office Manager Courtyard by Marriott Chennai

Executive Chef Pullman Gurgaon Central Park

Ashley James has joined the Courtyard

by Marriott, Chennai, as Front Office Manager. He brings with him a rich and varied experience of having worked with eminent brands like The Oberoi, Trident Cochin and Jaipur, Rajvilas, Convergys India Limited, Manipal Healthcare and Ista hotels.

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A graduate from Bangalore University, James started his career with the Oberoi Bangalore and was with the property for 10 years. Later, he had a successful stint at the Ista hotel properties in Bengaluru, Amritsar and Pune.

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Michael W Schauss has joined Pullman Gurgaon Central Park as Executive Chef.

With a career spanning over 32 years, Schauss brings with him a vast and valuable knowledge from countries across the world. His previous assignments include Kempinski Hotels in Dalian and Amman, Swiss么tel Grand Efes, Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts and the Semiramis Intercontinental, Cairo.

Graduating as Master of Culinary Art in Germany and Master in Hotel Management from Cornell University, USA, Schauss has held a number of F&B positions in the past. In his current position, Schauss will be responsible for overall culinary operations.

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HIHT organises job fair Recently, the Heritage Institute of Hotel & Tourism (HIHT) at the Heritage Knowledge City, Agra, organised a ‘Heritage Hospitality Job Fair’ at its Bamroli Katara Campus. The fair was inaugurated by Rajiv Narayan, Senior Vice President of Jaypee Palace and Prabhanshu Kumar, ADM, Civil Supply, Agra.

Big hospitality chains like the Carlson Worldwide, Trident, Oberoi’s, The Taj, Specialty Restaurant, Starwoods, Devi Resorts, Oceans Spray, Royal Orchid, Jaypee Group of Hotels, etc., participated in the job fair. Students from all corners of India came forward to seek jobs from mid managerial level to management trainee level. In this Job fair, over 900 students participated out of which around 700 were either selected or short-listed by visiting hotels.

Kanha Earth Lodge awarded Kanha Earth Lodge from the Pugdundee Safaris group was recently awarded the ‘Best Eco-Friendly Lodge Award’.

Organised by the MP Eco Tourism Board, formed to promote responsible travel and holidays in the state, the award was presented by the honourable minister of forest of Madhya Pradesh.

Kanha Earth Lodge was selected after site visits and a complete audit with five main parameters and over 100 sub inclusions. The objective of the award is to encourage lodges to become more eco-friendly and make MP a popular destination for eco-tourism.

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Mewar food festival Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel recently hosted the Maharana of Udaipur, Arvind Singhji Mewar. He was the Guest of Honour at the Mewar Food Festival organised by Chef Surjan Singh Jolly, the Executive Chef of Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel at Nawab Saheb, the Indian restaurant of the hotel on July 21, 2012. The special dinner was organised to honour the Maharana who trained Jolly in Mewari food when the Chef visited Shiv Niwas Palace HRH Group hotels at The City Palace Complex, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India. The royal event saw the presence of actor Rahul Bose and Saeid Heidari - the GM of Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel.

Jolly expressed his joy post the dinner by saying, “It was an honour for me to learn the royal cuisine by Maharana’s Rasoddar.

The aim behind starting this food promotion at the hotel was to make sure my guests get to experience the culinary marvels of Rajasthan. I hope to explore more regions of not just India but the world and serve the varied dishes to my guests.” Maharana expressed his pleasure by saying, “I am extremely pleased with the way The Mewar Food Festival has turned up. It was a delight to get to know Chef Surjan Singh Jolly and pass on the expertise of the House of Mewar. The presentation of the delicacies of Mewar has very elegantly and rightly captured the robust flavours of Mewari food.”

Chilean wine ‘Valdevieso’ in India Agnetta International, India-based alcoholic beverages brand, announced the launch of the world famous Valdevieso wines in India. Honorable Christian Barros, the Ambassador of Chile, launched the wines along with Puneet Ralhan, COO, Agnetta International, in a glittering ceremony at The Leela on 20th July, 2012.

The varied array of wines which were launched includes Valdivieso Single Vineyard Malbec 2008, Valdivieso Pinot Noir Reserva 2011, Valdivieso Chardonnay 2011, Valdivieso Merlot 2011, Valdivieso Souvignon Blanc 2011 and Valdivieso Blanc De Blanc.

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‘Delhi Bazaar Craft House’ opens at T3 of IGI Airport Craft House, the luxury lifestyle store, has unveiled ‘Delhi Bazaar Craft House’ – the exclusive Indian store concept at Delhi’s International Departure T3 airport. The state-of-theart integrated International Departure T3 at Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) is the second largest terminal in Asia and a new landmark for India.

With ‘Delhi Bazaar’ as its central theme, the 4000 sq feet store showcases the best merchandise India has to offer to the world travellers transiting through T3. The Delhi Bazaar Craft House is tagged as the biggest Indian profile store at the airport. It is the only uni-brand store in the terminal to showcase premium merchandise manufactured and produced in India, displayed in a hassle-free ambience appealing to foreign as well as Indian clientele.

Pullman Gurgaon Central Park introduces Mandara Spa In July 2012, Pullman Gurgaon Central Park opened its doors for Mandara Spa. Featuring five treatment rooms, including a double spa suite with en-suite bath and steam shower, and a tranquil relaxation lounge to unwind, it blends traditional Asian treatments with a range of sophisticated beauty treatments in a contemporary setting.

Mandara Spa’s soft opening menu features signature body and face treatments with Mandara products and spa packages offering a combination of massages, traditional body scrubs, herbal steam and facial using fresh ingredients prepared daily. The Spa is supported by a distinguished service style offered through a team of dedicated spa professionals from Bali and India. Jeff Matthews, President and Chief Operating Officer of Mandara Spa Asia Limited, said, “We are very excited with our first introduction of Mandara Spa with the esteemed Pullman Hotels and Resorts. I am sure this will become a successful Spa, unique in ambiance and enhanced by the distinctive Mandara Spa experience.”

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Convenience with ‘Rasoi Magic’ MTR Foods has announced the national launch of the ‘Rasoi Magic’ brand of meal mixes. Rasoi Magic is a market leader in western India in the meal mixes segment. Rasoi Magic meal mixes are in a powder format and one has to just add them in vegetables, paneer, milk, etc. They are available for Paneer Butter Masala, Paneer Makhanwalla and Methi Mutter Malai. The range consists of 21 regular dishes and nine ‘No Onion No Garlic’ products. A pack of Rasoi Magic serves four and is priced between Rs 36 to Rs 42.

Munch on Almonds The maker of the popular Wonderful Pistachios has announced two new additions to its product portfolio in India - viz.

Wonderful Almonds Salt and Pepper and Wonderful Almonds Natural Raw. Grown and harvested in California, these Wonderful Almonds are available in three varieties: Roasted & Salted, Salt & Pepper and Natural Raw. A handful of Wonderful Almonds contain just 160 calories, 6 grams of protein and 3 grams of fiber, making it a satisfying snack and Contrary to the popular belief that nuts generate heat during summers, nutritionists recommend year-round consumption of pistachios and almonds.

Beer brewed with Indian spices SABMiller India recently launched ‘Indus Pride’, the first Indian beer brewed with Indian spices. Targeted to the socially versatile, discerning urban men and women, it is claimed to be the world’s first beer brewed to be the perfect pairing with an Indian gourmet cuisine.

Indus Pride comes in four variants: Citrusy Coriander - a twist of aromatic coriander spice balanced with zesty citrus; Citrusy Cardamom - a dash of floral, highly aromatic cardamom spice balanced with a hint of citrusy cooling; Spicy Fennel - a complex blend of tangy woody spices with a fresh anise burst; and Fiery Cinnamon - a complex blend of piquant cinnamon with velvety orange notes. It has been priced at Rs 85 for a 330 ml bottle.

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Energy-saving wall lamps with spotlights Vighnaharta Security, a part of Realty Automation & Security Systems Pvt. Ltd., has introduced yet another useful product to save energy. LS 68 is specially designed for museums and marketing displays to save energy. It has a timer adjustment from 5 sec - 7 minutes. The product has an adjustable detection distance, switches on lights on motion near display, keeps lights on till the motion is detected, adjustable time delay and turns off the lights after the set time or after motion stops. Also, it automatically switches ON in the evening and switch OFF at the dawn. For more details, visit www.vighnaharta.in

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Hush Ultra Absorbent Mattress Protector The Hush Ultra Absorbent Mattress Protector is made up of comfortable ultra-absorbent cotton backed with waterproof PU Coating. This high-tech product is breathable, yet will not allow for any seepage onto the mattress thus prolonging the life of mattress.

It not only ensures good hygiene and long lasting freshness of the mattress, but also blocks dust mites and other allergens. The product is machine washable (100 washes) and is available in a drop fitted option in various standard sizes.

Fine bone china crockery Jaipur based Clay Craft, one of the leading fine bone china crockery manufacturers in India, has recently launched an exclusive range of platter, chip and dip set. Such innovative accessories are highly appreciated by India’s leading five star hotel groups and are very useful especially for their continental and oriental cuisines.

Also, it has launched new shapes of plates, which have been much in demand by hotels, restaurants and caterers. The products offer innovative shapes and high quality. At Clay Craft, we regularly notice the trend of the market, national and international, and demand of the clients like big hotel groups, caterers and restaurants. The company customises the products according to clients’ requirements.

ISG eSolutions ISG, provider of customised ERP solutions for hotels and restaurants, has come up with InnClub - a modern, more convenient alternative to conventional desktop based Club ERP software. InnClub is a comprehensive management solution for clubs, which offers complete member management integrated with billing and reports system. It keeps track of memberships, automate notices and announcements as well as all services offered by your Club. Advantages - InnClub is a custom-built software that has been tried and tested successfully. Today, it has evolved into a web-based solution that integrates with existing infrastructure as well as has low cost requirements to upscale the system. some of the advantages are having a Universal Access Key, quick deployment, centralised installation, easy maintenance and upgradeability, single database, configurable, consistent GUI and intuitive.

Bonita’s new ironing experience

Under Casa Brands, Bonita – known for its organising, laundry and storage products for home segment in India, has launched a new age table top ironing board, called ‘Mini’. It is a compact and portable ironing board which provides easy storage facility. Having anti-skid feet and metal mesh for steam penetration, its thick polyester padding provides firmer ironing surface. This light weight ironing board is priced at Rs 795. It is available through selected dealer network all over India and is also available online.

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RNI No. DELENG/2000/1230 Posting Date 15-21/08-2011 Postal Reg. No. DL-(C)-01/1294/2012-2014 at MBC-1 Date of Publication 12-08-2012