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FOCUSING ON CUSTOMER FEEDBACK IS GREATEST DIFFERENTIATOR

A N A N D C H A T T E R J E E

B y A d i t i M a l h o t r a I m a g e s b y A r m a a n M a l h o t r a

Anand Chatterjee, a well-known name in Goa ’ s hospitality industry started his journey in this industry at the Hotel Management College in Calcutta and did his management training at TGI Friday ’ s and ITC Hotels. Before joining the JMJ group which is a parenting concern of Planet Hollywood he had the longest stint with the Oberoi Hotels at various locations in India. Today Mr Chatterjee is heading the Hospitality section of the JMJ group by managing major properties in Goa and also soon to be launched properties across the country. Here are excerpts of the interview with Mr Anand Chatterjee.

Can you give us a glimpse of your professional journey and how it has influenced your career in hospitality? My career in hospitality started in Calcutta, at the Hotel Management College. After college, I worked at TGI Friday ’ s temporarily, and then I joined ITC as a management trainee. After finishing my tenure as a trainee, I worked with ITC hotels for a couple of years and then got an opportunity with Oberoi Hotels, where I spent the longest period of my career with various Oberoi Hotels. I then got an exciting project offer from the JMJ Group / Viiking Ventures with Mr. Sachiin Joshi and Mr. J. M. Joshi to build and develop the Planet Hollywood Beach Resort, Goa and following that we are also developing another hotel, called Planet Hollywood Thane City. We already have a running hotel at Powai Hiranandani Estate called The Beatle. There are two hotels under construction, one in Delhi and one in Jaipur. And we are also getting into manoeuvring contracts with various hotels. So that’ s my journey in hospitality so far. Planet Hollywood brand is the only property in India in Goa and it’ s a model based on its parent property in Las Vegas what similarities do you see in both and how Goa ’ s property is different? The similarities between the two lie in the decor inspiration and various other amenities. Apart from that, there is not much similarity, because the one in Las Vegas is a casino hotel, whereas the one in Goa is a family destination. In fact, the Goa property has inspired the design of the Planet Hollywood Resorts in Costa Rica and Cancun, which are built on similar models of the Planet Hollywood Beach Resort, Goa.

Your association with planet Hollywood is very long and you have also been instrumental in launching a couple of new properties in Mumbai and Thane please tell us more about the same. Well, the property in Mumbai is not Planet Hollywood, that is The Beatle, which is our four-star boutique hotel brand located at Hiranandani Estate. It has 36 rooms, is extremely busy, and is a very popular hotel. The one in Thane City is also at Hiranandani Estate, a great location, and it’ s the first fivestar hotel in the Thane region. We are looking forward to it, and the entire city is awaiting the opening of Planet Hollywood Thane City. What are your strategies to make this property one of the most sought-after properties in Goa and how successfully have you implemented them? Well, one of our successful strategies includes our prime focus on leisure tourism, both domestic and international. The property and amenities are designed to suit such travellers and provide top-notch hospitality services. Our next priority is MICE, which is meetings, incentives, conferences, conventions, and events. We are a popular destination for all these MICE events. We ensure high standards of food and service quality, and the guest experience is a top priority. Our services and our hotel facilities are excellent and always in prime condition. So, these are a few guestfocused strategies that we have adopted. Apart from that, we are a popular development or grooming ground for young prospective hoteliers from various colleges in Goa. We have been able to attract good talent, so that' s definitely one of our strengths towards the hotel’ s success. Lastly, we ensure that every guest is treated with warmth, honesty, and friendliness and has the best experience to take away. How do you manage to deal with the competition with the other established brands having multiple properties in Goa? Does that affect your business? Well, answering the second question first, it does not affect our business because we ’ ve been extremely good in terms of occupancy as well as the average daily rate. However, yes, we do have competition from other branded hotels, but hospitality guests now know to make an informed decision when it comes to selecting the right place to spend their vacation and money. The decision-making is influenced by two things: the first and foremost is the quality and the feedback of that particular hotel on various websites and the word of mouth. We have focused a lot on that, and I think that’ s been our greatest differentiator. The location of the resort definitely adds to the charm, along with the international level of amenities and services. Planet Hollywood is also known as the top wedding destination in Goa, what do you want to say about this? Planet Hollywood Beach Resort, Goa is invariably a top-notch wedding destination in Goa that suits the big fat Indian wedding perfectly. Weddings are one of the largest revenue streams in Goa for the hospitality industry, second only to MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Events or Exhibitions) and hence they are our top priority. The large size and spread of the Planet Hollywood Goa property easily accommodates the pomp and grandeur of Indian weddings and their many guests. We also pay attention to minute details like the convenience of moving across a large venue,

especially for elderly guests. The verdant surroundings with open blue skies and the proximity to the beach definitely add to the aesthetic value of the dream destination wedding. The Pandemic was the biggest challenge for the hospitality industry in Goa, how did you manage to sail through it? Tell more about your first-hand experience. The pandemic was one of the most challenging phases that the economy had to face, and Planet Hollywood did not escape the gloom either. We didn ’t lay off any of our staff during the pandemic, instead we adjusted the remuneration and working hours according to the needs. We did have days that were not great, but we never had to shut down the hotel completely. Instead, we worked very closely with the State government and transformed the entire hotel into a luxury quarantine facility for travellers returning to Goa during the COVID lockdown period. We worked closely with the state government to provide meals to around 1200–1500 people daily, which included breakfast, lunch, and dinner, during the first lockdown. We did it for over 6 months. We also donated the oxygen concentrator to GMC and provided the entire air-conditioning of the new ward at GMC (Covid Ward). In fact, many of our employees were later felicitated by the Chief Minister of Goa. So, through some tough times, we also had moments that gave us pride and hope. Post Pandemic what are the major challenges you faced and how did you overcome them? Well, we were operational and involved in various projects during the pandemic, and post-pandemic it’ s only been better. Holiday tourism has rebounded strongly, at least in I

ndia, if not in other countries, particularly in Goa. We have been extremely fortunate that we are doing well. What are your future plans in this industry? Speaking about the expansion plans of the Planet Hollywood brand in India under the flagship of Mr. Sachiin Joshi, we are now expanding the Planet Hollywood Base in India by adding a second Planet Hollywood in India/Asia at Hiranandani Estates situated in Thane suburbs in Mumbai, and it will be followed by the hotels in Delhi and Jaipur. Besides the five stars, we have also entered into the 4 star plus segment of hotels with the branding of "Beatle " , which is a boutique property situated in the Hiranandani at Powai. With these two brands and assets, we will have the base of four hotels in the five star plus segment and one hotel in the budget four star plus segment.There are also plans to enter the management sector by taking over the properties in various cities under the brand management of Viiking Ventures. We are also opening up the avenues of management and operations contracts with other keen real estate owners and then perhaps going public. Viiking Ventures will be more of a management company than the asset owners in the future. That is the way forward. We are trying to position ourselves with a strong sales and revenue network. Any message for the upcoming players of the industry? Well, I must say that keep up Goa ’ s name positively on the world tourism map. Be extremely conscious in terms of the environment; that’ s of utmost importance and is one of my personal as well as the company ’ s goals. Be respectful to nature, the environment, and the neighbourhood where you ’ re located. Be respectful to the employees. I' m sure that all the upcoming properties in Goa will do well as Goa has a lot to offer.