The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) on November 19 announced that it has earmarked a capex of ₹5000 crore to double the number of hotel properties to over 700 from its current portfolio of 350 hotels by 2030, the company’s Managing Director and CEO Puneet Chhatwal said on November 19.
The company currently operates several brands under the IHCL umbrella including Taj, Ginger, Vivanta, Taj Sats, Gateway, Qmin, amã Stays & Trails and Tree of Life among others.
According to the company, it will expand its brandscape with the launch of new brands, tapping the heterogeneous market landscape and taking its portfolio to 700 hotels by 2030. It also plans doubling its consolidated revenue to ₹15,000 crores, scaling new and re-imagined businesses.
At present, IHCL has 350 hotels with 232 operational. Under the five year plan, it is taking up the number of hotels to over 700 with more than 500 operational.
“IHCL has surpassed its guidance by achieving a portfolio of 350 hotels, with over 200 hotels in operation and delivered ten consecutive quarters of record financial performance. This strong performance, coupled with a robust balance sheet, positions us well to accelerate our growth momentum,” Chhatwal said.
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“Enabling this vision are long term structural tail winds for the sector including India’s forecasted GDP growth of over 6.5%, government’s continued focus on infrastructure spend, hotel demand outpacing supply and the rising affluence of the consumer base,” Chhatwal added.
The company plans to expand its portfolio internationally but 80% to 90% of its growth will come from India, it said.
It plans to expand its branded residences portfolio for which it had made an announcement earlier this year.
“Under the plan, IHCL will expand its brandscape, deliver industry- leading margins, double its consolidated revenue with a 20% return on capital employed and grow its portfolio to 700+ hotels while building on its world-renowned service ethos,” the company said in a statement on November 19.
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Expansion plans
According to the company, the evolution of the brandscape will be done by launching branded residences, extending the brandscape with newer brands like the addition of The Claridges, an opportunity to grow with a differentiated offering in the luxury segment.
The company said expansion of the portfolio will be in the Indian sub-continent. International presence will be built in global gateway cities with a focus on capital light routes and only with the Taj brand, the company said.
The company will not shy away from increasing its international footprint, especially in cities like Frankfurt (Germany) and London if the right opportunity comes along.
“Reflective of the emerging consumer trends as well as the growth in Tier I and II cities, 75% of our new additions will be driven by the boutique leisure offering of Tree of Life, the re-imagined Gateway brand in the upscale segment, Ginger in the midscale segment,” the company said in a statement.
“There is a lot of action in India and hence company growth will also be in the Indian cub-continent around 90%. We have created 10,000 direct jobs in India over the last four to five years and we plan to continue to add more jobs,” Chhatwal added.
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Responding to a question on foreign tourist inflow, Chhatwal said “Foreign tourists inflow level is still low and is less than pre Covid levels. In a way it is a concern but not a concern because there is domestic demand. It is expected that things will get better.”
