India has seen a steady growth for demand in luxury consciousness according to Robert Gaymer-Jones, global chief executive of Sofitel Luxury Hotels, “Today Indians are ready to check-into luxury hotels though the market is said to largely favour budget and mid-scale hotels. India is a versatile market and the Indian hospitality industry is projected to grow at a rate of 8.8 per cent during the decade of 2007-16, placing India as the second fastest growing tourism market in the world. Many brands in the luxury segment have entered India in the past 3-4 years. Thus, we see a strong role for our premium brand in this country,” he said.
The global luxury brand built the first property in Mumbai, Sofitel in Bandra Kurla Complex and Jones believes that the time to enter the Indian market was perfect, “We aim to have hotels in Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai and Goa in the coming years. Moving ahead, we also plan to give our So label a boost in the region.” The group also has plans to open two new hotels in India by 2015 – Sofitel Mumbai Mulund and Sofitel So Mumbai Mulund.
Jones believes that Sofitel is positioned, it mainly for business and some high-end leisure travel for weddings and family events. “Like any emerging market in the world, India and Indians are discovering luxury in terms of travel and hotels. The number of business class travellers is growing rapidly. We also are very well aware of the ‘Great Fat Indian Wedding’; this particular segment is proving to be beneficial to us.”
Commenting on the current hospitality industry in India, Jones said, “In 2013, the Indian economy might be showing signs of slowing down its pace of growth while other economies are starting their recoveries from the financial crisis mentioned earlier. The nature of the hotel business demands long-term gestation for construction of hotels in India and so, while we may start building a luxury hotel today, it will only open after 3-5 years and the business cycle will have moved dramatically from when we started construction,” he said adding that India is truly an opportunity that Sofitel cannot ignore as a long-term investment destination. “A robust domestic demand coupled with a young population with very low penetration of long-distance travel options makes India a developing market that is unparalleled in the world today.”
