The Leading Hotels of the World (LHW) India office recently hosted the ‘2014 India Showcase’ in Mumbai and in New Delhi at The Taj Mahal Hotel. The annual event showcases the LHW brand and its member hotels to the luxury intermediaries in the Indian market place. “The sole aim of organising this showcase is to introduce our travel trade partners to the LHW members. Over the years the Indian market has shown significant growth. We have registered 30 per cent growth in terms of business from India to member hotels in 2013 compared with the previous year,” Sowmyaragavan T E, Director – India, The Leading Hotels of the World (LHW) said.
He further opined that despite slowdown in overall outbound travel from India, the company has been able to drive growth from the India market.
The B2B exchange, served as platform for one on one meeting with the luxury agents and the participating member hotels. Highlighting the USP of the showcase, Sowmyaragavan shared, “The Showcase is the most important customer event hosted by The Leading Hotels of the World in India. They provide excellent exposure for our members and are effective forums for strengthening client relationships. Hoteliers participating in the India Showcase Program make the most of the opportunity by forging business ties with the trade in Mumbai and New Delhi. Our objective is to ensure the attendance of high-caliber clients who are directly responsible for managing corporate, group, leisure and business travel.”
Talking about their marketing strategy in promoting the LHW members, Sowmyaragavan stated that, since its inception in India four years ago, the market has shown tremendous potential and to feed on this potential LHW will continue to maintain a strong dialogue with their trade partners here in India. “We have set up offices in India and we plan to expand more into other metro cities. A stronger approach is what we need to reach out to clients from tier II markets. Apart from our annual showcase we regularly send out fliers, newsletters, etc out in the market. We connect regularly with the trade by updating them with various offers and packages our members put on display,” he added.
The nine-member delegation that visited India comprised of Capella Hotel Singapore, The Dolder Grand, Zürich, Fairmont Le Montreux Palace, Switzerland, D-Hotel Maris, Turkey, The Landmark London, Lotte Hotel Moscow, Russia, Hotel de Paris Monte-Carlo, Monaco, Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo, Baglioni Hotels Spa and Roccoa Forte Hotels. The Showcase presented a bouquet of luxury hotels from the LHW’s collection including the ones in Asia Pacific and Europe, and highlighted their one-of-a-kind experiences to the Indian trade partners and media.
