Indian hotel chain ITC-Welcomgroup plans to double its room inventory over the next three years with an investment of INR9,000 crore.
Mr Nakul Anand, Executive Director of ITC, said; “We are pursuing an aggressive investment-led growth strategy, and are adding large properties to our portfolio of super luxury hotels.”
The group will focus on developing super premium hotels, though investment will be spread across all four market categories: luxury, business class, budget and heritage.
ITC will open two luxury hotels in the short-run. A 600-room hotel in Chennai and a 400-room hotel in Kolkata will be the next additions to the ITC portfolio.
Anand told Business Line; “When we talk about growth, we are not talking in terms of one or two brands here and there. It will be our full portfolio, across all segments.
That is what we believe is required to successfully deliver on our ambition and goal to achieve competitive growth.”
The Group currently has nearly 8,000 rooms at 100 properties in 80 cities across India.
The new development plans will see the proliferation of its four brands as the company portfolio rises to 150 properties within a few years.
Development is already underway at a furious pace, with 40 fully-owned and ITC-managed properties currently in the development stages. “In the premium segment alone, we have four hotels under construction and another six to seven hotels on the drawing board,” said Mr Anand. That said, ITC foresees considerable growth in the business travel market, while the leisure market is “yet to show positive signs”.
Nonetheless, there is no shortage of demand and Anand maintains the Indian hotel market is still grossly underserved.
Comments are closed.