Hotels

Collaborating for growth

Anil Madhok MD Sarovar Hotels & Resorts

Since its inception a little over a decade ago, Sarovar Hotels & Resorts has successfully managed to cater to a growing mid-market hotel segment. Anil Madhok, its MD and the man at the helm of the organisation, subscribes to a simple philosophy - superior hospitality at excellent value

Its properties vary by type, size and market but a constant is that all provide an international hospitality experience at competitive prices. Sarovar Park Plaza Hotels & Resorts is affiliated with Carlson Hospitality worldwide and this makes it the master franchiser for the Park Plaza and Park Inn hotel brands in India.

Says a nostalgic Anil Madhok, "The past decade has seen us expand our brand and the decision to tap smaller towns and cities has worked in our favour. Today, our brand has its presence across the length and breadth of the country."

The game plan

"Our mission is to be able to provide guests with superior hospitality at excellent value and our property owners with the highest possible returns while focussing on our own expansion and being absolutely transparent in our dealings," says Madhok.

In addition, the company is also looking at a strong focus on the proverbial bottomline, continued development of staff and an intricate understanding of the needs of the Indian market. "We are counting on our customers to catapult the company to the top," he adds.

The company firmly believes that mutual respect, long-term partnerships and strong ethics are essential to achieve ultimate success. It operates using the principle that states 'collaboration is the key to mutual success and growth'. "We want to standardise the Sarovar hospitality experience across the country. There is a constant endeavour to evolve into a progressive organisation that extends equal opportunities for growth to all its employees and partners by providing them with continuous training and counselling," expresses Madhok.

On the horizon

As part of its expansion plans, the group is looking at smaller towns and cities. The group recently raised Rs 38 crore from two global private equity funds to partly finance its new budget hotel brand, Hometel. Bessemer Venture Partners Trust (an affiliate of Bessemer Venture Partners) and New Vernon Private Equity have made equal investments in the project.

Madhok explains, "We are in the process of introducing an all-new no-frills brand christened Hometel. The flagship property will be in Bangalore. These will be basic hotels providing total value for money options for business travellers."

Commenting further on the group's expansion plans, Madhok reiterates that currently the group will focus on the domestic market as there is tremendous untapped potential. "We are not looking at going international, at least for the next three years. In fact, we are planning to create an all-new domestic brand, especially for the Indian market and for cities and towns that may not require an international name and branding. The new domestic brands would be called Sarovar Plaza and Sarovar Inn," he says.

Being a predominantly management company, it is actively looking at owning properties as well as leasing, though nothing has been formulated yet. He adds that this is at a time when most companies are opting for management contracts rather than ownership.

It has also tied up with Sri Lanka-based Sanctuary Spa to manage and operate its spa at the Poovar Island Resort in Kerala. Sanctuary will operate the aromatherapy part of Sarovar's spa. With an area of 20,000 sq feet, this would be Sarovar group's biggest spa.

Keeping in step with the evolution of IT in hospitality, the group has updated its technology to stay at par with hotels globally. Sarovar was the first hotel chain to offer prepaid Wi-Fi service, which includes a roaming feature across all its hotels offering this service. All back-of-the-house functioning has also evolved and now inventory control, human resource, payroll and accounting are all maintained via a custom-made software. The sales and marketing department has a new tool in the form of MIS software, once again custom-made in collaboration with IDS for the group.

Madhok believes…

Over the years, the mid-market segment in India has been evolving rapidly and leading Indian hotels and international companies have been eager to introduce their prominent budget brands to the Indian market. "There is much scope for international hospitality professionals to set up shop in India because there is still a dearth of luxury hotels and quality budget hotels in the country. At the rate the economy is growing, there would be far greater demand and scope for budget hotels in the near future, as both inbound tourists and corporate traveller figures increase," expresses Madhok.

Elaborating on yet another trend gaining prominence within the Indian hospitality industry, Madhok states, "Most hotel companies have taken the management and franchise route with a few opting for complete ownership. It is not possible to expand one's portfolio extensively without taking the management and franchise route."