Besides Ranthambore, the chain will also launch seven hotels next year in locations such as Tirupati, Goa, Mashobra, Kanha Tiger Reserve and one in the Himalayas, Kapil Chopra told ET during an interview.
“We are profitable at a company level. We have institutional funds working with us. I think we are building the next level of global hospitality out of India,” said Chopra. Last year, on a conservative basis, it had Rs 1,563 crore of hotel assets under management, he added.
“Our assets under management this year have crossed Rs 2,672 crore. In the next three years, our aim is to have $1 billion (about Rs 8,300 crore) worth of assets under management on the books for 20 years. That makes us a very serious global player in the business,” he said.
Architect Luca Franco, founder and CEO of Luxury Frontiers that designs resorts, will make his India debut with the hotel at Ranthambore, known for its national park with a large population of tigers and safaris.
Each room will be of about 1,950 square feet and all 14 rooms will have private heated pools.“For the next seven years, every quarter, a new Postcard hotel will open. And there’s a reason for that. There should be new options for customers, so every quarter has a new opening for guests to explore. Our ambition is to build the world’s foremost global luxury hotel company,” said Chopra, a former president of the Oberoi Group.The company is scheduled to open Assam’s first luxury hotel in a tea estate in December this year.
“The government has given a Rs 2 crore subsidy and a reduced interest loan to the owners who are opening the hotel with us in the Durrung Tea Estate,” said Chopra.
He said a luxury hotel in Tirupati would also be a first for that market.
“Tirupati gets 100,000 tourists a day and has only 300 branded hotel rooms. Every day, they sell tatkal tickets. And 1,000 tickets are sold every day at Rs 10,000 a person,” said Chopra.
“If a family of four is going to pay Rs 40,000 to see lord Balaji in two hours through the VIP line, they deserve a great place to stay and not a mediocre hotel. People go to Rome and visit the Vatican but have great world class hotels to stay in,” he added.
He said the last luxury hospitality brand built in the country was Leela Hotels and that was 30 years ago.
“There has been no other luxury hotel brand built in this country since then. So, now we are taking over and are saying okay, we will build. When we started out, our point was that we needed to be very disruptive, not in the way we structure our company, but also in the way we offer services,” he said.
“So, we started with ultra-luxury hotels that have no check-in check-out timings and no breakfast timings. There are welcome cocktails whenever you walk into the hotel. People always thought alcohol was expensive. So, we tried to dispel all the myths people have with hotels and created a very customer-first brand,” he added.
He said the Postcard Hotel is the most expensive hotel brand in the country.
“Our blended average room rate was Rs 28,312 for last year, taking an all year round figure into account. Our brand standard is to build hotels with at least 800 sq ft rooms. Ranthambore is 1,950, Kanha would be 1,100 sq ft,” he said.
“In most of our contracts, we go for very strong revenue share agreements where all major costs are ours. So, we have a huge skin in the game. 90% of our portfolio will be revenue-share agreements, and 10% will be management contracts,” he added.
Despite the sector’s performance, Chopra thinks the Indian hospitality space is in its “most challenging period” ever. “Decades ago, India was not a top economy or a global superpower, but two people had the foresight to say we will build the world’s best hotels. They were Mr PRS Oberoi and Captain CP Krishnan Nair,” he said, adding: “Today, India is a global economic superpower, the country is doing phenomenally well, but who is building the world’s best hotels?”
