Mall development partners offered complete rent waiver for lockdown period for almost 60% cinemas, says Ajay Bijli, CMD, PVR Ltd

PVR Cinemas, which reported consolidated losses of Rs 184 crore for the July to September quarter of fiscal 2020-21, said that the company is in active discussions with mall developers to negotiate lease rentals and common area maintenance (CAM) charges. This was necessary due to the fact that all of PVR’s 831 screens continued to be non operational during the second quarter of the current fiscal i.e Q2 FY'21.

According to a top company executive, the company’s discussions (on lease rentals and CAM charges) with mall developers have been very successful. “We have been in active engagement with all our development partners for discussion on rent and CAM. So far settlements have been reached for almost 60% of cinemas (with mall developers / partners) offering complete rent waiver for lockdown period and significant discounts on rent post reopening,” said Ajay Bijli, chairman and managing director, PVR Ltd during an earnings call earlier today.

The multiplex chain operator also clarified that discounts on lease rentals and CAM charges, post reopening of cinemas, have been offered by mall developers / partners only till March 31, 2021. It is very likely that PVR management will have to engage in fresh discussion to negotiate lease rentals and CAM after taking into account the market situation at the end of this fiscal.     

 

Furthermore, discussions are on with remaining developers and the company management is expecting to close the negotiations successfully once cinemas are allowed to reopen in states that are yet to give it a go ahead. Towards September end, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had issued unlocked 5.0 guidelines allowing cinemas to reopen from October 15, 2020, onward, with 50% capacity. So far 16 states and Union Territories (UTs) where PVR has presence have permitted cinemas to restart operations.

 

“Of the total 831 PVR screens, 575 plus have received permissions to reopen. We are eagerly awaiting now for the reopening of other states specifically Maharashtra and Telangana so that business can gradually get back to normal. We're taking all possible precautions, so that both our customers and employees feel safe while visiting their favorite PVR cinema,” said Bijli.

On the overall liquidity part, the PVR management is quite confident and is using a judicious mix of debt and equity to meet its capital requirement. In fact, as of October 31, 2020, the company has over Rs 550 crore of liquidity available, which is sufficient to sustain its operation and meet all its obligations. 

In terms of strategies adopted by the multiplex chain operator to woo back patrons to its cinemas, the company management has rolled out several celebrity promotions and offers.

Among some of the measures being adopted to get back cinema goes to its properties include, opportunity for private screenings, film festivals and a fresh new menu to enhance the overall movie watching experience. “Many of our patrons have responded positively and we are fully prepared to give them the same immersive movie viewing experience the way we've done before,” said Bijli.

 

Talking about the company's Q2 FY'21 business performance, Bijli said, the cinema industry continued to remain shut throughout Q2 FY21 and the company’s results reflect the same. “PVR had almost nil revenue during the quarter from the core movie exhibition business and almost 100% revenue decline. The company reported losses in the second driven by the continuing fixed costs,” said Bijli.

On the personnel expenses front, the company management continued with manpower rationalisation measures wherein overall headcount was brought down to 6,241 on September 30, 2020 as against 11,073 on March 31, 2020. The company management doesn't intend to ramp up the headcount till the time the occupancy levels come back to pre-COVID levels and will continue to operate the business with the current employee base. PVR Cinemas also implemented temporary salary cuts of between 25% and 50% across the organisation.

During the first half of fiscal 2020-21, the company incurred one time expenses of Rs 8.6 crore on account of full and final settlement for employees who left the organisation.

Consolidated revenues of quarter ended September 30, 2020, declined almost 89% at Rs 111 crore, as against Rs 979 crore during the corresponding period last year. Consolidated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) loss for the quarter was Rs 14 crore as against a positive ebitda of Rs 324 crore in Q2 FY'20. Consolidated loss, after tax for the quarter stood at Rs 184 crore as compared to a profit of Rs 48 crores during the corresponding period last year.

“After adjusting for impact of Ind AS 116, leases, revenue ebitda and PAT of the company would have been Rs 44 crore and Rs (81) crore and Rs 116 crore respectively,” said Bijli.

The company continued with a strategy of aggressively controlling costs, as well as augment liquidity. With these efforts PVR was able to reduce its fixed costs by over 70% in Q2 FY'21, as compared to Q2 FY'20 excluding rent and CAM charges. Monthly fixed costs, excluding rent and CAM dropped to Rs 24 crore in the quarter as against Rs 86 crore in Q2 FY'20.

(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)

Asian Paints, where is thy heart?

Asian Paints, a Mumbai-headquartered India’s largest multinational paint company, has been known for creating some really humourous television advertisement campaigns (TVCs). I have personally liked and enjoyed watching TVCs from Asia's fourth largest paint company claiming to have a turnover of Rs 202 billion. However, their latest TVC for the Shyne range of paints for interior and exterior walls that I came across a week ago was purely in bad taste to say the least.

Not sure if you have seen it yet? Unfortunately, I'm unable to share the video weblink of the TVC because it’s been removed by the uploader at the time of writing this piece. Am not sure if the advertisement has been taken off air as well. I’d seen it yesterday or the day before while catching up on my daily dose of comedy serials on Sony SAB and &TV. (UPDATE as on August 30, 2020 - The advertisement continues to be showcased in a truncated form on some TV channels and in full on a few others.) I was unable to reach Asian Paints for an official comment on the status of this TVC and their reasoning behind giving this campaign a go ahead. A few memes of this TVC are in circulation as well so do look it up on Google or YouTube for the message this company was painting in the market.

Just to tell you briefly, the TVC basically attempts to create an impression on a small town boy’s friends about the shiny wall paints and that the boy’s family must have loads of money to be able to afford a high quality paint for their house. The discussion veers into undertaking foreign travel for holidays because the boy brags about having loads of money. That’s when destination Singapore comes into play leaving the boy's friends in awe.

The next scene shows the boy’s father entering the house with train tickets in hand, announcing that the family is going to Kolhapur for holiday. The father adds that they will get 'Kolhapuri chappals" for the boy’s friends on their return journey. In a catch 22 situation, the boy is seen making faces expressing disappointment while his friends poke fun at him and call his bluff.

This TVC might seem to be a light-hearted humour to many. But, I’d like to differ on that opinion. And this is purely from the point of view of an Indian citizen and a customer of products manufactured by Asian Paints. I understand there is already a huge uproar on this inappropriate ad campaign from local political parties and consumer groups in Kolhapur.

I can’t blame them either. Just imagine, an Indian MNC downgrading an Indian city/ destination in the minds of young Indians. How does it classify to be a light-hearted humour? If our domestic destinations are going to be looked down upon by such messaging from large Indian MNCs, how do we expect to preserve heritage into the minds of our children, forget instilling a sense of pride.

What’s further appalling is that the advertisement has been conceptualised by none other than Ogilvy India. This agency has, in the past, made some really wonderful and laudable campaigns including “Incredible India”. Additionally, Ogilvy has worked with Madhya Pradesh Tourism, Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) and Gujarat Tourism to name a few on creating their respective tourism campaigns.

Taking these into consideration, I am sure the agency executives are well aware of the hard work that goes in creating a long lasting positive impact for domestic destinations in the minds of the domestic and international travellers alike. And after knowing all this, they come up with something that’s utterly disgusting not only for the people of Kolhapur but the entire nation.

There’s no doubt about Singapore being a world class island city-state and its potential to attract tourists from across the globe. However, as an Indian company we also need to take pride in our heritage and this TVC basically attempts to demean/ degrade a prominent Indian city and a domestic tourist destination. More so because Kolhapur has a rich cultural and historical heritage in addition to being of special religious significance - The Ambabai Temple is one of the Shakti Peethas listed in various puranas of Hinduism. You can read more about the significance of Kolhapur as a tourist destination here.

In a world dominated by digital and social media platforms, a right advertising campaign / message can work wonders for the company and its brands. However, if marketing managers and brand custodians are going to take things for granted the impact will be seen on the company’s goodwill and the consumer connect the brand has established through decades of hard work. Asian Paints, where exactly thy heart is?

(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)

“India has lost a huge opportunity to convert outbound travellers into domestic”

It’s all coming back but not as I’d imagined. While domestic travel is witnessing some activity, it’s still to pick up steam. I think it will happen gradually, feels Himmat Anand, founder, Tree of Life Resorts. In this candid conversation, Anand speaks about the hospitality market scenario as India unlocks in phases, consumer behaviour, present and future business prospects, manpower issues and other challenges surrounding the hospitality, travel and tourism industries. Edited excerpts…

It’s been a little over two months since Tree of Life Resorts opened for business at some locations. How has the journey been so far?

 

Tree of Life Resort & Spa Jaipur was the first one to open and it has taken-off really well. In fact, I’m quite amazed with the market response. Jaipur is a clear indication of the fact that if the source market is closer the resort will do much better. The Jaipur resort continues to clock between 65% and 68% occupancy levels at very good average room rates (ARRs).

 

We opened the Tree of Life Vantara Resort, Udaipur on July 1, 2020 followed by Tree of Life Kipling Jungle Lodge, Ranthambore on August 1, 2020. It’s taking time for business to pick up at these locations. We are doing around 20% occupancy which is alright given the current market scenario.

What hasn’t worked for the Udaipur market?

For Udaipur, Gujarat is the main source market. We were expecting the Gujarat market to respond quickly but that hasn’t happened as people are still very cautious about travelling. Mumbai is another good source market for Udaipur however, the coronavirus pandemic situation is quite dramatic in the commercial capital right now and people are still apprehensive about travelling.

 

You were among the few hoteliers to announce an opening date well before the unlock process started. What made you take that decision? How has it panned out finally?

 

We took the call to open our resorts in May 2020. That’s because businesses have to open and there is no such thing as ‘the right time to open’. You can either keep waiting or take the plunge and chalk out your own destiny. Yes, we were among the first ones to open for business and the decision was based on certain calculations like the lockdown will start to ease out starting June first week. Our assumption was that Punjabi households of the National Capital Region (NCR) will definitely head out for a short vacation with family. That’s something I was banking on in addition to the Gujarati households who’d venture out, for obvious reasons, after being confined in their houses for an extended period.

 

While the assumptions did work for the Jaipur market it didn’t pan out in the way we imagined for Udaipur. We were to open Jaipur resort on the June 19, 2020 weekend. But we’d already received booking from June 15, 2020 onwards as a result we opened for business before the targeted date. The guest profile was 100% domestic leisure travellers mostly from NCR-Gurugram.

 

While business gradually picked up in June, we closed July with 68% occupancy and an ARR of Rs 10,800 for Tree of Life Jaipur. The numbers were way better than what we’d done in July 2019 wherein the occupancy levels were between 45% and 50% at ARRs of about Rs 8,000. On a year on year basis, ARRs were higher by 30% to 35% while occupancy levels were up 36% over the same period last year.

 

We’ve done phenomenally well during July this year in Jaipur resort and August numbers are looking equally encouraging. What’s surprised me the most is that the luxury pool villas selling at Rs 14,000 a night (including breakfast) were the first ones that got sold out. In fact, even today, there are little chances of a guest getting a luxury pool villa unless pre-booked well in time.

 

Are travellers booking directly or coming from other trade channels?

 

Most of them are direct followed by bookings through the online travel agencies (OTAs). What also worked for us is that during the lockdown period, we aggressively used the social/ digital media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin to ensure top of the mind recall for brand Tree of Life resorts across locations.

 

Every day there was some or the other activity planned on these platforms and we were approaching the business as if our hotels are still running. This not only ensured visibility/ recall but also helped us stay connected with the market. Our social media connect was very strong and the strategy has paid off well. So, when the unlock happened bookings began flowing in from the very next day we opened for business.

We also went with aggressive pricing on the OTAs. We started with heavy discounts to the tune of up to 50% in June, brought it down to 40% in July and cut down further to about 30% in August. I think by October the overall discounts will be down to the normal 10% to 15% levels.

The customary annual price hikes starting October will be a strict no-no in that case?

Beggars can’t be choosers so we’ll have to accept whatever best room rates we can get from the market. All is good as long as the hotel is able to meet its expenses and pay salaries to employees. Fortunately, we don’t have the burden of interest payments to banks. The loans on our books are internal as we are still a family owned company. So I don’t really have a bank sitting on my head every month seeking interest payouts.

 

There are talks about 40% to 50% of hotels going out of business owing to financial stress.

 

That’s indeed going to happen. In our case, while we have a loan to pay back, we are very fortunate that if I can’t pay today I have the flexibility to pay it later. There is no pressure on my business and we can breathe easy in the current financially stressed market conditions. That doesn’t mean we are taking advantage of the situation, loans will be paid back and there are no two ways about it. Having a breather for the next six months is a big advantage. I will be able to restructure the debt and pay it back thereafter. I think that's a huge positive for our company.

 

Why in your view are people still averse to travelling/ holidaying?

The overall scare in people’s mind about travelling, in my view, is mainly due to the continuous hammering across media outlets about the number of people infected by the coronavirus. I think India is way better off than most nations given the size of population. However, the media hype has put a spanner and delayed revival of the domestic travel market.

 

Secondly, there is a huge outbound market comprising 20 million Indians who travel overseas. However, due to lower number of operational flights these travellers are unable to pursue international travel. My assumption is that nearly 3 million people would travel during the July to December months.

What’s the hurdle in tapping this huge market of outbound travellers?

 

I’d thought that the outbound tour operators will actually tap this captive market and convert them into domestic travellers. That hasn’t happened because the outbound tour operators have not been as proactive on that front as they could have been. Inbound tour operators catering to international travellers are anyway stuck and can hardly do anything in the domestic travel segment given its peculiarity and the need for client relationships.

 

I think India has lost a huge opportunity in activating and converting outbound travellers into domestic travel. However, there is still time because I don’t see the frequency of international flights happening till November first week or so. We still have two to three months in hand and the outbound tour operators need to wake up to this opportunity.

 

How are guests responding to all the safety and hygiene practices being showcased by hotel companies?

The hotel industry has got egg on its face as far as health, hygiene and safety matters are concerned from a customer’s point of view. I think industry players have overhyped the situation demonstrating a plethora of practices and whatnot. But let me tell you, the customer isn’t really interested in these cosmetics. All that the guests are looking for is basic hygiene including the standard guest onboarding procedures being prescribed by the regulator.

 

By creating all the hype about hygiene practices, the hotel industry has actually scared away potential guests.

 

Hotels have anyway been practicing the highest standards of hygiene and cleanliness irrespective of COVID-19 pandemic situation. There was confidence already built in the guests’ minds about the hotel industry’s focus on hygiene and cleanliness so what was the need to make such a song and dance about it anyway.

What has been the experience like on these matters in your resorts?

At Tree of Life resorts, we apprise our guests about the prescribed precautionary measures being taken at our properties. Thereafter, if the guest(s) asks for any additional precautionary measures to be taken we are more than happy to do it.

 

For instance, we have cameras installed in our kitchens and the guests have the option to watch the food preparation on their mobile phones. Similarly, all rooms are sanitised before the guests walk in and we also give them the option to re-sanitise the rooms in their presence. Not more than 5% of the guests have asked for the rooms to be re-sanitised.

This is a clear indication that the guests’ trust and resilience is already there and she/he is very happy with the basics being done at the resort/ hotel premises.

 

I think the guests aren’t as paranoid as the hotel industry has made it to be. They are coming to a resort to relax, walk around and experience the open space, something they aren’t able to being confined in their residential apartment. We have taken all necessary precautionary measures and I can confidently tell you that we have not had a single complaint about lack of hygiene matters on the resort premises.

 

Another aspect to be mentioned here is that while the hotel is responsible for the guests’ safety, the guest is equally responsible for their own safety in the resort. It cannot be 100% my job. The guests have to play their role and take necessary precautions like wearing their masks at all times, washing their hands, maintaining physical / social distancing and using sanitisers when in public places.

 

Travel was also curtailed due to restrictions imposed by local administrations in certain states / locations / regions?

Yes, these decisions have impacted travel plans. Local administrations need to take a stand and stick to it like Himachal Pradesh (HP) did saying no tourists will be allowed till August 15, 2020. However, there was a flip-flop situation in Uttarakhand every second day. Same was the case with Goa, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh (AP) if I remember it right.

 

I think the state governments also need to make up their mind. While lockdown happened very efficiently for a country of our size the unlocking exercise has made a total mess of it. Look at the situation with restaurants, while food can be served liquor has been banned. I just don’t understand the logic behind this move. Our unlocking has been a total disaster for the Indian hospitality and food service industry.

 

Of your resorts bouquet, only three are currently operational?

 

Four actually. The Tree of Life Grand Oak Manor, Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary has been opened for guests as well. The ARRs are low at about Rs 4,500 in Udaipur, Ranthambore and Binsar but I am hoping business to pick up as tourists from Gujarat seem to be warming up to the idea of holidaying.

Three more properties viz. two in Kerala and one in Dehradun will open in September. So all resorts in the Tree of Life portfolio will be operational well before the business season that’ll kick start in October.

Are the resort operations sustainable at such room rates?

 

Not really. We will be losing money for a month or two. Right now profit is not a consideration for Tree of Life. I am willing to risk running the business for a small loss for two or three months. I will take that chance because I cannot wait till October, November or December to keep thinking about how to move the business ahead.

 

My focus currently is to build occupancy across my resort properties. Average room rates are not really my target because we need cash flow. Besides, it’s occupancy that will bring in the cash flow not ARRs and I’m very clear on that. My objective is, If I have to discount, I’ll discount to ensure cash flow and I’ll bring back the pricing eventually when the market starts to look up.

 

A lot of hotel companies have cut down on staff strength.

 

All hoteliers have had to retrench/ lay off employees unfortunately because it was a business necessity during the lockdown period. We all had no choice as the market scenario was such. It wasn’t done to save money. There was no money to even pay salaries.

 

As and when the opportunities are arising I’m reopening the properties with half the capacity. We are also going back to our staff and asking them to rejoin. While I still can’t pay full salary it’s important to start somewhere. For me, it’s not a business obligation but a moral one towards my people.

 

I must also admit here that we haven’t been able to pay pre-COVID level salaries to our staff. However, with business picking up at our Jaipur property and hopefully at our other resorts in the coming months, we are working on gradually bringing the salaries closer to the pre-COVID scale.

 

Having retrenched earlier, hotel companies are now rehiring for the same positions albeit at much lower pay scale and unreasonable preconditions?

 

In fact, I am amazed looking at the approach by some multinational hotel companies / brands coming out with fresh/ new recruitment advertisements for all positions in their respective hotels. This is a very disappointing trend I am seeing currently on staffing.

 

Ideally, preference should be given to existing employees who were retrenched and only after they refuse should the hotels look outside. I don’t see any reason why former employees will not join considering they have been out of work for long and they have a family to support.

 

Hotels with significant debt on books are uncertain about their existence leave alone survival. What’s your advice for them?

 

Keeping this thought process in mind, I’ll respond in two parts. One thing that’s happened with us is that in the last two months, a number of asset owners have expressed interest in being a part of the Tree of Life network. Reason being that as an independent hotel operator, as you rightly pointed out, their survival over the next three to four years is going to be very difficult.

 

I’m a small inventory hotel chain with 10 to 20 guestrooms in each property that we currently operate. Independent hotel asset owners want to be associated with our brand and leverage on our strengths. As we speak, four contracts are under advanced stages of discussion and by next month we should be adding four or five properties to our portfolio of resorts.

 

So at a time when business is shrinking for a lot of hotels, we are confident to be able to generate enough revenues and we know that very well. While there are a lot of such discussions we may not sign all of them. We have shortlisted five that fit very well in the scheme. Our feeling internally is that we should be able to work together very well with these properties. That’s one part of the story.

Now let me answer the second part. I think the only thing that can give hotel owners sleepless nights is loan payback. So asset owners without any loan liability on the property should not have much of an issue right now. There is no need for them to get adventurous particularly those located in the Tier II and Tier III markets. That’s because the moment you’ll open there will be some of the other expenditure that will come up and that’ll kill you for sure. So it’s best to remain shut till October - November. Also, if the asset owner is among those thinking about making a profit by opening then let me tell you upfront, no hotel will ever make profit over the next six to nine months.

 

However, those servicing loans on their respective hotel assets will have to find a way to restructure the debt. For these asset owners survival is all about managing the loan because I don’t think business is really a criteria for them right now. My view is that many will not be able to restructure loans and a lot of distress sale assets will be up for grabs in the coming months because the Reserve Bank of India’s interest moratorium ends on August 31, 2020. While the RBI has offered a one-time debt restructuring option it is unlikely banks will extend the facility to hotels and restaurants owners considering long term uncertainty looming over these businesses.

 

Given the current and future industry scenario, what’s going to be the fate of aspirants currently studying hotel management and those who’ve graduated this year?

I think these are tough times for students especially those graduating this year irrespective of the education stream being pursued. While every other industry is facing challenges the level of pain differs. Having said that, there are industries especially in the digital space that have gained significantly and are busy chalking out plans to tap the future growth opportunities.

 

While hospitality, food service, travel and tourism are among the badly hit my view is that over the next couple of years every sector will go through a restructuring process and cost rationalisation will be key to accomplish this exercise. However, hospitality industry aspirants and professionals need to keep this in mind that we are a part of an industry that thrives on personalisation and guest experience.

Irrespective of the level of digitisation or automation that one can think of it cannot overlook the fact that hospitality is a people’s business and will remain so for years to come. While percentages can vary, I do not believe that the hospitality industry can be do without its people, especially the leisure segment. The room to staff ratio will obviously undergo a significant change particularly in the case of large inventory business hotels.

All in all, the next 24 months are going to be challenging for every business including hospitality, travel and tourism. However, I’m not only confident about a revival in the overall market scenario two-and-a-half years from now but also the fact that there won’t be any dearth of opportunities for hospitality industry aspirants and professionals. Students currently pursuing should utilise this time to make themselves future ready while working professionals will have to reinvent and find newer ways to stay relevant and thrive in these challenging times.

(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)

Google Play Music to be replaced by YouTube Music starting October 2020

Here’s a piece of news for all smart phone users. Come October 2020, Google will kick start the process of replacing its popular Google Play Music app with YouTube Music. In a communication sent out on Friday afternoon, the global technology giant said that, “Google Play Music is going away soon”.

“YouTube Music is replacing Google Play Music as your new destination for music listening and discovery. Between October and the end of this year, access to Google Play Music will be removed permanently. We know that you've spent time building your Google Play Music library, so we've made it easy to transfer your music library to YouTube Music with just one click, including playlists, uploads and recommendations,” Google said in the email.

While YouTube Music, according to Google, looks a bit different from Google Play Music, it has been built by the same team with the same passion. “It also offers more than 65 million official songs, albums and playlists, as well as many features that you love and expect from Google Play Music,” said Google adding that music can be transferred to YouTube Music app available for downloads on Google Play as well as App Store. Alternatively, music files can be transferred using the browser as well.

As for what happens to the user’s Google Play Music library and data, the technology giant said, “In addition to transferring your library to YouTube Music, you have the option to download any music that you've purchased or uploaded to Google Play Music, as well as a list of the tracks, playlists and radio stations in your library. We'll notify you before you lose access to your Google Play Music library and data. You can also delete your Google Play Music data.”

On Music Manager and uploads, Google said that uploading and downloading music with Music Manager will be discontinued starting in 30 days. “But don't worry – you can always upload your personal music collection to YouTube Music or download your existing tracks via Google Takeout,” said Google.

Also, starting in 30 days, the Music store on Google Play will go away. It will no longer be possible to purchase music on Google Play, and all pre-orders will be cancelled. So, when you transfer, your purchases will move with you to YouTube Music. Talking about ‘Radio and background play’, Google said that Background play is only available to paid users of YouTube Music. “However, the free version of the music app allows background play for your uploaded or purchased songs,” it said.    

(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)

After pod hotels it's time for pod hospitals especially designed to treat COVID-19 patients

After making inroads in the Indian hospitality market three years ago with Urbanpod, the pod concept has now made its debut in the Indian healthcare space.

Vevra, a Bengaluru-based design and build company in partnership with a Portugal-based healthcare internet of things (IoT) company InnoWave Group has introduced a pod hospitals concept in India. Christened ‘Vevra Pods’ the movable healthcare facility has been designed to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, other contagious/ airborne diseases and comes integrated with artificial intelligence (AI) to treat patients effectively.

According to Mahesh Krishnachari, director-founder, Vevra, the Vevra pods are not just the regular mobile isolation rooms seen before but a completely functional, fully furnished, AI integrated smart hospital setup. “This is an avant-garde, futuristic hospital. These capsules/ pods can be annexed to the existing hospitals to create more patient beds when in need or can be deployed to any remote place, areas struck by calamities, or even military bases to act as a complete hospital unit,” said Krishnachari.

The Vevra Pods project, as per a company statement, was primarily born as an answer for major medical crises of any form, where the lack of appropriate facilities/ infrastructure to receive highly infected patients takes a toll in most hospitals across the nation. This project consists of a set of movable capsules that aims to efficiently assist in the infrastructure of local/ private/ government hospitals across India.

Available in five variants viz. General pod, ICU pod, Doctors stay pod, Operation theatre pod and Scanning room pod, each Vevra pod can accommodate four to nine beds.

These fully furnished modular Pods come with advanced IoT solutions at the heart of its operation on ViGIE+ platform by InnoWave. This infrastructure consists of antechamber airlock rooms to provide a safe area for healthcare professionals with antibacterial walls and surface, it also controls the quantity and quality of the air being circulated in and out of the room with a minimum of 12 air changes per hour through HEPA filters, UVC lights, high-end exhaust system with PLC integrated air conditioning system to help in maintaining the temperature, humidity within.

Features of Vevra Pods

• These pods come with an antechamber airlock room to provide a safe area for healthcare professionals to do Donning and Doffing and to store the medical supplies. 
• Introducing a negative air pressure in the pod to contain airborne diseases such as TB, Flu, and COVID-19. It also controls the quantity and quality of the air being circulated in and out of the room with a minimum of 12 air changes per hour through HEPA filters, UVC lights, and a high-end exhaust system. 
• The pod comes with PLC integrated air conditioning system to help in maintaining the temperature, humidity within. 
• The pod comes with Fire resistance structure and an anti-bacterial wall and bacterial and chemical resistance flooring. 
• An attached toilets and shower cubicle with UVC lights. 
• ICU pod comes with a provision for Oxygen supply, analyzer as per ICU guidelines. Integrated with a device to monitor oxygen supply pressure and to measure the oxygen concentration delivered by ventilators or breathing systems along with a failure alarm system. RO water purifier, Geyser in the shower area, 500 litre water storage tank along with Mobile Sewage Treatment Plant. 
• Fire alarm, extinguisher and emergency system with a safe evacuation plan. CCTV surveillance and Television provided for each patient. 
• Re-usable after Pandemic with 15 to 20 years’ structural warranty. Can be moved to any remote location in the world.
• Sufficient UPS power backup with earthing connection to each pod and I-3 processor Laptop loaded with AI, RFID and MS office. RFID controlled entry and exit.

The healthcare Pods, according to Dr. K Sudhakar, medical education minister, Government of Karnataka, are innovative movable hospitals integrated with AI and can help in containment and prevention of contagious diseases. “AI has the potential to transform public healthcare and I urge healthcare start-ups to focus more on developing innovative, low-cost solutions,” he said.

Elaborating on the ViGIE+ platform, the company said, it is used for collecting and visualising data from different sensors installed inside and provide real-time alarms if environmental conditions change. This solution can be quickly and easily deployed in remote areas that are not easily accessible to hospital staff as well outside of the main hospital buildings to avoid any risk of the virus spreading.

“This project is highly linked to our mission as a company – to change people's lives through innovation. We are specialised in IoT monitoring systems in Europe and the USA, and we are eager to embrace this project and expand in other regions, as we are already cooperating with the US companies to supply ViGIE,” said Tiago Gonçalves, chief executive officer, InnoWave Global.  

The pods, said Dr. C N Manjunath, Indian Cardiologist and director of Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research, look like a pioneering concept of much safer and advanced facilities for not only patients but doctors as well, during times of high risk.

(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)

Brookfield-owned The Leela Group is front-runner to manage Sukhani Group’s erstwhile JW Marriott Jaipur Resort & Spa

A handful of international and Indian hospitality chains are said to be vying for a management contract of the erstwhile JW Marriott Jaipur Resort and Spa. While names of international brands are still under the wraps, speculation is rife that the two luxury hotel operators viz. The Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts and The Indian Hotels Co Ltd (IHCL) are among the homegrown brands pursuing the property.

In fact, industry sources are certain that The Leela Group, now owned by Canada-based Brookfield Asset Management Inc, may have already succeeded in bagging the management contract from spa resort asset owner viz. Tulsi Palace Resort Pvt Ltd, a part of Sukhani Group of Hotels.

The possibility of The Leela Group branding and managing the spa resort in Jaipur is high considering it doesn’t have a flag in that market yet. Its only presence is a little over 400 kilometers away in the form of The Leela Palace Udaipur. Located on the banks of the majestic Lake Pichola, this 80 rooms five-star palatial hotel offers stunning views of the lake, City Palace and the Aravalli mountains.

UPDATE on September 28, 2020.

In a statement issued on September 28, 2020, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts said that the hotel chain is expanding its portfolio and has signed an agreement with Tulsi Palace Resorts Group, owners of the erstwhile JW Marriott Jaipur Resort & Spa, to manage the 200-rooms property in Rajasthan’s capital city. The resort spa which is currently not operational is set to undergo enhancements over the coming months and will be branded upon completion of the renovation by early 2021.

Establishing a presence in the Pink City would definitely rank very high for The Leela Group management and that probably explains why the hotel chain is understood to be pursuing it very aggressively. Queries emailed to Anuraag Bhatnagar, chief operating officer, The Leela Group remained unanswered.

As for IHCL, the Tata Group’s hospitality business vertical already has four operational hotels viz. Jai Mahal Palace, Rambagh Palace, The Gateway Hotel Ramgarh Lodge and Devi Ratn - IHCL Selections in the Jaipur hospitality market.

Last year in May, IHCL had signed new management contract (its seventh hotel in Jaipur) for a Vivanta hotel in Jawahar Circle, Jaipur. This 200-guestrooms greenfield hotel asset is being developed by Kalpsagar Pvt Ltd and slated to open sometime in 2023. The Indian hospitality chain added another management contract in February 2020 with Kanha Hotels & Spa Pvt Ltd's brownfield development featuring 250-rooms. The Taj branded hotel is also expected to open sometime in 2023.

IHCL has pursued a multi-property strategy across various markets in the country, and the hotel chain claims to have nine properties (operational and under development) across its brands in the Jaipur hospitality market. It thus remains to be seen if the Taj Group management would want to make further additions in its approach to replicate this strategy in the capital city of Rajasthan.

An IHCL spokesperson said in an email response, “We do not respond to market speculation, we will not be participating in this story.”

The luxurious JW Marriott Jaipur Resort & Spa featuring 200 guest rooms, owned by the Sukhani Group of Hotels, was launched amidst massive fanfare back in March 2018. Earlier this month, the partnership between Sukhani Group's Tulsi Palace Resort and the Indian subsidiary of Marriott International Inc was called-off and Marriott vacated the spa resort effective July 7, 2020.

This long-term relationship between the American hospitality giant and the Jaipur-based hotel asset owning entity was to last for 30 years. However, the short lived alliance ended within a little over two years of being together.

Both Marriott International and Sukhani Group are yet to issue an official communication about their breakup. Marriott International has however removed JW Marriott Jaipur Resort & Spa from its list of properties on www.marriott.com. In fact, this spa resort was showing up on Marriott’s network till a week or 10 days ago. And now only four hotels viz. ITC Rajputana, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Jaipur; Four Points by Sheraton Jaipur, City Square; Jaipur Marriott Hotel and Le Méridien Jaipur Resort & Spa feature in the property search results. This is pretty much an indication that the Jaipur resort and spa is out of Marriott's hotels network.

Considering negotiations for the new management contract are at a very advanced stage, the asset owners (Sukhani Group of Hotels) along with the new hotel management company are likely to announce the relaunch under a new brand in the coming weeks.

What really went wrong with this hotel brand and asset owner partnership and who was at fault couldn’t be ascertained. In fact, an FIR filed by the asset owners against Marriott India and its hotel employees has been quashed already by the Jaipur Bench of the Rajasthan High Court.

As per an ANI report, Vikram Sukhani (on behalf of the asset owner of the luxury five-star property JW Marriott Jaipur Resort & Spa) had leveled various accusations against the hotel management company (Marriott India) and its employees.

The plea, according to the ANI report, stated that the criminal complaint initiated by Vikram Sukhani falsely and mischievously insinuated that certain employees of the hotel and Marriott India had allegedly conspired and cheated the complainant by misappropriating and siphoning-off monies belonging to the hotel. It was falsely alleged that the said employees conspired with Marriott India to unjustly award bonuses to themselves while at the same time denying statutory bonus payable to other employees of the hotel.

Emails seeking clarity on this issue did not elicit a response from Marriott International’s India office as well as the Sukhani Group of Hotels.

Hotel management contracts typically comprise clauses that are aimed at safeguarding the interest of the hospitality brand and the asset owners alike. Among various terms is one about a lock-in period that penalises the brand or the asset owner for calling-off the association within a specific time frame of property becoming operational.

The compensation to be paid to either party for breach of this specific clause is arrived at after taking into consideration the revenues clocked in by the hotel, the share (percentage) that goes to the hotel brand operator and the asset owning entity and, the number of years remaining in the contract period. 

In fact, the penalty amount could go into crores of rupees if the association between the hotel brand and asset owner gets called-off within the first few years.

The Indian hospitality market has seen quite a few short term associations in the past, the prominent ones being Swissotel Goa and Convention Hotels India Pvt Ltd that merely lasted six months. The other high profile break-up was between Shangri-la  Hotels & Resorts and Mumbai's Pallazzio Hotels & Leisure, a part of mixed-used developer The Phoenix Mills Ltd, that was called-off in nine months.

(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)

Accor's loss could be IHCL's gain: Erstwhile Swissôtel Kolkata likely to become a Taj hotel

This is an EXCLUSIVE story. Do not reproduce or use in any manner whatsoever without the writer's permission.

 

IHCL already has a management contract in place for Ambuja-Neotia Group's luxury resort "Chia Kutir" in Makaibari Tea Estate in Kurseong, Darjeeling. There are strong rumours about a management contract in the works for another luxury resort "Guras Kutir" spread over eight acres at Pangthang in east Sikkim

The Indian Hotels Company Ltd (IHCL) and Ambuja-Neotia Group (ANG) are said to be in advanced stages of discussion for a management contract of the erstwhile Swissôtel Kolkata property. Located atop the City Centre Mall in Kolkata’s New Town area, this five-star business hotel was recently vacated by French hospitality major Accor after the completion of its 10-year management contract tenure.

According to multiple industry sources, if talks between IHCL and ANG materialise, the Tata Group’s listed hospitality company will operate this hotel under its Taj brand.

The reason IHCL is likely to bag the management contract, industry sources said, is that it already has an existing association with ANG for a luxury resort “Chia Kutir” at Makaibari Tea Estate in Kurseong, Darjeeling. In fact, ANG had planned another luxury resort spread over eight acres at Pangthang in east Sikkim. Christened Guras Kutir, luxury resort and spa was to be built in three phases comprising boutique cottages, villas and a premium five-star hotel with a casino. There are strong rumours that IHCL and ANG have already or are in the process of finalising a management contract for this property as well. 

When contacted, an IHCL spokesperson did not respond to a query about their discussions for a multi-property management contract including the erstwhile Swissôtel Kolkata. Over a dozen-odd queries emailed earlier to Puneet Chhatwal, managing director and chief executive officer, IHCL, remained unanswered. The hotel company spokesperson chose to comment on just one query about ‘whether IHCL has bagged the management contract for the erstwhile Swissôtel Kolkata property’ saying, “This is incorrect.”

“The discussions for a management contract between the two parties might still be work-in-progress hence, the denial from IHCL,” said one of the industry sources requesting not to be quoted.

Executives from the Ambuja-Neotia Group could not be reached for a comment. Apparently, recent media reports quoted Harshavardhan Neotia, chairman of Ambuja-Neotia Group, saying that they were exploring possibilities including renewing the management contract with Accor or onboarding a new hotel management company for the erstwhile Swissôtel Kolkata property.

Multiple industry sources, familiar with the development, however, said that the Indian Hotels Company and Ambuja-Neotia Group have been in discussions for a multi-property hotel management contract. “The (former Swissôtel Kolkata) property is becoming a Taj hotel,” said another industry source. Validating it further, another top hotel industry executive said, “This is in addition to a few other (management contracts with IHCL for) Ambuja-Neotia Group’s (existing / under development) hotel projects.”

“Post completion of the 10-year contract with Accor, the (Swissôtel Kolkata) property will open as a Taj branded hotel,” said a top executive from a leading consultancy who is familiar with this development.

Sources added that the Kolkata hotel is non-operational owing to the lockdown situation and is currently undergoing renovation/ refurbishment. “This is likely being done to conform with the Taj brand standards,” said one of the sources.

It is understood that since the management contract tenure with Accor was nearing completion, the Ambuja-Neotia Group had sought a brand other than Swissôtel for the Kolkata property. “I believe the asset owners wanted a Sofitel flag but Accor wasn’t open to this idea. This difference of opinion eventually led to the non-renewal of the management contract with Accor,” said one of the sources.

Debuting in the Indian hospitality market back in July 2010, the Swissôtel brand hasn’t been very successful in the country. In fact, the second Swissôtel property, owned by Convention Hotels India Pvt Ltd, in Goa turned out to be the shortest owner-operator alliance. Swissôtel Hotels & Resorts, a part of FRHI Hotels & Resorts with brands like Fairmont, Raffles and Swissôtel, had pulled out of this five-star deluxe resort at Calangute within six months of launching the property in March 2013. In December 2015, this 135-room resort debuted as the Hard Rock Hotel Goa. 

Later in July 2016, Accor acquired FRHI Hotels & Resorts. However, this development didn’t bring any drastic change for the Swissôtel brand in the Indian hospitality market. Another management contract for a 300-rooms five-star boutique property Swissôtel Grand Mumbai was signed with Ashok Mittal’s Litolier Group in April 2012. However, the hotel hasn’t seen the light of the day as yet.

Non-renewal of the 10-year management contract between Accor and the Ambuja-Neotia Group has resulted in the Swissôtel brand being wiped out from the Indian hospitality market. Also, with no newer signings anywhere in sight, it is going to be a tough road ahead for the Swissôtel brand to make inroads in the country all over again.

(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)

Samsung chants ‘Made in India’ with new edition of smartwatches

Company has now started manufacturing entire range of 18 smartwatches in India

Samsung Electronics, the South Korean multinational conglomerate, said that its new edition of smartwatches are the first ones to be “Made in India”. The smartphone maker introduced an aluminium edition of its Galaxy Watch Active2 4G smartwatch and now claims to have the largest and most diverse 4G watch portfolio in the country.

Mohandeep Singh, senior vice president - mobile business, Samsung India, said, "The aluminium edition is our most affordable 4G watch now. It's also the first smartwatch to be made in India. With Galaxy Watch Active2 4G, we have also started manufacturing our entire range of 18 smartwatches in India as part of 'Make for India' programme.”

With the launch of Galaxy Watch Active2 4G Aluminium edition, Samsung’s 4G smartwatch range now comprises nine distinct colour finishes, three sizes (42mm, 44mm and 46mm) and two unique design templates - elegant classic of the Watch 4G and modern minimalistic of the Watch Active2.

The Galaxy Watch Active2 Aluminium edition, according to Samsung India, is meant to complement the needs of ‘on the go’ consumers, enabling them to keep a track of their fitness goals and stay connected with the world, even without their phone at hand. Priced at Rs 28,490/- the smartwatch will start retailing from July 11, 2020 across retail stores, Samsung Opera House, Samsung.com and leading online portals.

(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)

COVID-19 impact: Accor pulls the plug on Swissôtel Kolkata

This is an EXCLUSIVE story. Do not reproduce or use in any manner whatsoever without the writer's permission.

 

No clarity on the operational status of 300-rooms five-star boutique hotel Swissôtel Grand Mumbai in association with the Litolier Group

Accor, the French multinational hospitality company, has discontinued its association with hotel asset owner Ambuja-Neotia Group for Swissôtel Kolkata effective July 1, 2020. The management contract tenure for this five-star business hotel, according to Accor India, had ended and hence the decision to move on.

Responding to queries, Accor spokesperson confirmed the development saying, “Effective July 1, 2020, following the conclusion of our management contract with Ambuja-Neotia, Swissôtel Kolkata will no longer be a part of the Accor network in India. We are thankful for our decade-long partnership and to the hotel team for their support.” There is no clarity about whether hotel employees are being reassigned to some other property (as and when the market opens up) or laid off post this development.

The Accor spokesperson also did not share any updates on their association with Ashok Mittal’s Litolier Group for a 300-rooms five-star boutique hotel Swissôtel Grand Mumbai that was to come up close to the Mumbai International Airport. This property was announced way back in April 2012 however, a search on Accor’s website showed up no results on the operational status of this hotel. This could possibly also mean that Accor doesn’t have a single Swissôtel flag up and running in the Indian hospitality market anymore.

Swissôtel as a hotel brand has not had a great run in the Indian hospitality market. For instance, the Swissôtel Goa property (owned by Bangalore-based Convention Hotels India Pvt Ltd) launched amidst great fanfare in March 2013 was, in most likelihood, the shortest owner-operator alliance the Indian hospitality market has seen thus far. Swissôtel Hotels & Resorts had pulled out of this five-star deluxe resort at Calangute in Goa within six months of launching the property. This 135-room resort was relaunched as Hard Rock Hotel Goa in December 2015 and it continues to be operated under the same banner.

Coming back to the topic of management contracts, it appears hotel asset owner Ambuja Neotia Group is the first casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic situation that’s creating havoc in the Indian hospitality industry. Accor did not respond to queries seeking clarity on whether the ongoing COVID-19 situation was instrumental in not renewing the Swissôtel Kolkata management contract. The spokesperson also did not respond to queries on the status of other management contracts for its other brands in India that are likely to come up for renewal and whether Accor will let them expire as well.

This development has also brought to light the fact that COVID-19 is not only impacting business for industry players but also souring relationships between the hotel brands and asset owners. The situation raises concerns on the future of hotel management contracts that are up for renewal over the next six to 12 months.

In fact, taking into account the fate of Swissôtel Kolkata, the current market scenario poses a major risk to hotel asset owners as the business impact due to COVID-19 pandemic may result in a lot of the management contracts not getting renewed at all. While some may say there is a brighter side to it because some other hospitality brand/ chain will pick up the property and sign a new management contract. That’s a possibility for sure, but given the prevalent and near future market conditions, it looks unlikely that a new brand would take up the stress when there is hardly any business in the market.

Industry experts are of the view that there is significant churn in the market and contractual relationships are being re-looked and re-discussed across the hospitality industry. “Generally speaking, every association between hotel brand(s) and asset owner(s) be it management contracts, franchise agreements or lease arrangements is being reconsidered or getting restructured. Seeking safer avenues hotel asset owners are demanding income/ revenue guarantees, capping of operational costs and downside protection from the hotel brand operator,” said Abhijeet Umathe, chief executive officer, Eco Hotels India Pvt Ltd.

Players in the Indian hospitality market have been bleeding financially ever since the lockdown began in March 2020. Almost negligible business and zero visibility on revenues in the near or even distant future for that matter is forcing hospitality chains and hotel asset owners to reassess their business continuity plans. While branded hospitality chains managing the hotel asset(s) have to option to move on, that’s definitely not the case with the asset owner(s) who are stuck with the property and possibly no takers for their hotels in the market.
(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)

Indian Hotels to debut own home delivery business under a new brand

This is an EXCLUSIVE story. Do not reproduce or use in any manner whatsoever without the writer's permission.

 

Tata Group's hospitality company will launch state-of-the-art mobile application in a week

 

An experiment, to deliver food from restaurants housed in some of its luxury properties in Mumbai, is set to go mainstream soon. Tata Group’s hospitality business, Indian Hotels Company Ltd (IHCL), will launch a mobile application next week that will allow customers to order home delivery of food akin to ordering from online food delivery aggregators like Zomato and Swiggy.

In an earnings call on Thursday evening, Puneet Chhatwal, managing director and chief executive officer, IHCL, said the move is part of the hotel company’s efforts to drive revenue growth. 

“Our RESET response to COVID-19 is based on revenue growth. We have lined up a number of key initiatives including new lines of revenue. In fact, within a week from now we will be launching our own home delivery business under a new brand through our own state-of-the-art (mobile) application. This was long desired in our business from the digital side,” said Chhatwal without sharing further details.

So far, IHCL has identified seven key initiatives to help drive revenues that will be unveiled gradually over the next four to six weeks (depending on the opening up of hospitality sector in India). Earlier this week, the hospitality chain launched the first initiative in Kerala, which is based on the concept of DriVacations i.e. holidaying at destinations and properties that are within three to five hour driving distance.

The new initiatives, Chhatwal said, are meant to compensate for the loss in revenue, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) as well as profit after tax (PAT), which is the case for IHCL as well as the overall hospitality, travel and tourism industries across the globe in the first quarter of fiscal 2020-21.

“Additionally, we are coming up with strategies for new corporate, leisure, wedding and meetings, incentives, conventions and events (MICE) business across different space. “We will have new business based on the upcoming app involving gourmet shops in our hotels at key city locations,” he said.

In April, the hotel company had launched Hospitality@Home initiative involving three different varieties of hampers for people to pick up for personal consumption or gifting purposes. IHCL has also been driving The Chambers (its exclusive private club) membership for some time now.

The Chambers boasts of a completely new look, feel and design now and will be launched at Taj Mansingh in Delhi by September or October this year.

“It was delayed by three to four months for obvious reasons including air-pollution issues followed by COVID-19 pandemic as a result of which the hotel was shut. The Chambers will also debut in the London market giving the private club brand a great positioning. This will also be our competitive advantage going forward,” said Chhatwal.

As for the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on IHCL’s hotels, the company said in an investor presentation that approximately 50% of its properties across portfolio were closed or were acting as active quarantine centers as on May 31, 2020. The hotel company has put together a staggered opening plan post relaxation of the lockdown.

The management will also undertake effective asset management initiatives including monetisation of non-core assets, monetisation of hotel assets and minimisation of lease costs. 

For instance, in fiscal 2019-20, IHCL has raised a total of Rs 211 crore by selling land parcel in Pune (Rs 63 crore), 24 apartments (Rs 105 crore) and Taj Madras Flight Kitchen, Chennai (Rs 29.8 crore). The hotel company is also in talks to divest a few more assets in the current fiscal and lease it back or take it up on a management contract basis.

(The writer is a Mumbai-based independent business journalist and has extensively covered diversified consumer businesses over the last two decades. He can be reached at hello@ashishktiwari.com)