Branded Hospitality, Beyond Metros

Like all other facets of life and times,  hospitality industry is also going through changes. One of the important changes or rather transitions that has been taking place in India’s hospitality industry during the recent years is the significant channelising of investments of branded hospitality projects in tier-II and tier-III cities of the country. Patna, Dehradun, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, madurai, Kanpur, Kochi, Vadodara, Jodhpur, Nashik are some examples of tier-II and tier-III cities of India.

- Swarnendu Biswas

Even a decade earlier, hoteliers and real estate developers investing in massive hospitality projects in tier-II and tier-III cities of India, unless it was a conventional and famous tourist destination, were rarity. But it is no longer so. Now even some of the tier-IV cities and small towns of India which are also not tourist destinations in conventional sense are showing potential to attract considerable investments from branded players in India’s hospitality industry.

Four Points by Sheraton mahabalipuram Resort & Convention Center, in mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu, City Sarovar Premiere Jaipur, Grand mercure Vadodara Surya Place, Novotel Kochi Infopark Hotel are only four of the many such examples of recently opened branded hospitality properties in non metro cities, and towns of India. A few months back, Radisson entered Jodhpur with Radisson Jodhpur.

Reasons behind the Trend

There are various reasons behind this development. Prohibitive prices of real estate in metros of India, significant increase in disposable incomes among segments of people in small cities and towns of India during the last decade-and a-half, the growth of industrialisation and tourism appeal in many of the tier-II and tier-III cities of India during the same period, the heightened popularity of destination weddings and the growth of mICE segment in India’s hospitality industry during the last few years are some of the factors influencing this trend.

Improvement of infrastructure and connectivity in these cities during the last decade can also be attributed as the reason for fostering of this trend.