2022 was a good year for the hospitality sector since the third wave of covid subsided. Will the trend continue in 2023?

I am fairly bullish on 2023. We are not seeing any indication, at least in the real data, of any dark cloud on the horizon. Specifically, inflationary pressures, rising interest rates and looming recession in the West, is not reflecting that in the data today. Our booking window is not that long across segments. But travel demand is pretty robust for 2023 and specific to India, with all that is going on around G20, India could be well set up for a few strong years in terms of travel and tourism at large.

How will the G20 summit pan out for hotel companies such as yours?

G20 is always about showcasing a country. Indonesia, we operate 63 hotels, had the presidency in 2022. From my perspective, it is going to be incredible for India to not only have that leadership of some of the most important countries, but will also be an amazing way to showcase India to the world. There will be over 200 meetings, and what we understand, from the Indonesian experience, there are planned ones and impromptu ones. Depending on the leadership India has and displays, there could be other meetings lined up. Typically, when business delegations travel , with them, there may be other corporations who come down and that can happen parallelly.

Will there be a measurable impact of the summit on the business?

It is far beyond the impact on just hotels. It’s more on the total economy because it’s not just hotel rooms but other services that those attending the meetings end up using. And when they are being taken to different corners of India, we will obviously see the benefit of it on the broader economy.

So it’s difficult to put a number, but from my perspective, the light is going to shine on India. It is a terrific opportunity, and will be great from an overall business point of view. Being the largest hotel operator in India in terms of number of rooms, and how well we are spread out, from our perspective, it’s a great way to showcase every part of India.

How has the hospitality sector changed as a result of the pandemic?

The whole process of digitization. Consumers as well as our own associates internally have largely leapfrogged in the use of digital technology. In this world you can make reservations, check into a hotel, order room service, chat with the associates and checkout, but need not have to physically meet an individual if you choose not to, and as a result of the pandemic, direct digital bookings have jumped dramatically. Our loyalty customers are well north of 50% of our business in most of our hotels. We spent considerable energy in partnering with domestic brands to create an ecosystem in terms of loyalty. For instance our Mumbai Indians IPL partnership.

How long will it take for airfares to rationalize?

For domestic air traffic India is now well north of its 2019 figures, but internationally, say for Asia Pacific, flight capacity is still in mid- to late- 60s. That’s possibly because many airlines have not been able to bring back capacity due to staff shortages. As more and more seats are added across Asia Pacific and the rest of the world, prices will rationalize.

What about the hotel rates?

Many are paying 20-30% more than pre-covid times…

I don’t think hotels charges are really very high. This is so as we’ve seen an improvement in business not just because of rates going up but also because of demand going up. Business has been a good blend of both occupancy and higher rates.

Have Indians replaced Chinese traveller globally?

Even pre-covid, it was very clear that the growth of travellers coming out of India was going to be strong for decades to come. But since there were over 150 million outbound Chinese travellers a year, there was probably a stronger focus on them. However, with the Chinese not travelling, obviously, there’s a stronger focus of most countries trying to vie for the Indian customer.

So, I wanted to say, the importance has become bigger or diminished. I think the Indian consumer has always been a strong emerging consumer. But with the absence of the Chinese, yes, there is a stronger force.