the right mix - tid international pte...

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THE RIGHT MIXHomi AibArA, consultAnt, rAjeev cHoprA, developer, sHekHAr pAtki, ArcHitect, ritu bHAtiA kler, interior designer, And AmitAbH tyAgi, vp, tecHnicAl services, tAj Hotels, discuss WHAt it tAkes to creAte tHAt perfect Hotel property

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Volume 7|Issue 9|October 2015|`50

www.hotelierindia.com

Total pages 78

event revieWb.e.a.m.s. 2015

Hotelier indiA AWArds 2015

meet the GRaND juRy

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Cover story design debate

Building a hotel property is all about matching the demand with the supply — the owner, brand and design have to play second fiddle, feel those who matter the most at the planning stage

by BaBita Krishnan

the right mix

With the industry looking up and market reports suggest-

ing the fast reducing gap between demand and supply,

one finds the industry and brands gearing up for new

projects and tie-ups. As India opens its doors to fresh

supply, we get the five important role players to talk

about the nuances of building a dream property that is fired for success. Homi

Aibara, partner, Mahajan & Aibara, Rajeev Chopra, MD, The Residency Hotels

Pvt Ltd, Shekhar Patki, principal architect, PG Patki Architecs, Ritu Bhatia Kler,

MD, Total Integrated Design India and Amitabh Tyagi, VP and head, technical

services, The Indian Hotels Company Ltd come together and give the right

mix of ingredients and methodology to create that perfect dish — a hotel

property in this case.

As a consultant, how do you identify the need of the market and profile of

hotel required, and communicate it to the owner/developer?

Homi Aibara: It is so important to understand the market before plunging

into anything. Though there are people like Rajeev Chopra who know this,

there are so many people outside who spend lot of money and then realise

that they are on the wrong track, which is sad. The most important thing is

the costing which is the early stage of planning. We do an area statement and

based on the level and brand that the property would be, the area statement

is shared with the architect for him to give his estimate. Architects and interior

designers should not be held responsible for the cost.

So how do the owners/developers take these suggestions?

Rajeev Chopra: There are four aspects of developing hotels. One is the very

simple, logical and balanced evaluation of the market profile. This evaluation-

Hotelier india | october 2015 | www.hotelierindia.com


30 Hotelier india | october 2015 | www.hotelierindia.com

will give you the type of product required there. The

third thing is the pure case of trying to establish a

business profile, which is the clubbing together of the

product and the market profile — the question is will

they be at a variance with each other? This is where my

business plan comes in — I know how much money I

have and how much I need to spend. Unfortunately, in

this straightforward logical planning of a hotel devel-

opment, comes in the fourth aspect which sometimes

attains the maximum importance — the personal pro-

file, where the owner wants a 'return on ego'.

These four profiles ultimately guide how you devel-

op a hotel. In most cases, however, there is no balance

between these four and India is full of examples where

these are not being done on a singular basis over the

years, starting with all the big guns in this country.

At what stage do the architect and the brand step in?

Chopra: I think it is essential to first establish the busi-

ness ethics of that product. If I am trying to build the

product at 40 or 50 lakh a room because that’s my

business profile then the architect and the interior de-

signer knows exactly what I am looking for. Now it is

up to them to give me what I'm looking for using their

ingenuity, knowledge and ability. The problem is the

cost overruns which are 100% in our country. A classic

example is the Westin Hyderabad which I built with

Amitabh Tyagi and Shekhar Patki. We were very clear

about what we wanted delivered with no compro-

mises. Today it is rated the number one property in

Hyderabad for five years on Trip Advisor. The problem

with hotels in India is that we often create the body

and no soul. that is the role of these creative people.

Amitabh Tyagi: And to add here, the owners tend to

forget that they are not making this hotel as a home

for themselves. It is for the guest, so they need to

think from the guest perspective. About when should

the brand come in, a lot of people have this mind

block that if you get a brand earlier they will make

you spend a lot of money. If the brand is on board

right from the day excavation starts, everything will be

shared and there will be 100% transparency and that

is what makes a project successful. In most cases, cost

overruns occur when the owners have very unrealistic

budgets. The problem is that everyone wants to say

what owner wants to listen, right from quantity sur-

veyor to the project managers.

Aibara: But unlike the rest of the world, we have a

dearth of good quantity surveyors in the country.

1. Homi Aibara, Ritu Bhatia Kler and Shekhar Patki in discussion.

1

As a designer, you need to grow and understand what a hotel is. So we have created our own manual of standards, which is tweaked

to the brand." Ritu Bhatia Kler, MD, Total Integrated Design India



Ritu Bhatia Kler: I think they don’t realise is that you

don’t just put in money to build it, you need to sustain

it and the returns are much later compared to their

other businesses. And especially if they are in devel-

opment of real estate or commercial, the return are

much faster. So I think that is also where the gap is.

They don’t have that understanding.

Tyagi: Understanding the business is very important.

There was a time when Taj was building hotels any-

where and everywhere. But now with the new leader-

ship in place, it will be definitely guaranteed that each

and every square inch that Taj invests in will make

proper sense. So it is even for hoteliers to be keenly

aware of these things.

Interior designers come in with various consultants.

When does that become a part of the development

plan and what are the challenges that you face?

Kler: Ideally you should come in once the architect

has worked out the first cut and the brand is okay with

the overall direction of space planning. So that if any-

thing needs to be tweaked with the architect in terms

of columns, windows or spaces, etc. it can be done.

But mostly we are brought in much later and so we

inherit what is done and work on interiors according

to the brand standards, the client's brief. We are sort

of last in, last out, I would say.

Tyagi: We always suggest that the designers and con-

sultants should be on board right from the start as it is

not an extra cost or overhead.

Kler: We actually don’t earn more and spend more

time on the project. But it is better for the project and

for all of us I think if the designer and the consultants

are on board at the early stages.

Chopra: I believe that everyone connected with creat-

ing a hotel should be on board from day 1. The feel

of the property comes from the interior designer, an

architect’s approach is largely elevational, they look at

There are no courses or any training, hence a lack

of quality. Also, it doesn't pay much so no one wants

to do it.

How do you marry the brand standards, owner’s as-

pirations and the market demands when designing

a property?

Shekhar Patki: When you have been doing it for some

time, it is not a challenge, because it is really a spread-

sheet which is telling you the area of distribution. So,

if you understand the nuances of the hotel design and

the sequence of how areas need to be, the adjacen-

cies of areas in a property, then it is a matter of putting

that pen to paper and trying to create some forms.

It might be a cookie-cutter design or something dif-

ferent. The problem comes in when there is a clash

of interests, for example, the budget or area is inad-

equate for what the owner might aspire for. And in

most cases, the owners don't want to compromise.

Chopra: The problem is that owners, especially in the

tier-II and -III cities who want to build hotels are not

hoteliers. They are very good at their own businesses

and have made tonnes of money, but just go wrong in

planning a hotel.

Patki: This is true. For them, a hotel is more like a

trophy.

2

2. Rajeev Chopra makes a point as Amithabh Tyagi looks on.

You create a structure and imbibe every part of the property with a soul that makes the guest feel

at home. Unfortunately, we don't do that." Rajeev Chopra, MD, The Residency Hotels Pvt Ltd



space largely in a mathematical sense. I think you have

a far more efficient and better product if all are work-

ing on it from day one. Unfortunately, we don’t do it

much in India.

But what is the reality?

Tyagi: When the structure is about to get over, the

owners then look for somebody like Homi to find a

brand. When the brand is found, in 90% of the cases

there is hardly any back of the house, the workflow

doesn’t work, there are no sunk portion for the kitchen

because there was no kitchen consultant, etc. Then we

discover that things are not according to the brand

standards and this is how costs become unreasonable.

No brand actually makes you spend money unneces-

sarily. Ultimately, if the hotel makes the money then

only the brand makes money. Although their objec-

tives are the same in terms of profitability and suc-

cess of the product, the brand is also looking at brand

growth and hence standards are important.

Kler: In India, there are both situations. I think there is

some maturity and of course where the owners are

guided well and tend to listen to the consultant and to

the brand, it works well for the project and also give us

more time on creativity. But for us the real challenge

depends on where we come in.

What about the brand Bible?

Chopra: Bible is something which the brand is both-

ered about not the developer. He just wants the brand

and is not concerned what the brand standards ulti-

mately. It is the Bible versus the architect and interior

designer.

Patki: If you are an experienced architect having

worked with various brands, you know what this bible

is about and you know what to take from there. So,

you know the areas which you can adjust.

Tyagi: In Taj we have architectural design standards

and coming from an international chain where every

brand has a definitive interior design directive, I was

trying to create interior design standards. My boss,

Rakesh Sarna, actually restricted me from doing so.

He feels that by creating interior design directives you

restrict an interior designer’s creativity. Architectural

standards are fine as they define the room size, bath-

room size, fixtures, etc. We want a property to look

different in Tirupati and in Mussouri.

Kler: As a designer you need to grow and understand

what a hotel is. So, what we have done in our office is

that we do a lot of in-house training. We have actually

taken from all brand manuals and have created our

own manual and standards. his is our own bible, which

we tweak to the brand.

Patki: These standards are important from the safety

and security point of view. These things ensure quality

and lift the standards of construction as well.

Chopra: The most important role is of the owner as

everything is a business decision. A well informed

owner will take the right steps at the right time to en-

sure that the final product is not just beautiful but also

efficient and successful. This is the right time to take a

breather before the fresh inventory enters the market,

to relook at the planned development and ensure that

it is a sound business decision.

There is a lot to learn from brands and their stand-

ards but it should not be taken as the last word in

hospitality design. An intelligent match of the market

requirements, owner aspirations and brand standards

will ensure that the architects create a body which the

interior designer can infuse with a soul. This would re-

sult in all stakeholders benefitting by give the guests

an experience they will cherish. HI

3

3. Wink, the bar at Vivanta by Taj, Mumbai is a popular destination owing to its design.

the right mix - tid international pte...

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