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2nd Annual India Hotel Expansion Summit

September 27th & 28th, 2012, Mumbai, India

With 740 million domestic travellers (in 2011) and over 6.3 million FTAs, India is considered one of the most lucrative hotel markets in the world and has the second largest construction pipeline in Asia. Growing affluence and the increasing role India is expected to play in the global economy are likely to drive both leisure and business travel in the coming years. For most global hotel majors a significant part of their hotel pipeline is centered on faster growing developing markets like India. India has an estimated 170,000 hotel rooms of which around 60,000 are branded. Even with the expected addition of another 60,000 hotel rooms over the next three to five years, the industry is expected to fall short of meeting the long-term demands of a growing economy.

2nd India Hotel Expansion Summit 2012 featured the most prominent industry leaders and government officials from across the globe providing informative and inspiring discussions pertaining to India’s current needs and their ambitious future. India welcomes the international community to join this forum to discover new strategies and technologies that can assist in building a state-of-the-art hospitality infrastructure to accommodate the domestic and international market.

The Chairman for Day 1 of the event, Mr.Akshay Kulkarni, Regional Director – Hospitality (South and South East Asia) for Cushman and Wakefield welcomed the delegates to the conference. He then made a presentation about India’s Hotel market opportunities and challenges. His presentation spoke about the growth of tourism in India, the various government initiatives including the provisions of visa on arrival, the tourism infrastructure projects among other things. He also spoke about the challenges, including manpower, infrastructure, hotel development in India and competition from other South East Asian countries. He ended his presentation by speaking of future trends to watch out for and potential opportunities in the field

Another eminent speaker on Day 1, Mr. Kevin Wallace, President and CEO, JA Resorts and Hotels spoke about the impact of the current economic climate on travel and hospitality investments in India. He spoke about the market drivers including a favorable exchange rate, air frequency and a good connection rate, and an appealing tourism product overall. He also spoke about the key investors into hospitality and travel in India, including USA, Europe and other parts of Asia. He presented a few case studies from countries like Thailand, Sri Lanka, Maldives and ended his presentation by speaking about macro economic trends & their impact on project developments, current situation outlook and future opportunities

Speaking about Airport Transit Hotels in India, Mr. Raju Shahani, Consultant – Development & Operations (India and Sri Lanka), Langham Hotels International, gave a fact filled and interactive presentation. He began his presentation by presenting the various properties of the Langham group to the gathered delegates. He spoke about the benefits of staying in a Langham hotel, he mentioned the values that the brand stood for and also described the global presence of the brand. He then spoke about the concept of transit hotels through introducing the property at the Indira Gandhi International airport in New Delhi. He spoke about the challenges of running a transit hotel, the opportunities for those looking to open a transit property, while presenting case studies and client testimonials to help make his point better. His presentation was well received by the delegates and concluded with a lively Question and Answer Session

“A very focused approach highlighting the hospitality industries innovation sustainability and travels / challenges. Topics were varied and interesting.”- Vital Concept Design Private Limited

Day 1 concluded with an interactive panel discussion, moderated by Mr. Akshay Kulkarni. The panelists included Mr. Kevin Wallace, Mr. Nikhil Mancharam, Vice President, Acquisitions and Development, Starwood Asia Pacific and Mr. Raju Shahani. The panelists debated about the trends in the Indian Hospitality Industry, potential pitfalls that new and existing operators should be aware of and discussed potential solutions for the same

Mr. Kevin Wallace was the chairman for Day 2 of the conference. He began the conference by welcoming the delegates to Day 2 of the conference. He then introduced the first speaker of the day, Mr. Zia Sheikh, CEO and CMD, Svenska Design Hotels, who spoke aboutnew trends and concepts in Indian Hospitality. Mr. Sheikh’s presentation dealt with traditional Indian hospitality, the new segments in Indian hospitality, traits of new generation hotels, ethos of new generation hotels, characteristics and features of design hotels across the world. He spoke about the opportunities for designer hotels and new trends including social media and its importance to the hotel industry. He ended his presentation by speaking of the long-term vision for the Indian Hospitality industry

Speaking about the importance of designing your hotel with a green mind, Mrs. Sheila Sri Prakash, Founder, Shilpa Architects, Planners, Designers Pvt Ltd spoke about hotel design and what challenges a hotel designer has to face on a daily basis. She spoke about the need to incorporate our own cultural background while designing a hotel, the importance of keeping a local flavor while retaining the global levels of comfort, and also the growing importance of being “Green” and thinking “Green” while designing a hotel

“This programme is very educative for the entrepreneurs and owners management of the hotels. Best wishes” - Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation

Another eminent speaker on Day 2, Mr. Beni Agrawal, General Manager, Business Development, Berggruen Hotels, spoke aboutemerging Mid-segment hotels in India. He began by giving a quick introduction to the Bergguen hotel, introducing the delegates to the various properties in India, the facilities in the various properties, and speaking about proposed new locations for future hotels. He also spoke about several features of mid market hotels, including efficiency in design, quality products and offering value for money.

Day 2 concluded with a panel discussion moderated by Mr. Homi S Aibara, partner at Mahajan and Aibara. The panelists included Mr. Rishi Kapoor, Vice President, Development, MGM Mirage, Mr. Beni Agrawal, Mr. Mujib Ahmed, Co-founder and Principal Architect, Collaborative Architecture, and Mr. Mark Heather, Managing Director, Absolute Hotel Services, India. The panelists debated overcoming challenges for New Build Hotels

Noppen would like to thank our other eminent speakers including Mr. Prem Nath, Principal Architect, Prem Nath and associates, Mr. Claude J Scheffer, Deputy Managing Director, Allied Metals (Thailand) Co., Ltd., Mr. Andrew Windsor, Director – Corporate Accounts Worldwide, KOHLER, Mr. Steve Kiernan, Operations Manager, Bond Interiors, Mr. Mujib Ahmed, Co-Founder & Principal Architect, Collaborative Architect, Mr. Rajmohan Govindraj, Manager – Energy & Systems Business, Armstrong (India) and Mr. Anil Kumar, TTk Prestige

Noppen would like to thank our sponsors, Bond Interiors, Allied Metals (Thailand), KOHLER, TTK Prestige and Armstrong. Noppen would also like to thank the eminent delegates for participating in the event and contributing towards making this event a success.

2nd Annual India Hotel Expansion Summit

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