TravTalk India Online Magazine
Working from home has now paved the way for working from hotels, which has not only emerged as the latest trend but also as an innovative solution for hotels to earn revenue during the pandemic, as they offer special packages for corporates and have even tied up with co-working spaces. But, is this only a fad for the interim?
Rohit Chopra, Regional Director – Sales & Distribution (India & South Asia), Accor
The co-working space has great potential in our country, as many organisations find them cost-effective. It is also an alternative revenue stream for hotels. Amenities like high-speed Wi-Fi, 24×7 beverage and food options, on-the-go office facilities like printing and scanning, privacy, helpful team members on call and well-curated spaces are available. Some of our hotels are offering a dedicated plug-and-play office space that can be clubbed with various add-ons. This strategy of thoughtfully distributing spaces and services will go far. We are open to collaborations with co-working firms.
Arif Patel, Regional Vice President – Sales & Marketing, Hyatt India
We have various options to meet all possible needs of the working professional, curated with the highest standards of comfort, luxury and safety. The hotels offering the concept include Hyatt Centric MG Road Bangalore, Grand Hyatt Mumbai, Hyatt Hyderabad Gachibowli, Hyatt Regency Delhi and Hyatt Place Hyderabad. Keeping up with the current reality, a lot of people are working remotely and are looking for comfortable, peaceful and most importantly, safe places to work from. We anticipate this trend to continue, and have been able to provide guests with safe and innovative solutions for their needs.
Sudeep Jain, Managing Director – SWA, IHG
Hotels such as Crowne Plaza Ahmedabad City Centre, Crowne Plaza New Delhi Mayur Vihar Noida, Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park, Crowne Plaza New Delhi Okhla and Crowne Plaza Greater Noida are offering multiple packages. Holiday Inn New Delhi Mayur Vihar, Holiday Inn Express Kolkata Airport, as well as Holiday Inn Express hotels are also offering packages. While there is potential that hotels could gain popularity as an alternate working space for corporate employees, it cannot be confirmed as a long-term change as yet.
Rishi Purim, Senior Vice President, Lords Hotels and Resorts
Lords Hotels and Resorts offers packages in which stay at the hotel and access to office infrastructure are bundled with meals.Our 39 hotels across 10 states and two countries offer work-from-hotel facility. Working spaces with a work desk, uninterrupted Wi-Fi, in-room dining, and facilities like printing and scanning can be availed. Customised packages are available for hourly, daily and monthly usage. Since companies are extending work-from-home indefinitely, this culture will stay post-COVID as well.
Pradipta Mohapatra, Assistant VP (Sales & Marketing)MAYFAIR Hotels & Resorts
Although on a smaller scale, we have offered work-from-hotel options to some companies, consequent to their request. For us, the experience of it was promising as it offered an alternative source of revenue at a time when traditional sources of revenue are drying up. Our 12 properties are adequately equipped to cater to the demand in this category. However, when demand picks up, it will be a tricky territory to manage as every hotel has limited space. From a revenue perspective, events and weddings are any day more rewarding.
Abinash Manghani, Chief Executive Officer, WelcomHeritage
As of now, two of our hotels are part of the ‘Work From Here’ programme, WelcomHeritage Ayatana in Coorg and WelcomHeritage Inderpura Resort in Udaipurwati, considering the easy accessibility from key metro cities. ‘Hybrid hospitality’ could be an additional source of income for the hotels. Underperforming areas within the building can be optimised from a revenue and income perspective. From an investor’s perspective this could be an appealing concept and may become a permanent new form of hospitality in the future.
Nikhil Sharma, Area Director Eurasia, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts
Wyndham-branded properties will handle requests such as these at the hotel level and on a case-by-case basis. Our Wyndham Easy Book initiative gives businesses a range of properties to choose from, and we are looking forward to introducing more options. It’s difficult to say which trend will stick post COVID-19, but I do feel that this culture of offering workspaces in hotels could be one that evolves. We are seeing an uptick in digital and remote work, which could result in an increase of people and businesses using hotels.
Inputs by Nisha Verma
