STANDALONE CLUBS

Luxury club regulars around the world swear by brands such as Soho House Club, CORE:Club, The Clubhouse and Annabel’s. These are private clubs and are not part of large hospitality chains. One such club in India is Indus Club, started by the former owner of Neo Sports, Harish Thawani. It is located in the business district of Bandra-Kurla Complex in suburban Mumbai. Thawani says there was a clear gap in the market in terms of environment and experiences where achievers could interact with like-minded people. “Apart from networking with like-minded individuals, people are also looking for great entertainment, lifestyle and dining options. When I assemble this list, there is no place in India that offers this,” claims Thawani, according to whom most existing luxury clubs in India haven’t evolved.

“The idea was that if we could house ourselves in a fantastic locality which is good for the business community and combine lifestyle, entertainment, great

dining and offer business facilities, we would have a winning formula,” he adds. The Indus Club, according to Thawani, has signed over 250 members in a little over 10 weeks of operation. In addition to the dining and meeting facilities, the club also offers a spa, a gym, a theatre as well as an indoor golf facility at an upfront fee of `10 lakh for 20 years.

Also opening shortly in India is the London headquartered Soho House& Co, which is exclusively for people with creative backgrounds. “We are moving towards building micro communities on the basis of tastes, affinities and hobbies,” says Srinivasan of Quantum.