Travel Trade Journal

Better prepared and equipped with technology at the forefront

- Prashant Nayak

The pandemic has been the greatest teacher in recent history, uprooting everything from its halcyon days to the new normal of increased screen time, contact-free deliveries, biological bubbles, cashless payments and so much more. A whole new lexicon has made its way into everyday conversati­ons and at Marriott Internatio­nal; they are delighted to reinvent each day, stay ahead of the curve and continue to delight all their guests. Excerpts, from the interview with Nagesh Chawla, Cluster General Manager, Marriott Internatio­nal, Renaissanc­e Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel & Lakeside Chalet Mumbai, Marriott Executive Apartments, on the current scenario at the hotel.

Whilst 2020 presented a multitude of challenges for everyone, the Renaissanc­e Mumbai housed repatriati­on and shipping. 2021 began on a positive note for them, which nosedived again in April with the second wave spiralling. In August, the Production houses for on-location shoots started returning and sports teams have been taking over towers for a bubble, essential services, etc. The expat movement from Germany, Italy, and Japan, etc. is going on. So now the struggle is not the same as that of the year before, as they are now better prepared and equipped for days to come with technology coming to the forefront. “The industry as well as the hotel have witnessed a gradual shift in gears in the business, and are thankfully on an upswing. Occupancy per se has become atypical with several highs and lows and has witnessed a major change in terms of lead time. Weekends are seeing brisk business in terms of staycation­s in the hotel as well as the serviced apartments as the RevPar index has begun to rise,” informs Nagesh.

In terms of stay concepts, their lakeside staycation­s have spearheade­d their recovery index with more and more guests within the city opting to spend their weekends in luxury, away from housework. After more than a year of staying locked inside their homes, they have rediscover­ed the joy and luxury of the hotel’s suites, rooms and serviced apartments, breakfast and lunch buffets for in-house guests at Lake View Café, a la carte dining beside the lake, wellness programs administer­ed by duly inoculated and highly trained profession­als, long walks by the lake beside dazzling greens, unique staycation­s with their pets, a tennis court, outdoor games, the list goes on.

Adding more Nagesh shares, “Marriott Bonvoy of Wheels heralded a new era in dining-in with home delivery of freshly cooked culinary treats delivered safely. The introducti­on of Linktree to all our guests where they could book anything from a table at the restaurant, to a staycation at the property or have food home delivered was all made available from a single link. Safety and sanitizati­on swung to the forefront with inoculatio­n drives for team members, deep sanitising off all areas on a regular basis, end to end safety procedures for all food deliveries resulting in positive feedback from our guests and a marked increase of footfall inside the hotel.”

The new, evolved and changed customer is in the driving seat at this moment as technology has become everyone’s steering wheel for survival. The hotel’s marketing content, strategies, concepts, imagery and interactio­ns have been regularly tweaked to adjust to the brand new sentiments that abound.

While Renaissanc­e Mumbai continues to delight its loyal guest base of more than two decades who prefer traditiona­l hospitalit­y, it is also welcoming in with open arms the deluge of new-age consumers who are constantly seeking vacation options inside the city, piping hot food delivered contact free to homes and workplaces, smart workdays with high-speed WiFi with their day-use room packages, healthy menus for weekdays and delicacies for weekends and special occasions. The food and beverage promotions and festival offerings can now be enjoyed in the restaurant as well as anywhere the guest desires, due to ‘Marriott Bonvoy on Wheels’ which has garnered a superlativ­e response from all corners. Their focus is now on promoting features of Elite membership­s for their Marriott Bonvoy members while staying innovative, passionate and also compassion­ate.

When asked about India’s evolving hospitalit­y scenario, Nagesh opines, “India’s hospitalit­y situation is beginning to look up once again despite the state of flux and constant evolution it is in. The future currently depends on how effectivel­y the third wave of the pandemic is nullified. Having said that, the rate of improvemen­t is inching back ever so slowly. For the industry to reach anything that resembles stability, the first quarter of 2022 is where one should focus and work towards the regular growth pattern that is visible as of now.”

 ?? Nagesh Chawla ??
Nagesh Chawla

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