Co-branding budget hotels
Foraying further into the East after its first hotel in Kolkata, Cygnett Hotels and Resorts will open its second property in the Northeast in Guwahati.
Kolkata-based hotel management company, Cygnett Hotels and Resorts, has recently announced its association with the US-based Jameson Inn. According to Sarbendra Sarkar, MD and CEO, Cygnett Hotels, the company’s USP is to be turnaround specialist for loss-making projects. “Our initial focus is to franchise and manage around 45 hotels pan-India by 2020. The company has brands across the economy, budget, midscale and upscale segments. Jameson, which has around 225 properties in the world, has also given the option of cobranding to Cygnett. With the partnership, Cygnett is also eyeing properties in SouthEast Asia,” he says. Going for-
Our initial focus is to franchise and manage around 45 hotels panIndia by 2020
ward, the company aims to have over 300 keys in the budget and mid segment category within the next one year with six hotels, he adds.
The first property under the joint venture has come up in Kolkata. Giving details about the property, which has been operational for about two months now, Sarkar outlines, “We launched the first hotel in Kolkata in Park Street with 50 rooms. This is an untapped market. Unlike other regions, Kolkata still has more demand than supply in the mid-budget hotel landscape. The hotel is currently doing about 80 per cent occupancy and is mainly driven by corporate clientele.”
Foraying further into the east, the group will soon open its second property in the Northeast in Guwahati. Specialising in small boutique properties, the company would open hotels in Varanasi, Lucknow, Jaipur and Bengaluru by the end of this year, he reveals. “Our growth would come from Tier-II and Tier-III places, which are untapped markets. They are our first priority. Then we would also focus on various state capitals,” he adds. The company is also opening a new 100-room hotel in Nepal which would be functional in the next six months.