Leela to invest Rs 100 cr to upgrade Goa property

Hotel Leelaventure today said it will invest Rs 100 crore to upgrade its property in Goa this year and is looking to expand presence in India by opening new company-owned properties and taking up management contracts.

"We are open to opportunities for management contracts to establish an all India footprint. We could look at locations such as Kolkata, where we do not have any presence right now and additional properties in Bangalore and Mumbai," Hotel Leelaventure Vice President Marketing and Sales Sanjay Pasricha told PTI.

Currently, the company operates seven luxury hotel properties in Mumbai, Bangalore, Udaipur, Goa, Kovalam (Kerala), New Delhi and Gurgaon.

 

All the hotels are owned and managed by the company except the one in Gurgaon, which is under a management contract.

"Another property in Chennai will soon come up and the company is building new hotels in Agra, Hyderabad, Lake Ashtamudi in Kerala and have plans for Jaipur as well," he added.

Talking about the upgradation plans, Pasricha said, the hotel in Goa will soon undergo renovation for which the company will spend Rs 100 crore.

"We are increasing the number of rooms from 186 at present to 206. New restaurants are being added along with special spa and healthcare facilities. The rooms are being torn up and will be re-done to give them a new look," he said.

Besides, the company is also upgrading another hotel in Kerala next fiscal.

"We also have plans to upgrade the 156 room hotel at Kovalam in Kerala, but the budget for the same has not been finalised yet," he said.

The company's new 260 room property in Delhi has been opened to the public recently.

Commenting on global expansion plans, Pasricha said the firm is exploring opportunities but did not provide details.

"We will go international soon. Currently, we are working to build the brand Leela in global markets. There is strong advertising and PR done in core markets like the UK, US and Germany. We also have strong sales teams and conduct road shows in 40 different cities across the world," he said.

In order to woo customers from across the globe, the company has tied up with Global Hotel Alliance, an alliance of 12 independent hotel brands.

"Along with the GHA, the company has launched a loyalty programme -- GHA Discovery -- to provide unique and local experiences to our guests," Pasricha added.