| Sud is no spin doctor, but he'd like us to think that the planetary positions can say a lot about the status of one's health in the immediate future. And, accordingly, one can be prescribed an ayurvedic diet, detox treatments and yoga regimen that works best. |
| That may sound like a marketing spiel, but the fact is that Sud is putting his money where his mouth is. The Mayar Group is entering into the spa business with an ayurveda, day spa at Delhi's Ashok hotel. |
| Expected to be launched in April, the spa will come with a computer-assisted astrology forecasting, a range of herbal treatments for the body and a specialty restaurant with an a la carte menu that will only feature organic cuisine. |
| Sud expects a turnover of Rs 3 crore in the first year even though the project is expected to break even within three years. |
| But to earn this Rs 3 crore, the spa will be clearly targeting people in the income bracket of Rs 15-18 lakh a year. |
| "What others are doing is setting up getaway spa locations whereas our product is a day destination," says Sud. Currently, majority of Delhi spas are at hotels and meant primarily for their guests. |
| "We're investing Rs 15 crore in building state-of-the-art facilities which will offer not just herbal treatments but also have a gym," he says. |
| While most of the well-known spas such as the Golden Palms Resorts, Angsana Resorts, Ananda in the Himalayas and the Oberoi chain mainly offer a mix of Indian traditional and Thai treatments, the proposed spa at the five-star hotel will focus only on ayurvedic treatments. |
| "There's no point starting a Thai massage spa in the metros as the customers can go to Thailand for that. Our USP is ayurveda. Our concept and experience is different "" a modern spa backed by time-tested traditional applications, and we'd like to go about in a scientific manner," he says, adding that he plans to open similar spas in other metros as well. The spa will form a part of Mayar Group's health care division. |
| Market research agency ORG-MARG and brand consultancy Brand Prophet have been hired to do the market study. |
| Thailand-based company Abacus is currently designing the interiors. "At 25,000 sq ft, the new place will be the biggest day spa in the country," Sud claims. |
| While there is no synergy between Mayar Group's interests in timber and the spa, Sud says his latest project is perfectly in tune with the company's health care business. |
| "This is a backward integration move for us as our company already manufacturers ayurvedic food supplements and a herbal cosmetics range," he says. |
| The company launched Traditions, its herbal cosmetic brand a year ago with an exclusive boutique by the same name in New Delhi's Greater Kailash. |
| 'We plan to take the Traditions brand across the country by 2005," he says. Traditions products, priced over Rs 250, will be retailed at the spa as well. |
| The company, which has spent Rs 60 crore in plant machinery and product development at its plant in Delhi, is into exports, apart from domestic retailing. |
| It makes and exports a host of ayurvedic drug supplements such as 'Koff Relief', 'Healthy Heart', 'Athrid Oil' as well as memory enhancing and stress relief medicines to the US, Ukraine and Canada. |
| The drugs are produced under the Sivananda brandname. The company also makes the popular Bal Chyawanprabha under the same brand name and targeted primarily for children. |
| Its paper and timber business contributes 25 per cent to the total turnover. The company imports Rs 450 crore worth of timber every year, making it the second biggest importer in the country. |
| Its other company Volga, a joint venture with a Russian paper mill, imports newsprint from Russia, Korea, China and Austria. The company launched its biotech division in 2000. |
Top Section
Explore Business Standard