| The firm formally started its banqueting services - both indoor and outdoor catering "" in Bangalore earlier this month. It has built a 15,000 sq ft ballroom at Gandhi Bazaar which can accommodate 1,000 persons. |
| According to Srinidhi Rao, COO, Mayfair Banquets, the Bangalore venture is its first foray into the south Indian catering market. |
| The company is expanding its network across the country with 25 units across 10 cities in the next two years. Each unit will see an investment of Rs 5-6 crore. "We are expanding our footprint in cities like Pune, Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Surat in the next two years," he said. |
| With projections of a turnover of Rs 80 crore from its hospitality business this year, a growth of nearly 35 per cent over the last financial year, the Ghai Enterprises is also planning to expand its hotel business. |
| The group, which presently operates a five-star hotel in Mumbai, Intercontinental, is in the look out for land in five cities like Bangalore, Surat, Shirdi and Ahmedabad to set up luxury hotels and a resort in north Goa. |
| The company had raised Rs 120 crore from Temasek last year to fund the hotel expansion. The group intends to invest nearly Rs 500 crore over the next three years to expand the hotel and banquet business, he said. |
| The company's other businesses include a master franchisee for Baskin-Robbins and Rich Cream, a non-dairy milk product brand, in India. |
| Though there is no systematic study done to assess the size of the domestic catering market in the country, it could be worth over Rs 20,000 crore, 60 per cent of which comes from wedding and related banquets. |
| "There is tremendous potential for standalone banquets in India and there is no pan-India player in this business. We are all set to bridge this gap by expanding our network in major Indian cities," Rao said. |
| Presently, the group has eight banqueting units in five cities and will open two more in the next financial year. |
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