In order to capture a major slice of the growing leisure travel market in India, the Taj group has decided to promote Taj Holidays as a separate entity. "We were only using Taj Holidays as a name in the logo till now, but now we will aggressively brand it as a separate property," Sandhya Kunjur, general manager (marketing) of Taj Leisure Hotels, said today."We expect to capture about 27% of the fast-growing leisure travel market in India within the next 18 months," Kunjur added.About 10 lakh travellers constitute the annual leisure travel market in India of which more than two lakh avail 4-star and above services. Currently, about 20% of the leisure travellers stay at Taj properties. "In the first phase, we will target only those travelling families who have used a 4-star or above hotel service for holidays. We will then extend this to others too," Kunjur said. The Taj group will spend Rs 4 crore in the next seven months to promote Taj Holiday as a brand. A large scale mass-media campaign designed by its advertising agency, Rediffusion, will be released soon across all media vehicles.There are 26 Taj leisure hotels in the country with capacity ranging from 32-140 rooms across Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Goa, Rajasthan,Uttar Pradesh and other states. Currently, Taj Leisure Hotels contribute about 22% to the overall turnover of the Taj Group of Hotels. "With the branding of Taj Holidays, we expect to contribute about 30% to the overall Taj kitty within the next 18 months," Kunjur said. Taj Leisure Hotels have also re-looked at its pricing. "Now, there are offers in the range of Rs 7,000-18,000 for two nights and three days per couple," Kunjur said.
