Carlson plans 4 more hotels

After its latest venture in Jalandhar, the Country Inns and Suites of the Carlson Hotels, Asia-Pacific, plans to open four more hotels in the region in 2006-07.

The company has decided to open one hotel each in Chandigarh, Patiala, Amritsar, and Baddi, according to Country Inns and Suites Vice-President Sanjeev Pahwa. The deal for Patiala has been finalised while the company is looking for promoters for its properties in Chandigarh and Amritsar.

With this expansion, the company is expecting to double its turnover by the end of the next fiscal year. In 2004-05, the company closed with a turnover of Rs 24 crore. During this financial year, it is expected to turn in Rs 30 crore and increase it by Rs 20 crore in the next financial year.

Country Inns and Suites has 14 hotels in the country, including five in the northern region. The number of operational hotels was six whereas eight were opening very soon, Pahwa said, adding the company had started operations in 2001 with its first Country Inns and Suites in Katra in Jammu & Kashmir to cater for pilgrims heading for the Vaishno Devi shrine.

Pahwa said, "We have almost finalised the deal with our promoters for the Patiala project. But for the ones in Baddi and Amritsar, the deal is in the works. In Chandigarh, we have identified a location near the Quark unit in Mohali, where one of our promoters from Bangalore has purchased the land."

"We are open to better offers if they come from Panchkula and other satellite towns of Chandigarh. In Amritsar, we are looking for a location near the airport. We hope with the opening of eight new hotels during the next financial year, we can double our turnover by the end of 2006-07," he added.

He said, "Since the concept of seasonal business is on its way out, we would definitely look at Shimla as another destination. This is evident from the Jaipur experiment, where the season stretches from three months to nine months in a year".

The four hotels in this region will come up in two to three years. "We cannot say that the Country Inns and Suites in Chandigarh will be a five-star hotel because sometimes, if you build a hotel that's below five-star status, you get benefits from the state government but as far as quality is concerned, it will be that of five-star hotels," he said.