DRMumbai: One of the world’s oldest hospitality brands, Kempinski Hotels held a three-city roadshow in March covering New Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. Thirteen hotels showcased their properties at the event – Kempinski hotels from Istanbul and Barbaros Bay Bodrum (Turkey), Dubai, Geneva, Munich, Red Sea and Dead Sea (Jordan), Budapest, Venice, Bali, Singapore, Vienna and Kitzbühel (Austria).
“We were here in November 2018 and we are back already! This shows how important the India market is for us,” said Imad Sawaya, Regional Director – Business Development, Middle East and Africa, Kempinski Hotels, who led the delegation. “We wanted to connect with partners and strengthen relationships in India and also socialise three recent openings.”
The Emerald Palace Kempinski Dubai (Palm Jumeirah), The Apurva Kempinski Bali and The Capitol Kempinski Singapore have been recently added to the Kempinski portfolio. All the three properties are in cities patronised by Indian travellers and hence receive a lot of interest from the travel trade here.
“The outbound business from India is one of top 10 source markets for Kempinski Hotels. As Indian travellers want to discover new destinations and enjoy unique experiences, we hope to see India in the top 5 soon,” commented Sawaya.
Kempinski’s Middle East properties, especially in the UAE, garner significant Indian patronage. Emirates Palace Abu Dhabi and Kempinksi Hotel Mall of the Emirates Dubai welcome many Indian guests. In Europe, especially the Vienna and Munich properties host many Indian families too. India is a richly segmented market according to Sawaya.
“Leisure, corporate, MICE, weddings and honeymoons, every segment is growing in India.” MICE and Weddings are important categories for Kempinski. Explaining the brand values, Sawaya said Kempinksi stands for a luxury promise and a lot of that depends on the property itself, its location and of course the service. “People stay in comfort and style at a Kempinski. Our brand values evolve around the guests. We never compromise on the elegance of European service.”
In 2018, Kempinski appointed Nijhawan Group as their India market representative. Substantial growth has been achieved by the opening of three global sales offices in India. In 2012, Kempinski had parted ways with The Leela after being together for about 25 years. Sawaya had this to say when asked if Kempinski was eager to re-enter India with a flagship property. “We are trying to identify the right opportunities which can deliver the brand’s luxury promise in India.”
