UK-based hospitality firm Whitbread today said it will invest 75 million pounds (over Rs.535 crore) in India by 2020 to fund its hotels business in the country. The company, which currently owns and runs two ‘Premier Inn’ hotels in India, has plans to operate over 80 properties here in the next ten years.
“Whitbread has earmarked an investment of 75 million pounds for the next ten years with a plan to operate over 80 properties in India,” Premier Inn India Pvt Ltd Director (Brand and Operations) Shwetank Singh told PTI.
He said the company has already invested over Rs.115 crore on two owned hotel properties in Bangalore and Delhi.
“Another four properties have been finalised at Mumbai, Goa, Chennai and Pune, which are currently being developed or are in the process of being acquired,” Singh said.
These properties are likely to be operational only after 2013, he said.
To mark Premier Inn’s entry into India, Whitbread had formed a joint venture with real estate developer Emaar MGF , which was later called off in 2010.
“Premier Inn Pvt Ltd is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Whitbread Plc ,” Singh said.
The company has also re-looked at its strategy for growth in the Indian market.
“The original plan was to work on a company-owned and operated model for all the properties. But recently, we have decided to work on management contracts as well. The 80 properties planned would be a mix of both,” Singh added.
Today, the company announced the launch of a 143-room Premier Inn in the Capital, its second property in India after Bangalore.
Besides the Premier Inn brand in the hotel segment, Whitbread’s popular coffee chain Costa Coffee is also present in India through the franchise route.
