The Hindu Business Line : Istithmar lines up 8 easyHotels for India

Mumbai April 17 Heard of luxury-hotel rooms on assembly line or being shipped in entirety? That is what the Dubai-based Istithmar Hotels proposes to do.

The company plans to open 38 budget hotels in 17 countries, including India and Pakistan, with an investment of over $400 million over the next five years.

Istithmar Hotels is a 100 per cent subsidiary of Dubai World's investment company Istithmar. It holds the master franchise of easyHotels for the Middle East and North Africa. It recently launched its first project in Al Karama, one of the six planned for the Emirate.

"Over the past 10 months we have invested over $2.5 million in researching, designing and refining the core room concept. In approximately 15 square metres, each room provides everything that the guest will want — a well-sprung bed, high-pressure shower unit, work cubicle and an activity wall that includes a flat screen television and broadband Internet," said Mr Joe Sita, Chief Executive Officer, Istithmar Hotels. Each room will cost about $50,000.

Mr Sita, who was in Mumbai last week, said eight such hotels would be established in India. Each hotel will cost around $10-15 million and the venture involves construction of 3,800 rooms.

Costs, gestation

The room pricing is competitive, more so if the project gestation period is five months for a 200-room hotel. A 200-room five star will take around three years to complete, while this one will start generating revenue six months onwards.

While it is difficult to estimate the cost of a top-end hotel room, inclusive of structure and other link ups, it would be upwards of Rs 50 lakh, said Mr Ninad Randivi, Chairman, Sankalpan Infrastructure Pvt Ltd. The Sankalpan Group provides a one-stop solution, from design and architectural consultancy to project execution.

Contrary to the traditional approach to prefabrication, where all structural elements are prepared offsite, the rooms will be fabricated in total at the Istithmar Hotels custom-built factory.

It would include the room's structure, all internal plumbing and wiring, furniture, flat screen TVs and even bedding and towels. It will then be shipped to "construct" easyHotel properties. The room frame will be of steel and the flooring and walls of composite material, Mr Sita said.

The onsite building concept is called "stack, connect and stick." The units are stacked atop one another, then connected with prefabricated corridors and lift units and finally "stuck" onto a concrete platform. A typical 200-room easyHotel can be readied in about five months, if the platform is in place.

The component pieces can be assembled within an existing building or a refurbishment as well. It can also be thought of as an addition to existing malls and even be slotted in multi-storeyed parking lots.

EasyHotel properties aim to offer cost conscious short-stay customers a first class `sleep and shower' experience at an affordable price.

Tariffs are for accommodation alone and guests can choose what they want — television, Internet connectivity and so on. Bookings are through the Internet and like low-cost airlines, early birds stand to benefit.

The Istithmar Hotels investment portfolio is close to $3 billion, which includes a significant investment in Kerzner Group, the developer and operator of Atlantis Resorts, and ownership of Knickerbocker Hotel on Times Square, W Hotel Union Square and Hotel Washington in Washington DC.