The Hindu Business Line : Rohini Hotels to take Checkers brand to Bangalore

Chennai, Aug. 13 Chennai-based Rohini Hotels Madras Pvt Ltd, a company with business interests in the hospitality and entertainment sectors, is all set to launch a 74-room hotel in Bangalore. The property, secured on a 25-year lease basis, will have two restaurants and facilities including bar, swimming pool and a gym.

Last year, the company launched its second property in Chennai — The Checkers. Built on a 1.4-acre plot, it currently has 60 rooms with three restaurants, bar, roof-top swimming pool and a gym. The whole property is WiFi-enabled. The construction work is still in progress and is likely to be completed by the end of September.

Upcoming projects

According to Mr Vinoj P. Selvam, Executive Director of the company, on completion, the property will have 105 rooms and five restaurants. The company has so far invested Rs 70 crore in the property and will invest another Rs 5 crore to complete the project. Currently, the property enjoys “a steady 80 per cent” occupancy, he said.

On why five restaurants in a 105-room property, he said the hotel’s food and beverage contribution is close to 50 per cent of the total revenues, and “we are planning to promote this hotel as an F&B hotel. “We are also planning to have a separate coffee lounge on the ground floor,” adds Mr Selvam.

Scouting for properties

Rohini Hotels is on the look out for properties in Hyderabad, Andaman and Kochi. “We have almost finalised one in Hyderabad,” he said.

Asked whether Rohini is interested in the 5-star category, he said it was a conscious decision not to enter the segment as there is more demand for three and four-star hotels.

On the entertainment front, the company currently has a 6-screen theatre complex on 3.4 acres at Koyambedu. It plans to pull them down and put up a shopping mall, a 200-room four-star hotel with a convention centre.

“It will also house an eight-screen theatre, which we may outsource to big players such as Adlabs or Inox,” he said. The likely investment in this project is Rs 150 crore, for which the company may explore the private equity option.

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