The Hindu Business Line : Global Hyatt mulls more brands for India

Hyderabad, Dec. 19 Hospitality services major Global Hyatt Corporation is evaluating the option of bringing in more brands into India, including ‘Andaz’.

The Chief Financial Officer of Global Hyatt, Mr Harmit Singh, said, “We believe that the current recessionary phase will pass, and we are looking at the next phase of growth. There is no change in our business plan for India and we expect to add a few more properties over the next three years.”

Speaking to Business Line during his visit here, Mr Singh said that Hyatt is in the process of setting up two properties in Hyderabad, one with the Gayatri Group and the other with Lanco Infratech. We are also evaluating a few other projects in the country.

Long term growth

The closely-held Chicago-based Hyatt now manages nearly 400 properties worldwide and five of them in India. “While the global economy is passing through tough times, India is no exception. But when you look at the long term, 3-5 years, this is a market to be in,” he said.

“Three of Hyatt’s brands — Hyatt Park, Grand Hyatt, Hyatt Regency — are present in India. Andaz was launched in the UK and two more of them are coming up in the US. We could bring these brands to India,” he said. “For Hyatt, India, South-East Asia and West Asia are growth drivers and offer scope for expanding presence. We are in talks with several property owners in the region,” he said.

“Hyatt manages about 100 properties in the US alone. Of these, we have piloted a few properties for back office work by sharing work with business process services provider Genpact. We are now in the process of expanding this,” he said.

Genpact and Hyatt have entered into a five-year agreement. The mandate is to add more work. While a centre based in Moore, Oklahoma, handles all customer facing services, the Hyderabad centre, managed by Genpact, will handle financial transactions, including accounting, payable/receivable, general ledger process and reconciliation.

Shared handling

“Instead of every property having specialised professionals to handle accounting work, now a centralised, shared handling facility will manage all the properties. We can also take advantage of time zones,” he said.

More Stories on : Outlook | Hotels | Brands

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
New Bharath Tyres to set up largest boutique in Kochi

Sutter Home Winery gets interim injunction against Future Wines

Global Hyatt mulls more brands for India

BigFlix.com gets rolling on cutting down costs

Pedigree relaunches vegetarian dog food