The Hindu Business Line : Holidaying with the Taj

KICK-STARTING the process of creating sub-brands, the Taj umbrella brand is now taking a back seat to give mileage to its new sub-brands. Having embarked upon a restructuring exercise, the Indian Hotels Company Ltd has chosen its Leisure Hotels division to develop its first sub-brand — Taj Holidays.

Abanti Sankaranarayanan, Director-Marketing, Indian Hotels, says the chain has come up with a brand that has a delivery of brand promise. Considering the Taj umbrella brand is already strong, the aim is to build sub-brands around `experiences' to strengthen its brand properties. "All this time we have been in the process of getting the product ready to give a differentiated brand promise," says Sankaranarayanan about Taj Holidays.

After commissioning extensive research to understand the domestic and international premium resort guest, the Taj Leisure Hotels' strategy was to weave a common thread around its holiday offerings, providing a competitive advantage and yet be different. Taj Holidays was seen as an appropriate choice on which to build a differentiated promise.

The essence of the Taj Holidays brand is this — "holidays that take care of me, allow me to connect with my inner-self and care for those who matter to me." The brand will help discover new places and experiences, in a contemporary yet friendly and romantic way.

A media campaign, developed by Rediffusion DY&R, allows the brand to extend its appeal across a broad section of its target market. It states the role that holidays play in an individual's life. Using the movie poster technique, the campaign highlights the emotions of people who do not spend quality time with their families owing to high stress jobs.

With a copy that reads, "He was married to his job, she has no time for the kids. The remarkable story of a family who travelled great distances to come closer," the message is clear, compelling and mirrors the strenuous lifestyle that people lead. Covering all aspects of a holiday experience, from reliving romance at exotic locales, enjoying both champagne cruises and lazy rides on rice boats, to engaging in the thrills of adventure sports or rediscovering 17th Century palaces, the campaign urges its target audience to live out their dreams and soak in the joy of rediscovering themselves.

Says Sankaranarayanan, "These tailor-made holidays allow leisure travellers to explore local cultures, exhilarate in the outdoors, discover spirits within, savour fine cuisines, indulge in luxury and pamper their children.''

To be consistent in aspects of product and service standards at all its hotels, the Taj group plans to adopt a fairly uniform architectural style in all its hotels, developed by the US-based Landor Consultants."All sub-branding initiatives, including the Taj Holidays, will get dovetailed into the larger vision for the Taj group with passage of time," says Sankaranarayanan.

The entry of major global brands has also affected the process of brand building. "The need to differentiate only increases with competition," says Sankaranarayanan. Meanwhile the Leisure division has been showing improved results due to the focus on domestic leisure business and the substantial increase in international leisure tourism.

The occupancy levels have increased from 43 per cent to 52 per cent in the same period. The revenue from the leisure division also increased from Rs 46 crore to Rs 63 crore .

With enhanced branding initiatives by the leisure division, the services and products from the Taj Hotels (operating in this segment) can only get better. While launching the Taj Holidays brand, Jamshed Daboo, Chief Operating Officer, Taj Leisure Hotels, said, "We look forward to meeting the needs of every traveller, irrespective of their age and preference and offer them an opportunity to rediscover the Taj experience every time they plan their leisure holidays." Wah, Taj!

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