The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) Delivers A Strong Performance for the Third Quarter of 2018-19

Mr. Puneet Chhatwal, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, IHCL, said “The Company delivered a strong performance in the third quarter of this current fiscal. We saw double digit growth in revenues, robust increase in EBITDA margins of 150 bps and a PAT growth of 50%.

This has been a significant year for IHCL. We retained the iconic Taj Mahal, New Delhi; renewed a long-term agreement for the landmark hotel, Taj Lake Palace, Udaipur; and won the bid for The Connaught in Lutyens’ Delhi. We have signed 20 hotels in this financial year totalling over 2500 rooms in key cities such as London, Dubai, Makkah, New Delhi and Kathmandu. This year also marked the 115^th anniversary of our flagship hotel The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai which was celebrated with a charity gala raising funds for the Taj Public Service Welfare Trust.”

The historic Taj Connemara, Chennai dating back to 1854 reopened after undergoing an extensive renovation and redesign. Ginger underwent a major repositioning and unveiled the brand’s new look in the lean luxe segment at Ginger Panjim, Goa. The quarter saw the opening of our second hotel in Udaipur - Taj Aravali Resort & Spa.

Mr. Giridhar Sanjeevi, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, IHCL stated: “This is the third consecutive quarter of strong results in the current financial year which is an outcome of increase in revenues and leveraging operational efficiencies; while maintaining a healthy growth in ARR over the market. ”

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

·       IHCL won the bid for the iconic Taj Mahal, New Delhi which has been an important part of the cultural and historic fabric of the National Capital.

·       It also renewed its contract for Taj Lake Palace, Udaipur.

·       IHCL signed a management contract for two hotels in Goa adding 506 rooms to its pipeline. The Company will take over the management of the legendary 207 keys Cidade de Goa which will form a part of SeleQtions portfolio as of April 2019. An additional 299 rooms which are under construction, will be added to the same complex under the Taj brand scheduled to open by the end of this year.

·       The landmark, Taj Connemara, Chennai dating back to 1854 reopened after undergoing a two year-long extensive renovation and redesign.

·       IHCL is poised to capture the growing domestic demand, having completed renovations and upgradations of several of its hotels in key cities including Taj Palace, New Delhi; Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, Goa; Taj Fort Aguada Resort & Spa, Goa; Taj Bengal, Kolkata; Taj Fisherman’s Cove Resort & Spa, Chennai; Taj Krishna, Hyderabad; Taj Ganges, Varanasi; Taj Mahal, Lucknow and St. James’ Court, A Taj Hotel, London.

·       IHCL opened its second hotel in Udaipur – Taj Aravali Resort & Spa. Nestled at the foothills of the picturesque Aravalli mountain range, the 92 room resort is spread across 27 acres of lush landscaped gardens.

·       IHCL opened its first mountain resort Taj Theog Resort & Spa, Shimla in Himanchal Pradesh. Nestled amidst thick Cedar forests and spread over five acres every nook and corner if the hotel offers mesmerising views of the might Himalayas. 

·       IHCL unveiled the new look for Ginger in Panjim, Goa post a brand repositioning exercise. Ginger will now operate in the lean luxe segment.

·       IHCL signed 20 hotels in the current financial year including three hotels in the third quarter. These include a second Taj hotel in Lucknow, a Vivanta in Bhubaneswar and a Ginger in Nashik. 

·       In line with our commitment to give back to community, the flagship and iconic Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai celebrated its 115^th anniversary with a fund raiser; proceeds from which went to the Taj Public Service Welfare Trust for several humanitarian causes.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

·       ETHICAL BOARDROOM CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AWARDS - IHCL was the recipient of the Best Corporate Governance award in Asia in the Leisure & Hospitality category

·       TELEGRAPH UK TRAVEL AWARDS - Taj Hotels ranked #2 in the list of the ‘World’s Best Hotel Groups’

·       CONDE NAST TRAVELLER US & UK GOLD LIST - Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur, one of the most awarded hotels in the world has featured on the globally acclaimed Gold List.

·       WORLDWIDE HOSPITALITY AWARDS - Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur was the joint winner in the Best "Wow Effect" for a luxury hotel category and Taj.Live, the Company’s social media command center, was placed among the top three digital innovations of the year.

CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER US READERS’ TRAVEL AWARDS - Five Taj hotels ranked among the 50 Best Hotels in the World including Taj Falaknuma Palace, Hyderabad; Rambagh Palace, Jaipur; Jai Mahal Palace, Jaipur; Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur and Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai.    

About The Indian Hotels Company Limited

The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL), and its subsidiaries, bring together a group of brands and businesses that offer a fusion of warm Indian hospitality and world-class service. These include Taj – the hallmark of iconic hospitality, SeleQtions, a named collection of hotels,  Vivanta, sophisticated upscale hotels and Ginger which is revolutionizing the lean luxe segment.

Incorporated by the founder of the Tata Group, Jamsetji Tata, the Company opened its first hotel - The Taj Mahal Palace, in Bombay in 1903. IHCL operates 178 hotels including 30 under development globally across 4 continents, 12 countries and in over 80 locations.  

The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) is South Asia’s largest Indian hospitality company by market capitalization. It is primarily listed on the BSE and NSE.

Please visit www.theindianhotels.com; www.tajhotels.com; www.gingerhotels.com

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For more information, please contact:  rakhee.lalvani@tajhotels.com