INDIA Dubai-based Emaar Hospitality Group LLC plans to debut in India within the next 18 months with the launch of its luxury Address Hotels & Resorts brand.
CEO Mark Dardenne says the company is seeking partners to help launch the brand in India, with the initial property likely in New Delhi or Mumbai. Emaar plans to manage hotels in India.
Emaar has tapped Nijhawan Group for sales and marketing within India, which the company hopes will become a key source market. “Over the past two years, patrons from India to our properties in Dubai have increased from 6% to 13%, and we target to grow it by 10% to 15% year-on-year,” Dardenne tells Hospitality Biz India. “India contributes 10% of total revenue of the group. Our sales team will make frequent visits to India in order to create awareness about our brands.”
In January, Emaar announced plans to double its Address portfolio by launching five new properties in the next four years. The firm has Address Hotels under development in the south of France, Marrakech, Bali, Budapest and Istanbul, all slated to open in 2013 or 2014. An expansion into India would be in addition to those plans.