Sanjay Sethi
The pandemic made us look beyond the traditional aspects defining business revenues and costs. All aspects of costs became opportunities to revisit and revise, which brought the fixed expenses down by 50% for FY21 without impacting guest experiences.
The past year has been one of tremendous learning for Sanjay Sethi, MD and CEO, Chalet Hotels. At the beginning of the pandemic, the company adopted a two-pronged approach. Phase One had a strong focus on trimming expenses and conserving cash while protecting revenue and market share, while Phase Two concentrated on boosting revenues and stabilising costs.
“The pandemic made us look beyond the traditional aspects defining business revenues and costs,” Sethi recalled. “All aspects of costs became opportunities to revisit and revise, which brought the fixed expenses down by 50% for FY21 without impacting guest experiences.” He added that the company’s hotels are now moving towards a more efficient future, led by higher degree of employee productivity, long-term focus on cost management and realignment of services offered.
To create more opportunities last year, it began looking at businesses from unusual avenues, ranging from quarantining guests, companies seeking business continuity plans (BCP), sea farers, repatriating passengers from ‘Vande Bharat’ flights, film and web series shoots, sports teams, staycations, etc. F&B offerings were redefined by providing safe, luxury home dining experiences.
THE BALANCING ACT
While adapting to new business practices, there is tremendous pressure to be productive and deliver superior results. Demonstrating empathy by encouraging employee wellbeing and celebrating their success with guided leadership has always been Chalet Hotels’ mantra to prevail.
“We focused on cross-training our people across functions, making them tech-savvy, and ensuring they are fully knowledgable about the latest safety protocols. This helps them carry out operations swiftly and efficiently, while keeping health practices at the core of their activities,” Sethi noted.
The use of technology in streamlining of logistics has gained significance in the company, whether through mobile apps or IoT, to ensure reduced physical interaction and enhance experience. With easy access to technology and ever-changing customer tastes and preferences, Chalet Hotels stayed nimble, adopting and offering services according to evolving customer requirements.
Apart from heightened attention to health and hygiene, Sethi believes that adoption of technology and customised solutions will drive future growth. Enhanced consumer awareness has led to diverse offerings within the industry such as boutique hotels, vacation rental, extended stay products, etc., which is an opportunity waiting to be harnessed.
Additionally, Chalet Hotels, with a key focus on return on investments, has been reviewing under-performing assets and looking at re-purposing some of them. For instance, it is transforming The Orb, a retail space in Mumbai into a commercial one with select F&B offerings.
