The Hindu : Hilton open to pick up equity in hotel chains

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Apr 03, 2004

Business

Business

Hilton open to pick up equity in hotel chains

NEW DELHI, APRIL 2. One of the biggest names in the global hospitality industry, Hilton International, is open to equity participation in Indian hotel chains. Hilton, which has signed strategic-cum-franchisee alliance with the Trident brand of East India Hotels Ltd, said that the tie-up was a first step towards its more active role in India.

"The recent tie-up with Trident Hotels is our springboard to many more things in India for which all possible options are open for us. It can also include equity participation," Koos Klein, President of Hilton International (Middle East and Asia Pacific) told reporters here. Mr. Klien said Hilton can also tie-up with more hotel chains, and enter into a strategic and franchisee arrangements with them.

He said that though nothing was on the table at the moment, but as the current tie-up with Trident Hotels was not an exclusive agreement and both the parties were free to enter into any future understanding, hence all options were open.

Mr. Klein was in India as to announce a strategic-cum-franchisee alliance with the Trident brand of East India Hotels Limited. The alliance will see seven Trident hotels of EIH being renamed Trident Hilton and the former Oberoi Towers in Mumbai change its name to the Hilton Towers. EIH is also open to offering Hilton equity in its Trident brand of hotels and expand the alliance for its hotels outside India.

The Chairman of EIH, P. R. S. Oberoi, said, "the Trident Brand was chosen for strategic-cum-franchisee alliance as it is a growing brand and will have a larger appeal". "Though the tie-up with Hilton will for the time being be limited only to India, but later it can also be expanded to EIH Hotels outside the country as well".

The strategic alliance between EIH and Hilton is the basis for a franchise agreement that builds on the combined strength of Trident's domestic brand position and operational expertise together with Hilton's strong global brand and vast sales and marketing network.

Under the strategic-cum-franchisee alliance, East India Hotels will continue to manage all hotels and will undertake domestic marketing and promotion and reservations in India. Hilton International will be responsible for international marketing, promotions and reservations through the Hilton global network. On being asked the segment he wants to target with this latest alliance with the Trident Hotels, Mr. Klein said, "It is the business-class in India we want to target with this tie-up even in future". "The benefits that a Indian customer will get with the tie-up is apart from the global brand of Hilton several International loyalty programmes, which are exclusive to Hilton," he added.

Mr. Oberoi said, "as the Trident Brand was not well known as the Oberoi Hotels because it is comparatively new to the hospitality business, hence we decided to have a tie-up with an international brand like Hilton".

UNI

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Business