The Hindu : Business : Mahindra Holidays introduces vacation product for youngsters

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Nov 16, 2006
ePaper

Business

Business

Mahindra Holidays introduces vacation product for youngsters

Staff Correspondent

Designs concept with the help of U.S. company

— PHOTO: BIJOY GHOSH

ZEST FOR LIFE: Arun Nanda (left), Chairman, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India, and Ramesh Ramanathan, Managing Director, at a press conference in Chennai on Wednesday.

CHENNAI: Mahindra Holidays & Resorts Limited (MHRL) has launched a new product called Zest. It is a vacation ownership product, offering short holidays packages for youngsters, who live a stressed life in cities.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, Arun Nanda, Chairman of MHRL, said the company had designed the concept with the help of a U.S.-based consumer experience design firm, IDEO.

He said research showed that 34 per cent of IT employees in India in the age group of 26-39 years were keen to take a short break from their routines.

The study prompted Mahindra to launch Zest, which would be its second product after Club Mahindra.

Zest resorts

Navarun Sen, Business Head of Zest, said the company was planning Zest resorts at destinations accessible easily from metros. These holiday packages would be priced between Rs. 67,000 and Rs. 1.29 lakh. A membership would offer multiple breaks every year for ten years. Zest resorts would offer a choice of three holiday seasons. Its signature resort, underway at Puducherry, was slated to open by the end of 2007.

The upcoming resorts at Udhagamandalam and Kodaikknal would be ready to offer the `Zest experience' by 2006, Mr. Sen said.

The Managing Director of the company, Ramesh Ramanathan said, the company was planning to start 15 such resorts. The total investment would be Rs. 350 crore to Rs. 400 crore.

Mr. Ramanathan said the company had completed ten years and had 45,000 members. It had a total revenue of Rs. 220 crore and gross income of Rs. 157 crore. The company had 16 resorts across the country and would be adding four soon, he said.

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

Business