Celebration Time In Delhi’s Banquets...

Jyoti Koul - New Delhi

Come December, it is celebration time. This festive spirit of Christmas and New Year charms the entire world with no exception to India. But despite all the fun and frolic, it is time for retrospection and new resolutions that fill the heart with a sense of hope and jubilation.

Beginning 22nd December, there will be an elaborate array of festivals at Radisson Hotel Delhi

After the lull in business last year due the 9/11 episode, hoteliers in the Capital, this year, plan to carry out all programmes and presentations, that were missed out earlier as part of the cost cutting and downsizing measures undertaken by various properties. As things are looking brighter and business improving, so are the celebrations. Various hotels have charted out separate banqueting budgets to tap the business and particularly, local clientele. This being peak tourist season as well as the marriage season, hoteliers are quite optimistic about meeting their targets besides giving their guests an ‘out of the world experience’ in their respective properties.

Being all geared up to encash on the upcoming season, hotel Radisson has not only earmarked a separate budget for its food and beverage (F&B) and banqueting but has also set a target for revenue generation. Numerous events have been planned beginning December 22. The hotel has planned a variety of ‘Christmas Carols’, a day-long event to bring in the spirit of Christmas. “There will be an elaborate array of festivals in the hotel. We will decorate our pastry shops, Santa Claus will distribute surprise gift hampers to guests and spread the message of love and peace. We will also have special decorations for our other outlets. As compared to the previous year, we are optimistic about generating good business from our banqueting operations, this year. We have allocated a budget of Rs 15 lakh which was much less as compared to last year and we are targeting a revenue figure of about Rs 23 lakh only on December 31. In addition, during the entire month, we are hopeful to generate business worth Rs 1.80 crore from F&B alone,” said, Avneesh K Mathur, F&B manager, Radisson Hotel Delhi.
Mathur adds, “The hotel has also tailor-made packages whereby guests choosing to dine in the hotel on the 31st will also be offered a ‘memorable’ night stay at the hotel at a reasonable tariff. Another reason for introducing this package would be the late partying on New Year’s eve. As many of them come with their families and it becomes inconvenient to travel back at night during winter. This economical package, includes entertainment, food, accommodation and many surprises and is designed especially for the the middle income group.”

The F&B offerings for the occasion and other events have been finalised, however, the property is yet to decide on the entertainment activities. Besides, the management is also in the process of putting an aggressive promotional strategy in place to make the event a grand success.

Hyatt Regency, New Delhi is aggressively tapping the potential wedding segment

However, the situation is a bit different with The Connaught hotel. As a norm, the month of December means higher occupancy and low banqueting and F&B. But activities are limited for the hotel, as the entire Connaught Place area remains closed due to the Connaught Place festival. As a result, people do not have easy access to the hotel, and that means special events or allocating budgets for festivities is not be a feasible option.

“Due to these constraints, we prepare much in advance and sell the halls for private parties. Besides, Christmas and New Year, there is hardly anything to celebrate. As there is no special budget, there is no special revenue target. Although, there will be a celebration mood from the 24th to 1st of January but that is not much in terms of money. We will promote special buffet with special focus on providing value for money,” said O P Mendiratta, regional sales manager, The Connaught.

Not many hotels have a separate budget for the month. Hyatt Regency Delhi is trying to tap the marriage segment (which has already commenced from August, this year). As a result, marketing strategies and cost allocations to each department in the hotel have been finalised in the beginning of the year itself. Keeping projections in mind, each department works much in advance for the events.

But, December certainly has a special significance, as this is the only month when the hotel spends on advertising or media campaigns. “This month of December at our hotel is really a memorable one. The housekeeping department pays special attention on lighting and decorating the entire hotel. The F&B department creates mouth watering food items, charts out special menus and sweets and cakes for the occasion. As far as the marketing strategy adopted is concerned, this is the only period when we release advertisements and send gifts and cards to the corporate clientele,” revealed Vinny Narang, communications manager, Hyatt Regency.