SUDIPTA DEV – Mumbai
One of the world’s leading provider of branded casino entertainment, Caesars Entertainment Corporation, is focused on introducing a unique lifestyle, hospitality and entertainment experience in India with its non-gaming hospitality division Caesars Global Living. Caesars will be opening 12 to 15 hotels in South Asia, majority of which, approximately 9-10, will be in India. “We will be launching Caesars hotels, resorts and palaces in the upscale and luxury segments throughout India,” said Neera Chanani, South Asia Head, Caesars Entertainment Corporation. Plans for the first hotel in India will be announced this year, with the target of opening by 2016.
For the company India is the most promising market in the APAC region. “Currently we have two products, the first is Caesars Hotel, which is upscale, and the second would be Caesars Palace, which is a luxury brand. Some of our projects will also combine serviced apartments or branded residences with the hotel,” stated Chanani, adding that in the initial phase the company is looking at major gateway cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi NCR, and resort destinations like Goa. In South Asia the company is also looking at high-growth markets like Sri Lanka.
There are no plans to build large hotels or replicate the Vegas model. “Our features and amenities can be incorporated in a smaller space with right design. We always localise our product to the culture; we will be tapping into India’s rich culture,” said Chanani. The USP of Caesar’s hospitality ventures in India is the company’s expertise in the MICE market – bringing in the experience in efficiently designing and managing millions of square feet of convention/ meetings space. “Second, we can bring in a 360 degree experience that standard hotels do not have. This is our brand strategy. If you add the innovative components of lifestyle and entertainment to that existing five star space, then you have a 360 degree offering that delivers multiple revenue streams which is becoming more critical in this economic environment,” explained Chanani.
On the lifestyle front, the innovative components include extraordinary shopping venues, Michelin starred restaurants, cutting-edge in-room technology in the hotel, etc. “One or more of these ‘wow’ amenities in our hotels will make them a fun, social place, no matter what the size of the hotel is. On entertainment side, we entertain customers from pre-arrival to post-checkout. We bring in top global entertainers for many types of shows. We have strong relationships with those in Hollywood and Bollywood, and with India being an entertainment mecca, we are building programming that will tie that into our products here,” added Chanani. However, not every Caesars hotel will have every amenity. Some may just be an urban convention hotel. It will depend on the location and project.
