Yet to complete a year of operation, Conrad Pune has been acknowledged as one of the finest five-star properties to open in India in recent years. Amit Midha, general manager, Conrad Pune shares the aspects that make his property so unique By Sudipta Dev
The opening of Conrad Pune early this year marked the entry of Hilton’s upscale luxury brand in India. The 24th Conrad to open across the world, the property’s ideal location at the edge of Koregaon Park, extensive F&B offerings and the large events spaces has established it as a hotel of choice for both corporate and leisure segments. It is not without reason that Amit Midha, general manager, Conrad Pune has much to be proud of. “This is by far one of the best products India has seen in the last few years. The feedback we get from our guests is that Conrad Pune is among the better newly opened five-star hotel in the country, not in Maharashtra alone,” he says.
It is an art deco hotel, the art pieces in the property have been sourced from throughout the country. The hotel is owned by Sandeep Raheja of Palm Grove Beach Hotels (a subsidiary of K Raheja Construction Group). Raheja is the architect of the building and the interiors were done by a Hong Kong based company, apart from two F&B outlets. Midha reminds that Conrad was looking for a great partner as the brand was entering India for the first time, “Of course location, partner, product, everything had to be in sync. If we get more like-minded partners we are open to signing more properties around the country. Mid next year the second Conrad will open in Bengaluru, again at a prime location. About 280 keys. There is a good pipeline, expansion plan for India,” he says.
F&B focus
For Midha it is his second hotel as the GM, after The Oberoi Gurgaon, and his seventh opening, having opened hotels at various levels and capacities for the Oberoi Group, Marriott and Hyatt. He acknowledges that the first Conrad in India had to be “a fantastic product”. He believes that the location, the F&B and the handpicked team of the hotel have been the greatest strengths. “F&B is a huge operation in the hotel. We get great reviews for F&B,” says Midha. The hotel has six outlets – Pune Sugar Box, the delicatessen which is operated 24×7, popular with midnight guests specially over the weekends; Coriander Kitchen is the all day dining restaurant serving Indian, Asian and Mediterranean – the Sunday brunch at this restaurant is already much talked about for its offering and live kitchens; Zeera, the speciality Indian restaurant with a luxurious private dining room; Kabana, the exclusive poolside café; Koji, the Asian specialty restaurant, serves the best of Japanese, Chinese and Thai cuisine; and the Masu bar. The 13th and 14th floor are executive floors where the executive lounge is located serving breakfast, all day tea, coffee and evening cocktails.
“We have been quality conscious from day one and are known for it, that is why the most affluent in the city come to us,” states Midha. Koji and Masu were designed by Spin, a Japanese company known for designing very high end restaurants around the world. “In terms of F&B, our competition has no good Chinese restaurant or Asian restaurant, in a five-star hotel segment we are doing exceptionally well. As a guest enters Koji, he first sees the tea bar or the tea library, with different types of teas. It is a very authentic Japanese or Chinese restaurant operation, and they love their teas. We give you that experience. We have a huge brigade of expert chefs here, who are very skilled and handpicked from restaurants around the country,” mentions Midha, pointing out that the who’s who of Pune are visible here. Koji does 80 per cent occupancy every week/ month. The private dining room in Koji also has its own Teppan grill. If there is a group of 12, a dedicated chef can make Teppanyaki dishes and serve at the table.
Venue of choice
Conrad Pune opened on March 10, 2016, and hosted a 600 guest wedding the next day itself. “Ever since, there have rarely been days when we did not have an event, smaller or bigger. We have done an enormous number of weddings and have gone upto 1500 guests when it comes to the largest gatherings,” informs Midha.
The property has 20,000 sq feet of meeting space, out of which there is 8000 sq feet of ballroom which can be divided into three sections. Each section has is a drop down projector and screen, modern state-of-the-art audio visuals, high clear ceiling. The crystal chandeliers have been imported from Czech Republic, and can change colours according to the theme. Along with the ballroom there are total nine meeting/ board rooms and three big pre-function areas. “We have an expert team to guide how to do an event in an unparalleled way. There is a separate entrance to the banquet. We also have a dedicated vehicle elevator in the hotel, that is one of the USPs. You can drive the largest SUV into the elevator to the ballroom. If you have a car launch we are the apt location. For that matter, for a wedding if the groom wants to come to the ballroom in a car, it can be organised,” states Midha.
The hotel has been attracting a discerning clientele from Mumbai on long weekends. “The last few long weekends we had 260/ 280 rooms occupied out of 310. The hotel caters to both business and leisure segments, including families with kids,” says Midha. There are 47 sets of inter-connecting rooms.
The second floor is the recreational/ lifestyle floor with a salon, gym, a fitness centre, spa and pool. According to Midha, it is the only pool in the city that opens to the sky but is temperature controlled. The entire area is well landscaped, and it even won an award for best landscaped terrace in Pune city. “The Pune Municipal Corporation gave the award even before the propert opened. That area itself is like a resort, it does not give you a feel that you are in a city,”
remarks Midha.
The property has many repeat and long staying guests. “For a new hotel to have that kind of patronage makes us feel proud,” affirms Midha.