Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) expects a significant boost for its midscale brand -- Ginger Hotels -- following the acquisition of a controlling stake in ANK Hotels and Pride Hospitality which runs Clarks Hotels & Resorts. The Tata Group company, which also operates the Taj brand of hotels, announced that its combined portfolio has now surpassed 550 properties with 55,000 rooms.
IHCL also inked a distribution agreement with Brij Hospitality. This acquisition is being touted as one of the largest in the country’s hospitality industry in terms of capacity addition.
IHCL’s Managing Director and CEO Puneet Chhatwal said the acquisitions place the Ginger brand in a leading position in India, with a portfolio of nearly 250 hotels, and position it well to reach the next 250 over the next five to seven years.
Expressing a bullish outlook on the mid-market segment, Chhatwal said that the acquisitions will also enable the company to cater to the growing aspirations of India’s middle-class tourists, who are seeking clean, affordable, and quality accommodation.
He said the acquisitions put the Ginger brand in a pole position in India with a portfolio of nearly 250 hotels, making it very well positioned to get to the next 250, which will take it to 500 over the next 5-7 years.
Expressing a bullish outlook on the mid-market segment, Chatwal said that the acquisitions would also allow them to serve the growing aspirations of middle class tourists who seek clean and affordable accommodations.
On Monday, IHCL in a regulatory filing stated that its board has approved and executed agreements to acquire about 51% each in two entities - ANK Hotels and Pride Hospitality. The transactions amounting to up to Rs 204 crore will be executed via cash consideration and are expected to be completed by November 15, 2025.
The share subscription and purchase agreements and shareholders' agreements were executed to acquire about 51% equity stake for an amount not exceeding Rs 110 crore in ANK Hotels, and Rs 94 crore in Pride Hospitality.
ANK Hotels and Pride Hospitality have a portfolio of 135 hotels in the midscale segment spread across 110 locations and are presently operated under the Clarks Hotels & Resorts, which over the next few months will be integrated operationally and migrated to IHCL's brandscape predominantly under the Ginger brand among others.
These hotels are on a capital light arrangement of management contracts and select operating leases. Brij Hospitality has a portfolio of 19 hotels in the experiential leisure segment in India's unique destinations.
Chhatwal said the outlook for the hospitality sector remains buoyant as demand outpaces supply and India continues to be an under-served hospitality market especially in the mid-market segment.
“Our partnership with ANK, Pride and Brij Hospitality is a multi-pronged approach addressing India's heterogeneous market landscape and is in line with IHCL's five-year road map 'Accelerate 2030' of unlocking India's tourism potential," he added. IHCL has set a target to have 700 hotels by 2030.