LAP OF LUXURY

Calcutta, April 8: Get ready to experience The Luxury Collection at ITC Sonar Bangla.

The city-based tobacco-to-hotel major is set to bring one of the most prestigious hotel brands in India.

This week, ITC and Starwood Hotels will announce a marketing alliance in Delhi.

Under the pact, ITC will bag the right to use the US-based hospitality major’s upscale The Luxury Collection brand in some of its properties.

At present, nine of ITC’s properties sport the Sheraton tag, also owned by Starwood.

It is believed that the properties will use The Luxury Collection tag, that are high on the luxury quotient while the others will continue to use the Sheraton name.

ITC is likely to have exclusive use of The Luxury Collection brand in India but not over Sheraton in future. ITC and Starwood had a 30-year exclusive marketing alliance over the Sheraton brand. That agreement came to an end in 2005.

Since then, the two companies had been extending their old contract for short stints, while carrying on negotiations.

ITC was seeking an exclusive agreement for Starwood’s top-end brands in India.

The Luxury Collection brand was launched in 1995. The other brands owned by Starwood include Le Meridien, St Regis, Westin Hotels and Resorts and W Hotels.

The Luxury Collection hotels are spread over 58 locations across 25 countries.

In 1998, Starwood Inc acquired The Luxury Collection and combined it with St Regis Hotels & Resorts.

Apart from few Southeast Asian tourist destinations and China, this brand is present in Israel, Kuwait and Turkey.

The development comes at a time when both Starwood and ITC are planning huge expansion in India.

ITC has earmarked an investment of over $1 billion for the hotel business.

It is looking at new properties in Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Goa, Delhi NCR, Pune, Ahmedabad and Calcutta.

ITC is focusing on five-star hotels. The company plans to add 2,500 rooms in the next five years.

At the same time, Starwood is charting out its own growth path, outside the pact with ITC.

It has entered into an agreement with the Delhi-based Vatika group to launch the Westin brand at Gurgaon, Sohna and Bangalore.

Starwood also plans to have 15 Aloft hotels — a moderately priced select services hotel — in India in the next three to five years.

The hotels are likely to come up in Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Bangalore and Hyderabad in partnership with real estate developers as partners.