Accor intent on expansion in India

BANGKOK, 10 September, 2010 – Accor and InterGlobe will expand its hotel portfolio in India with 19 new properties by 2011, Accor CEO, Gilles Pelisson reported Monday.

By 2015, Accor’s CEO said  the group would have 90 hotels in India across all of its main brands.

“India today is one of the world’s most exciting growth markets with strong demand across all segments. Together with our partners InterGlobe, Accor is capitalising on this demand with a bold  strategy that will see it have 90 hotels in India by 2015. The rate of this expansion places India as Accor’s first emerging growth market globally,”

Since entering India in partnership with InterGlobe in 2004, Accor has opened eight hotels with 1,525 rooms, and are committed to further 52 hotels with over 10,000 rooms – 21 of these set to open before 2012, adding 4,800 rooms to Accor’s Indian network.

“InterGlobe and Accor have together made giant strides in India in the past six years. Today Accor brands have one of the largest committed development pipelines of any global hotel chain in India and we are delighted to have partnered in and supported this growth,” Group Managing Director of InterGlobe Enterprises Rahul Bhatia said.

The expansion will be spread across a range of Accor brands, with 19 hotels through the Ibis Hotel joint venture between Accor and InterGlobe. Two of them are currently operating in Gurgaon and Pune. One in MumBai Domestic Airport is set to open in the last quarter of this year. Another seven will be added in two in 2011, followed by the first economy Formule1 brand to be opened in Indian in the second half of next year.

For its luxury brands, Accor will open a Sofitel Bandra Kurla and another Sofitel in Mulund in Mumbai, both due to complete in 2013. Further, the opening of the upmarket Pullman Gurgaon early in 2011 will support the current construction of Pullman hotels at Delhi International Airport and in Lavasa.