Arshdeep Sehgal
New Delhi 29 May

FORTUNE Hotels, a 100 per cent subsidiary of ITC Hotels Limited, is gearing up to establish itself as a strong player in the budget hotel segment, which is growing at a faster pace than its 5-star counterpart.

To start with, the company plans to expand its presence in various cities by adding five more properties to its existing portfolio of nine hotels, within this financial year. At the same time, the company plans to launch a new advertising campaign to enhance visibility of the Fortune brand. The campaign will project the hotel chain as the one providing a comfortable stay, however, with no extra frills, said Mandeep S. Lamba, president, Fortune Hotels. Fortune Hotels is setting up new properties in Hyderabad, Goa, Jullandhar, Madurai and Kolkata. The hotel chain is already present in Ahmedabad, Trivandrum, Calicut, Port Blair, Ooty, Jamshedpur and Darjeeling.

"We need to consolidate its operations and build up its brand name in the mid-market segment. The brand should stand up to itself," he said. Fortune Hotel's forte will be providing excellent cuisine and basic facilities to a traveller. "We are aiming to make this company a medium sized one. There is some realignment at the corporate office where we are hiring a few more people," he added. The company operates on an operation-cum-marketing agreement, with a mandate to acquire 26 per cent equity in the project that merits.

Industry analysts said foreign hotel chains are thriving on the concept of franchising in India and the number of such arrangements are growing rapidly.