THE hospitality industry is booming in the Middle East and with each share of profit comes the added responsibility towards the customers in terms of service as well as innovation. Taking over his new role as the general manager of Ramada Downtown Dubai, Samir Arora has been with a clear plan of action in mind.
With over 20 years of experience in the hospitality sector, Arora aims to project Ramada Downtown Dubai like never before and he firmly believes that the location plays a vital role. “Ramada Downtown Dubai is predominantly mid-segment four star hotel, given its location we can do a lot more. Anybody who comes to Dubai actually wants to stay in the Downtown area, so from that point of view the demand for this destination will always sustain. In the last two years, the rates we’re achieving in this property have indicated that we are in line with properties in the five-star sector. Hence expectations remain high from our customers.”
Arora explained plans of refurbishing the hotel, as part of its strategy to come in par with five-star properties on the Sheikh Zayed Road. “We want to push our rates up, and doing so also deliver in terms of product, service and quality,” shares Arora.
The Ramada Downtown Dubai witnessed a good year in 2013, he explains, both in terms of occupancy and rates. “Last year has been brilliant for us, the hotel has performed exceptionally well with 90 per cent occupancy and with the rate in line of $250. We foresee a growth of comfortably 10 per cent in rates this year. We want to make sure that our products and the services are top notch and hold on to our market share. We will always remain Ramada; we will never change that because Ramada has its own niche.”
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A junior suite at the Ramada Downtown Dubai |
As well as the ‘meet and greet initiative’, the hotel plans to launch more services. “I am reviewing each and every corner of the hotel – from the training department, housekeeping, food and beverages to the lobby, meet and greet. We will pay attention to detail, and ensure that both services and products that we offer is unique, in a way that will differentiate us from others,” says Arora.
The hotel is also eyeing on the power of social media as a marketing tool to highlight the property and a part of the budget is dedicated to take it forward. “We have engaged a specialised agency which deals in social media and are in the process of developing a strategy for each channel especially Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare,” Arora explains.
In terms of expanding its key source markets, the hotel aims to attract new areas. “Our strength is the GCC – Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar, but we would like to explore new markets as well. We would specifically like to focus on the CIS market that is predominantly Central Europe, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. We are also interested to pursue the India and Turkey markets. With the Dubai Expo 2020, Dubai will attract more exposure adding to its existing success in hospitality,” concludes Arora.
By Roma Arora