The Dish for which every one is hungry…….. SUCCESS
Ingredients of Success
The recipe can be better understood by the following story:
He was born on 15th August, 1898 in erstwhile undivided Punjab, which is now in Pakistan. He was only six months old when his father died. Success and fortune did not, therefore, come easily to him. Initiative, resourcefulness and hard work, combined with the capability to face and overcome the most overwhelming odds can best characterize this phenomenal entrepreneur.
Hard work
He completed his primary education in Rawalpindi and moved to Lahore for his Bachelor’s degree. Shortly thereafter, to flee the ravages of a virulent plague, he went to seek his fortune in Shimla, the summer capital of British India. Arriving penniless, he found a job at a monthly salary ofINR 50, as the front desk clerk at the Cecil Hotel.
The diligence, enthusiasm and intelligence displayed by him, impressed Mr. Grove, the manager of the hotel. A quick learner, he did not restrict his efforts to fulfilling the job description of a desk clerk but sought and shouldered additional responsibilities. A few years later, when Mr. Clarke acquired a small hotel he asked him to assist him. It was here, at Clarkes Hotel, that he gained first hand experience in all aspects of operating a hotel.
Smart Work
In 1934, he acquired his first property, The Clarkes Hotel, from his mentor by mortgaging his wife’s jewellery and all his assets. Four years later, he signed a lease to take over operations of the five hundred rooms Grand Hotel in Calcutta that was on sale following a cholera epidemic. With his customary confidence and sheer determination to succeed, he was able to convert this hotel into a highly profitable business venture.
Over several years, he had purchased shares in Associated Hotels of India (AHI), which owned Cecil and Corstophans hotels in Shimla, Maidens and Imperial hotels in Delhi and a hotel each in Lahore, Murree, Rawalpindi and Peshawar. In 1943, he acquired controlling interest in AHI. He thus became the first Indian to run the country’s largest and finest hotel chain. In the tumultuous years just prior to Indian independence, he met and intimately interacted with the would-be leaders of Free India, all of whom were, at one time or other, guests at his hotels.
Having consolidated his early ventures, he became the first Indian hotelier to enter into an agreement with an internationally renowned hotel chain, to open the first modern, five-star hotel in the country. Inter Continental, in New Delhi opened in 1965. The I-Con, as it became popularly known, offered facilities that no other hotel in the country matched and was India’s first luxury hotel.
Self Confidence
This achievement was enhanced with the opening of the 35-storey hotel in Bombay, in 1973. He was the first Indian to work in association with international chains to woo international travellers to India. This led to a heavy influx of international travellers and foreign occupancy soared to an average of 85%. This enabled the Hotels to significantly contribute to India’s foreign exchange earnings.
Another pioneering landmark was the establishment in 1966 of the prestigious School of Hotel Management, recognised by the International Hotel Association in Paris. Considered India’s premier institute, the school continues to provide high quality professional training in hospitality management.
Other notable firsts were the decision to employ women in his hotels and to establish a chain of ancillary industries producing and supplying items like consumables and stationery to ensure the highest quality. His Group was also the first to start flight catering operations in India, in 1959. The group, located in New Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin and Chennai, provide in-flight meals of international quality to reputed airlines.
He realised that the hotel and hospitality business is greatly dependent on travel agents, a vital element in the distribution chain. Therefore, he decided to establish his own travel agency. Mercury Travels, part of The Group, ranks amongst the leading travel agencies in India.
Risk Management Ability
With vision and imagination, He converted old and dilapidated palaces, historical monuments and buildings into magnificent hotels He personally supervised the restoration of the hotel to its original grandeur and later acquired it.
In 1943,he was conferred the title of Rai Bahadur by the British Government in recognition of his services to the Crown. Thereafter, he won acclaim and received several national and international awards including admission to the Hall of Fame by the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) and Man of The World award by the International Hotel Association (IHA), New York. He was presented the Order of The Republic, First Class by the President of Egypt. He got an Honorary Doctorate of Business Administration from the International Management Centre, Buckingham, UK. Newsweek named him one of the Elite Winners of 1978. The PHDCCI Millennium award in 2000 was presented in recognition of his entrepreneurial and business success. In 2001, the Government of India accorded him the Padma Bhushan.
Intrinsic Motivation
To place his Group on the world map, he exported management expertise to Australia, Egypt and Singapore, where his Group took charge of the management of existing luxury hotels. The success of his Hotels & Resorts overseas, in the face of global competition, greatly enhanced the image of The Group.
Today, Hotels & Resorts in Indonesia, Egypt, Mauritius, Saudi Arabia and India add value and distinction to their host countries.
Excellence
Under his dynamic leadership, The Group introduced its second brand of hotels. These hotels are five-star hotels that have established a reputation for excellence and are acknowledged for offering quality and value. These hotels combine state of the art facilities with dependable service in a caring environment, making them the ideal choice for business and leisure travellers. Presently there are nine hotels in India located in Mumbai at Bandra Kurla and Nariman Point, Gurgaon (Delhi National Capital Region), Chennai, Bhubaneshwar, Cochin, Agra, Jaipur and Udaipur. The Group also operates a hotel in the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah.
The Group employs more than 12,000 people worldwide and operates 28 hotels and three cruisers in five countries. His achievements and successes did not, however, take from his simplicity and old-fashioned charm. He retained, until his death in May 2002 at the age of 103, a unique humility. He was fond of saying, “I have been able to accept the challenge and make good. There is comfort in knowing that whatever little I have achieved has also helped to raise the prestige of my country.”
And Finally
LUCK
When you have Excellence + Hard work LUCK will follow you……
And today this person is known as
He can be aptly termed as the father of the Indian hotel industry. Rai Bahadur Mohan Singh Oberoi
Founder of the Oberoi Group of Hotels.
Today, The Oberoi Group owns or manages 37 luxury and first class international hotels in seven countries.
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