Choice Hotels to open up to 10 hotels in India in 2021.

Hospitality firm Choice Hotels India is looking to open up to 10 hotels across the country during the current year, a top company official said.

The company, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Choice Hotels International, currently has 35 operating hotels in India.

"We plan to open up to 10 hotels across our various brands in 2021,"Choice Hotels India CEO Vilas Pawar told PTI.

The company currently operates three brands --Comfort, Quality, and Clarion -- in India, and the upcoming hotels will be across these brands, he added.

These hotels will be in locations such as Bengaluru, Indore, Kochi, Manali, Rishikesh, Udaipur, Kolkata, Chennai, Bareilly.

"We also have plans to add multiple hotels in certain destinations and are in advanced levels of discussions in tier 1 ,2 and 3 markets...," Pawar said.

When asked about the business model, Pawar said the company follows franchise model and it also offers management consultancy at a cost.

On the likely investment for the expansion, Pawar said, "Choice Hotels India is committed to our franchisees. We would be investing to strengthen our distribution network and extend our marketing reach for the benefit of our hotels and franchisees".

The focus segment of the company continues to be mid-market to entry level upscale, he added.

"We have signed Clarion in our upscale segment in Bodhgaya and continue to grow our portfolio of Comfort and Quality across midscale," Pawar said.

He stressed that the company firmly believes in the growth potential of the Indian market and is focussed on growing its hotels across the country.

ET