The Conversation FEDERICO J. GONZALEZ, CEO, RADISSON HOTEL GROUP

THE DISRUPTIONS CAUSED BY COVID-19 HAVE BEEN ESPECIALLY HARSH FOR THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY. HOWEVER, FEDERICO J. GONZALEZ, CEO, RADISSON HOTEL GROUP, SAYS THE COMPANY SIGNED UP THE LARGEST NUMBER OF ROOMS IN 2021 AT THE €498-MILLION HOTEL CHAIN. IT HAS OVER 1,700 HOTELS AND 200,000 ROOMS ACROSS NINE BRANDS — RADISSON COLLECTION, RADISSON BLU, RADISSON, RADISSON RED, RADISSON INDIVIDUALS, PARK PLAZA, PARK INN BY RADISSON, AND COUNTRY INN & SUITES BY RADISSON AND PRIZEOTEL. “IN 2021, WE SIGNED 12 HOTELS IN INDIA AND 200 GLOBALLY,” SAYS GONZALEZ. HE EXPLAINS HOW THE INDUSTRY COMBATED COVID DISRUPTIONS, THE CHANGE IN CONSUMER MINDSET AND THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING A SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MODEL.

- INTERVIEW BY AJITA SHASHIDHAR

Every crisis opens up opportunities. What kind of opportunities did Covid-19 open up for the hospitality industry? The pandemic has given us an opportunity to rethink and improve our operating systems. We will have better operating margins once revenues come back. We have been able to re-engineer a lot of our processes and have tried to make sure we cannibalise more revenue. The crisis has also brought an opportunity to tailor newer products. For instance, when the pandemic started nobody wanted to have buffet breakfast, six months later they started asking for buffet. So now we need to be able to offer what the consumer wants. Some of them like buffets, while some like personalised breakfasts.

We need to increase the complexities of the services we offer. We have launched concepts such as hybrid meeting rooms. The consumer can have physical meetings as well as video conferencing. The pandemic has forced us to become more creative and find more solutions. Our offerings today are more complete.

 Offering more complexities comes at a cost. How are you managing costs?