Want to party at a CITCO hotel?Pay less in summer, more in winter
As per the draft policy, CITCO will slash the rates of vegetarian and non-vegetarian plates by 10 to 15% during lean season (April to September), while the charges be will higher during peak season (October to March). There are no charges for booking the banquet halls. The meeting to approve the policy will be held on May 17.
With its hotels running into losses, the Chandigarh Industrial and Tourism Development Corporation (CITCO) is planning to introduce differential pricing for organising events at the hotels’ banquet halls as per season.
CITCO offers banquet halls in its three hotels — Mountview in Sector 10, Shivalikview in Sector 17 and Parkview in Sector 24. These can accommodate up to 400 people each.
As per the draft policy, CITCO will slash the rates of vegetarian and non-vegetarian plates by 10 to 15% during lean season (April to September), while the charges be will higher during peak season (October to March). There are no charges for booking the banquet halls. The meeting to approve the policy will be held on May 17.
The policy is only for banquet halls as they are the hotels’ main segment of business.
Confirming the development, CITCO chief general manager Uma Shankar Gupta said, “The policy will be taken up for approval at a meeting on May 17. Once approved, the policy will allow more opportunities to make profit from this source of income.”
Another senior officer of CITCO said the rates of the banquet halls at their hotels were already lower in comparison to other private hotels of the same segment.
Arvinderpal Singh, president of Hotel and Restaurant Association of Chandigarh, said, “Along with increasing the rates of banquet halls, CITCO also needs to improve allied amenities. CITCO is only focusing on its hotels, while its prime property, Kalagram’s Baithak, having a banquet facility for up to 300 people, is lying unused for two years.”
CITCO hotels in losses
As per the CITCO board of directors last meeting, Hotel Mountview suffered losses of Rs 2 crore in the last fiscal, along with decrease in sales turnover of food and beverages in their major restaurants and coffee shops.
Similarly, Hotel Shivalikview faced losses of Rs 66 lakh. Even, Hotel Parkview saw a decrease in profits to the tune of Rs 27 lakh. No action on marketing policy approved last year
In June last year, the CITCO board of directors framed a new marketing policy to increase the profits of its hotels. But, a year later, the corporation is sitting on the policy.
It was decided to improve the guests’ experience and satisfaction with services offered by CITCO hotels, and that guests ratings on social media platforms, control on rates distribution and discounts should be given to the sales team. It also included designing a credit policy, bills delivery and payment follow-up with clients to avoid any bitter experience, increase revenue from banquets and promote hotels for residential conferences.
Under the policy, it was proposed to choose the employee of the month on the basis of performance. The winners were to be awarded gifts, appreciation letters and free stay at hotels, along with free spa on one-time basis or one-night free stay.