DS Group to invest Rs 500 cr, add 3 hotels to its portfolio in 3 years

The Dharmpal Satyapal (DS) Group, a multi-business and FMCG corporation, is planning to add three new properties with a capex of Rs 500 crore in next 3 years, a top company executive has said.

“Currently, we have six hotels with around 930 keys operating under global hospitality brands including Radisson, IHG and Marriott. We are planning to add another three hotels to our portfolio with a capex of Rs 500 crore in the next three years,” DS Group vice chairman Rajiv Kumar told PTI over phone.

DS Group, which has been in the hospitality business since 2000, has six properties, including The Manu Maharani, a member of Radisson individual, in Nainital (Uttarakhand), Namah, a Radisson individual, Jim Corbett National Park (Uttarakhand), Radisson Blu Hotel Guwahati in Assam, Crowne Plaza Jaipur in Rajasthan, Holiday Inn Express Kolkata Airport in West Bengal, and Marriott managed Renaissance, Bengaluru, in Karnataka.

Going forward, Kumar said, the company is looking for opportunities in the north and northeastern regions in leisure and business destinations that are expected to add over 200 rooms, taking the total to around 1,500 keys in the next three years.

When asked how the company will fund the addition of new properties, Kumar said, it will be through both internal accrual and debt.

The hospitality business of the company is about 2.5 per cent of the overall revenue of the DS Group. However, the company being privately owned did not disclose the Group’s revenue in FY23.

With this investment, the DS Group is poised to achieve an annual growth of 15 per cent in the hospitality segment over the next 2-3 years, which is higher than the industry, he stated.

For the three properties, Kumar said, the company will most likely go with the brands under Radisson and IHG group.

“We are happy with our partnerships with both Radisson and IHG group, so we hope to continue with them in our future expansions. However, we will also go along with any other hospitality brand in the case of an acquisition like it was with the Renaissance, Bengaluru,” he said.

Currently the company employs around 1,120 people in its hospitality business and with the addition of three properties it is expected to reach 1,800 workforce in the next three years, he added.