Rahul Chaudhary is a fourth-generation leader of his Nepal-based family business, and not unlike his family teachers he has a seize-the-moment mentality, even in the middle of an unprecedent crisis for the hotel business.
The managing director of CG Hospitality, a subsidiary of Kathmandu-based CG Corp Global led by his father, Binod Chaudray, is leading the “Vision 2025” plan to build and acquire hotels globally and reach a portfolio of 200 hotels from its current state of 106 hotels and 5,512 keys open and another 28 hotels with 2,049 rooms under development across 12 countries and 93 destinations. (Read HOTELS interview with Binod Chaudray here.)
Rahul said the pandemic has actually strengthened his philosophy surrounding growth.
“I look at COVID-19 as an opportunity from two aspects,” he said. “One is from your existing businesses – it gives you the opportunity to relook at your entire cost structure, your business model and strategy because now you’re talking about survival in the short term and viability in the long run… If you look at our portfolio, we’ve always followed the philosophy, ‘where there’s war, there’s opportunity.’ So, we’ve always looked at investments in countries that are ready to just erupt [in growth], or countries that have just come out of war or some sort of crisis. We have always invested in assets in a distressed situation. And what better time to invest in assets than with the current COVID situation? We foresee that in Q4, there will be tons of assets that are going to be available for the taking for 25 cents on the dollar.”
CG Hospitality will look at key global markets for growth, Chaudhary said, as well as some markets where it already has a presence. For example, it just acquired to assets in Kenya from Kingdom Holding Co., Riyadh, the the Fairmont Mara Safari Club and Fairmont The Norfolk in Kenya. Now they want to look at assets around Kenya itself, including Mozambique, Zambia, Ethiopia and markets that are emerging.
“Similarly, I want to look at key strategic markets, like Istanbul, London and in Thailand,” Chaudhary said, adding that a joint venture deal for a mid-market lifestyle development in Istanbul is close and hopefully gives the group a gateway further into Europe. “These are markets which are going to bounce back sooner than the others because they are much more resilient.”
Binod and Rahul Chaudhary are particularly bullish on the wellness sector, not surprisingly, because its existing The Farm property in the Philippines with its medically trained staff continues to perform well, even during the pandemic. CG plans to add 14 keys at The Farm at San Benito and build a second property in Phuket with some 71 keys. At press time, CG was close to a deal for The Farm in Croatia and is exploring further opportunities in Nepal and the Middle East. Rahul Chaudhary would also like to see at least some wellness elements of The Farm incorporated into other properties in the portfolio.
The near-term goal for CG Hospitality is to increase its value from nearly US$500 million to US$1 billion over the next five to 10 years. To date, it has performed well, growing 15% to 20% a year, according to Rahul Chaudhary.
“I want to be a privately held hospitality group that is from a country like Nepal and covering markets all the way from New York to China, having hotels in every single segment of hospitality sphere itself, from budget to wellness to experiential to luxury and boutique,” he said.
And after reaching the US$1 billion valuation, Chaudhary would like to publicly list the hospitality group and look at either merging or acquiring a luxury brand he envies and respects like Four Seasons. Indeed, like he said, seize the moment.