Varun Mehrotra, Co-Founder and CEO, Khyathi in conversation with Prabhjot Bedi, editor, hospemag

Prabhjot Bedi: When did the idea take hold of you and share with us the journey to bring it to life?

Varun Mehrotra: Khyathi was conceptualised by Anubha Srivastava and me over a cup of steaming hot tea at home along with a discussion on the current scenario and its repercussions over the hospitality and travel industry especially. After quitting my position of Director of Sales and Marketing at Fairmont Jaipur, I started working on my dream project of Khyathi to turn into a reality.

A noble idea of curating a company that focuses on providing a solution to all their pain points quickly turned into something much more magnanimous and unique. Khyathi as a brand not only augments the revenue figures but also provides out of the box sales and marketing solutions for the hotels that now includes digital marketing, campaign strategizing, and automates the resources for the clients as per their expectations.

PB: Digital marketing is both crowded and a hotbed for innovation. Can you share some of the things that you feel you will do differently or better than most?

VM: We are an outsourced creative marketing and sales brand providing a one-stop solution to our partners under one roof. Our services are not limited to digital and social media marketing. We will be helping brands with campaign strategizing, visual content creation, revenue maximization, content marketing and brand management amongst the others.

Our focus is to curate content focussed campaigns with a panache and visual appeal to attract the patrons both offline and online. Our work will not be limited to maintaining online presence, but we will assist our patrons to amplify their incremental revenues, gain a loyal customer base and market their name to become a known brand and expand their accounts.

We are willing to work with businesses and turn around their entire revenue and profit module to account for veritable and beneficial business returns in coordination with the organization team.

World is online, so you better be there.

PB: Diggi Palace is an iconic property. Are you looking to sign up for similar properties or open to working with not-so-prominent properties too?

VM: Indeed, 150-year-old heritage Hotel Diggi Palace is an iconic property. We are ecstatic to start our Khyathi’s journey with it. However, we are not limited to working with any specific category of properties. We will be interested in partnering with brands whose ideology resonates with us and are looking to make a creative change in their brand presence.

PB:. “Revenge Tourism” is a term brandished about a lot these days. What is your take on it? Are you poised to ride the wave?

VM: Well for me Revenge is a very negative word and can’t be associated with travel as in travel you learn, feel, love, care, enjoy, cherish….You truly live the travel, live the life so why to revenge it.

Having said that we might see increase in travel to close by unexplored destination, in a way it’s good for our industry as new destination and destination resort will be most attractive staycation in coming times . India shall rise for domestic boutique and heritage hotels, resorts, palaces, and wildlife.

There will be a surge in demand for travel once the situation is better with minimum restrictions. Travellers across all age groups are looking for a getaway. However, post-pandemic travel will be most focused towards wellness and relaxation with safety and hygiene as the key priority..

PB: Any plans to own or operate properties?

VM: Too early to tell. For now, Khyathi’s primary focus is all about becoming a brand that can derive the much-needed fame for the client’s name. We are enjoying what we doing right now, In future, we look to own or operate any properties is something that only time and tide can tell.

PB: What are the 3 things that any hotelier should immediately start doing towards their marketing? Give us some insights and tips for our readers.

VM: In the current scenario, it is very important to keep marketing campaigns that resonate with the on-going sentiments of people. Ride on the digital wave for an effective communication and engagement with your target group.

Start thinking beyond the quintessential figures of sales and revenue optimization, it is essential to understand that simply understanding the market and recent trends is not enough to reap benefits. They need to think in terms of anticipating the trends instead of just following it.

It is essential to understand that content is the king. And right now, the content is not just about showcasing the brand or the experience but rather being able to weave a tale. At Khyathi that is what we assist our clients with.