Kenneth Macpherson, IHG Hotels & Resorts CEO for Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia (EMEAA), shared that the company sees “significant potential” in India for introducing its luxury lifestyle brands, including Kimpton and Regent.
He mentioned that IHG’s pipeline of new hotels in India is expected to account for a larger share of the EMEAA region than before, with India being one of the company’s top-performing markets last year. Revenue per available room in the country grew by 8.6% compared to the previous year.
On Tuesday, IHG introduced its midscale brand, Garner, in India with new signings in Etawah, Uttar Pradesh, and Kathua, Jammu. The company highlighted that the brand is adaptable and could involve conversions and new construction projects.
IHG Hotels & Resorts currently operates 47 hotels in India across brands like Holiday Inn, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Six Senses, Crowne Plaza, and Holiday Inn Express. The company plans to expand to 60 hotels in the country over three to five years, with pipeline data available until December 31, 2024.
Both Garner hotels will operate under the franchising model, and Macpherson expressed confidence in the long-term potential of this model for India.
“The launch of Garner is the start of a segment that we are convinced has the opportunity for considerable scale. I’m not announcing how many we could plan, but there should be hundreds of hotels in the future,” he said.
So far in 2025, IHG has signed several new properties in India, including Crowne Plaza in Jim Corbett, Holiday Inn in Puri, Holiday Inn Express in Bengaluru, Holiday Inn Express & Suites on the Mumbai-Goa highway, and InterContinental Kasauli.
Macpherson said the chain hasn’t yet brought its other “powerhouse” brands to the country.
“We have the luxury lifestyle brand Kimpton doing extremely well in EMEAA. There’s an opportunity for that. The ultra-luxury Regent brand sits alongside Six Senses, and we see potential for that in India besides our Vignette Collection brand,” he said.
In the premium space, IHG has five Voco hotels in the pipeline. “Our powerhouse Holiday Inn brand has a solid reputation since the seventies in India. So, we have proof of performance and delivery for guests and owners across all segments,” he added.
