BSBI Strategic Management: Analysis of Taj Hotels Business

This report provides a comprehensive strategic analysis of Taj Hotels, a prominent player in the hospitality industry. The analysis begins with an executive summary and an introduction that outlines the report's objectives. It then delves into a detailed discussion of Taj Hotels' business, including its products and services, competitive landscape, and marketing strategies. The report includes a SWOT analysis to identify the company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. A strategic positioning statement and a business model canvas are presented to illustrate the company's strategic approach. The report also includes a marketing plan, rational for the marketing plan and outline for the marketing operations. The report concludes with a summary of the key findings and recommendations. The report is based on the assignment brief from Berlin School of Business & Innovation (BSBI) for the Strategic Approach to Market Planning for Hospitality module.

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Strategic Management
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note

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Executive Summary
The main purpose of the assessment is to conduct a strategic analysis of the business of Taj
Hotels and how the same can be improved in order to bring about more customers in the
business. The analysis also shows the key competitors of the business of Taj and the steps which
are taken by the business for facing the competitive environment. In addition to this, the
assessment would also be showing strategic position statement and business model canvas so
that appropriate strategies of the business can be revealed. Furthermore, the discussion which is
presented below also shows the marketing plan of the business and the strategy which is applied
by the business for enhancing the sales and profitability of the business.

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Discussion........................................................................................................................................3
Summary of Business and Its Products.......................................................................................3
Competitive Analysis of the Business.........................................................................................4
Marketing strategy.......................................................................................................................8
Rational for the Marketing Plan................................................................................................12
Outline for Marketing Operations.............................................................................................12
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................13
Reference.......................................................................................................................................14

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Introduction
The main purpose of the assessment is to analyse a business which is engaged in
hospitality business. The business which is being considered for this assessment is Taj Hotels
which are considered to be an important tourist residing place and the hotels provide five stars
services to the customers. The hotel was first opened in 1903 in Bombay and since then the hotel
has been a centre of excellence in terms of services which is provided by the hotels. The Taj
Palace hotel is considered to be one of the leading hotels in India and is one of the favourite
place for the tourist who are visiting Mumbai (Palace 2019). The assessment would be focusing
on the products and services which is offered by the business and also identify the key
competitors of the business. In addition to this, the analysis also would be showing how well the
business of Taj Hotels is placed in the hospitality industry. The assessment would further be
developing a marketing strategy for the business and also linking the same with the business
canvas model for the business.
Discussion
Summary of Business and Its Products
The business of Taj Mahals Hotels is known for its quality services and effective
management of the needs of the guests. The hotel overlooks the majestic Gateway of India and
provides a stunning view of the city of Mumbai. The hotel has 285 rooms which are
appropriately designed and rich in culture of the Indian traditions. In addition to this, the
business also trains its staff members to be respectful and helpful to the tourists who are visiting
the place so that quality services can be provided to the guests. Furthermore, the hotel also serves
the best cuisines and offers different styles of food so that the business is able to cover the taste

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and preference of all the guests. The hotels own 9 of the city’s most acclaimed restaurants and
bars so that the guest have a variety to choose from in terms of cuisines. In addition to this, the
hotel is also very suitable for any sort of parties or conventions as the hotel has a ballroom which
has a capacity of 450 people. Therefore, the business provides the best quality of services in
hospitality and excel in every department in order to ensure that the guests are satisfied with the
services of the hotel.
Competitive Analysis of the Business
The overall competition in the market of hospitality is very much high as there are
numerous hotels coming up in the region of Mumbai due to the rich culture and popular tourist
place of India. The major competitors of the business of Taj Hotels are Leela Group of Hotels
and Oberoi Hotels and Resorts (Mahanta and Chaturvedi 2018). The market competition is on
extreme level which has affected and therefore appropriate quality of service needs to be
provided so that the business is able to retain and attract guests. There has been a significant
growth in the hospitality industry which is mainly due to the increase in tourism in India (Jauhari
2014). As per surveys, it can be accounted that around 8% of the total employment in the country
is from hospitality sector and the industry roughly employs around 41.6 million people as per the
data which was available in 2017 (Legrand, Chen and Sloan 2013). It is further anticipated that
the estimate would be increasing further to 52.3 million by the end of 2028. Therefore, from the
analysis it is quite clear that the overall competition in the hospitality sector has also increased
significantly over the years.

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Figure 1: (Seasonal Occupancy of the Hotels in India)
Source: (Careratings.com. 2019)
The above chart shows the occupancy rate of the hotels which are operating in India. The
hotels which are considered in the graph above are all five hotels or above. Taj Hotel falls under
the category of Five-star hotel and it can be seen that the demand for the rooms is quite
appropriate which shows that there has been growth in hospitality industry significantly
(Tajhotels.com. 2019). In terms of revenue as well the hotels are doing appropriate which is
shown in the chart which is presented below;

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Figure 2: (Average Revenue which is generated by the Hotels in India)
Source: (Careratings.com. 2019)
The management of Taj Hotels have formulated their own strategies so that they would
be able to combat the competitive pressure in the market. In order to analyse the ability of the
business to combat competition, the strengths and weakness of the business needs to be
identified. SWOT analysis is applied on the business of Taj Hotels for identifying the internal
strengths and weaknesses and opportunities and threats which can affect the operations of the
organization (Sen and Kaushik 2016).
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
 Catering to multiple segments: One of the major strengths of the business is the ability
of the business to serve multiple segments and also provides various amenities to the
customers. The business is serves the upper-class segment by TajVivanta caters. This

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ensures that the guest have the right to choose regarding how they want to stay in the
hotels.
 Service Differentiation: This is another major strength of the hotels and it is also one of
the means which is used by thee business for appropriately managing the competitive
pressure in the market. The management of the hotels has established a research team of
its own so that the business can further improve the services which is provided by the
business (Kandampully, Zhang and Bilgihan 2015). There are 155 touch points which
have been identified by the research team which can improve the services which is
provided by the business. The management of the company especially focuses on
ensuring that the quality if service is maintained but also close follows the policy of
service differentiation.
Weakness
 Customer Relationships: The business has to manage lots of customers on day to day
basis and therefore, it is always not possible for the hotel to provide equal treatment to all
the customers (Chauhan and Mahajan 2013). There are incidents where the guest had to
wait for a room. It is always not possible for the management of the hotel to provide
personalized services to all customers. Therefore, it is one of the areas where the
management of the Hotels needs to work on and make improvements to the same.
 High cost of maintenance: The cost of maintenance of the hotel is very high and this is
the main reason that the prices for the services and food products is very high Kim, M.,
(Vogt and Knutson 2015). In addition to this, the hotels also are on its growing phase and
therefore the overall costs of the hotel are likely to increase more in the future.
Opportunity

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 Growth in smaller towns: The business of Taj Hotels is still at its developing phase and
therefore there is a lot opportunity for the business to expand the operations of the
business to smaller towns which would further contribute to the revenue of the business
and would also allow the business to acquire more market shares.
 Enhancing the services of the business: There are also other services which can be
provided the management of Taj to its customers considering the taste and culture of thee
tourists who are arriving at the hotel (Verma and Jain 2015). In this manner, the business
would be able to attract more customers and thereby also enhance the revenue which is
generated by the business.
Threats
 Competition: One of the major threats which is faced by the business is the high level of
competition which is faced in the market. The services which is provided by other
business are similar and therefore it is important to differentiate the services. The high
level of competition affects the revenue which is generated by the business and thereby
affects the profits of the business.
Marketing strategy
In order to effectively attract more customers in the hotels, the management of the
company needs to effectively promote the services and products which is offered by the business
so that the business is able to generate appropriate revenue from operations of the business. The
marketing strategy of the business involves appropriate advertisement and promotion of the
services which is offered by the business (Bethapudi 2013). In addition to this, the business also
provides exclusive offers to the customers such as extended stay offers, Christmas stay offers
and gift hampers, Diwali offers. These are some of the practices which promotes the services

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which provided by the business (Lockyer 2013). Therefore, it can be said that the management of
the company is dedicated to maintain proper quality of services and the business also has a
proper brand name which itself attracts more customers to the business.
Strategic Positioning Statement
Target The business of Taj Hotels aims to become
one of the leading brands in hospitality
business around the globe. In addition to this,
the management of the hotel aim to expand
the operations of the business further.
Needs of the Customers The customers of the hotel expect best quality
of services and the management of the
company is dedicated to provide appropriate
services to the customers.
Competitive set The level of competition which is faced in the
market is quite high and this affects the
revenue of Taj Hotels
Unique Point o Difference The business tries to differentiate the services
which is provided by the business in order to
ensure that the business is able to combat the
competitive pressure in the market.
Reasons to Believe The reason to believe that the business would
be able to succeed in the operations of the

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business is due to the quality of services
which is provided by the hotels.

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Business Model Canvas
Key Partners
 The key partners
of the business
are Taj Exotica,
Taj Safaris,
Gateway Hotels,
Ginger Hotels,
Taj Air and
Vivanta Hotels
 The Key
suppliers of the
business are the
local suppliers in
Mumbai and the
9 hotels and bars
which is owned
by the business
of Taj
 The major
resources which
is used by the
business is linen,
food, wine and
the business also
provides room
services to the
guests
Key Activities
 The key
activities include
cooking the
products and
also providing
room services
and other
facilities to the
guests
 The business
also provides
significant
amenities to the
customers
Value Proposition
 The hotel
delivers best
quality of
services to its
customers at a
reasonable price.
 The hotel is
trying to solve
the customers
issue over prices
and has
introduced
different
segments so that
all the classes of
customers are
satisfied with the
services which is
provided by the
business.
 The company is
trying to look
after the needs
of all customers.
The company is
looking to
Customer
Relationships
 The company
tries to maintain
good customer
relationship with
its customers.
 Taj Hotels has
created an
environment
where the
customers are
enjoy
themselves and
have a time of
their lives.
Customer
Segments
 Taj Hotels at
present is trying
to achieve as
much market
shares. The
company is
trying to target
the tourists who
are coming to
India for
vacation or any
other purpose.
The company
has also new
room facilities
and extended
stay options so
that the
customers are
satisfied with the
operations of the
business.
Key Resources
 The company
key resources
come from the
local market
such as
vegetables,
meat, beverages
Channels
 There are
various channels
that Hotel Taj
services offer
one is booking
of rooms or
walk in for