OYO to invest ₹1,400 crore in India, South Asia

Hospitality chain Oyo Hotels & Homes on Tuesday said it will invest ₹1,400 crore in its India and South Asia business to double down on its expansion plans and improve customer experience.

The Gurugram-headquartered company also announced the addition of Collection O hotels to its existing portfolio of the budget- to mid-segment hotel chain brand while introducing an in-app SOS button that activates on check-in, a first in the hospitality industry.

“The focus on growing and deepening presence in India & South Asia is relentless. Key priorities as identified by the business for the year include delivering superior quality of product and service for every OYO brand with a focus on safety and security,” said Aditya Ghosh, CEO, India & South Asia, Oyo.

The company said it aims to focus on investing and franchise building to take advantage of the global $3.6 trillion accommodation market opportunity rather than chase short-term goals like profitability. The company's losses as a percentage of realised value (OYO Hotels’ sales run rate) has been reducing year-on-year from 44.5% in FY17 to 20.3% in FY18. In FY 2018-19, OYO estimates losses will go down to 10.4%, it said in a statement.

With 515,000 rooms in 10 countries and over 500 cities, OYO Hotels’ sales run-rate for the year ended December 2018 stood at $1.8 billion, a growth of more than four times year-on-year. India contributed with $1.2 billion, with 50% PAT (profit after tax) improvement annually, the company said.

"With a strong balance sheet, today we can go to more places than ever, introduce new categories, invest in our assets, while maintaining our high-quality standards, without raising any further capital,” says Ritesh Agarwal, founder and group CEO, Oyo.