Armed with 18 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Gaurav Apte is a well-rounded professional. He is currently the General Manager of Goa Marriott Resort & Spa, Miramar, a position that he acquired through hard work, dedication and perseverance. In conversation with Business Goa, Apte speaks about some of the initiatives that Goa Marriott Resort has adopted under his direction, as well as what it takes to succeed in the hospitality industry
Give us a brief outline of your educational and professional background prior to joining Goa Marriott Resort & Spa as the General Manager.
I hold a Masters in Hospitality Administration (MHA) from the Institute of Hotel Management (IHM), Mumbai and a Masters in Tourism Management (MTM) from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) in addition to Diploma in Hotel Management and Catering Technology (DHMCT). I have a rich portfolio of qualifications and experience earned during 18 years of progressive responsibility and achievement in the hotel industry. Previously, I was associated with the Courtyard by Marriott, Ahmedabad, as the General Manager, where I played a significant role in ensuring a successful soft renovation of the property. I was instrumental in achieving the highest total hotel revenue since its inception. Prior to this, I was associated with the Bengaluru Marriott Hotel Whitefield, as Resident Manager and Courtyard by Marriott, Pune Hinjewadi, as Director of Rooms, where I ensured a successful opening of both the properties. I was instrumental in making the hotels flourish by the best guest satisfaction scores in India for more than three consecutive years. I have earlier worked with The Lakeside Chalet Marriott Executive Apartments and The Renaissance Mumbai Hotel & Convention Centre for seven years, where I grew to be an Assistant Front Office Manager.
What, according to you, makes running a hotel in Goa a unique experience?
Goa is a land that redefines holidays. With its exquisite mix of sun, surf and sand, it enjoys footfalls of thousands of international and domestic tourists. There is a lot of potential and opportunity to have these visitors stay or dine at the resort. The tourists here are usually on leisure unlike in other cities and hence the expectations from the resort staff is to not only deliver on the operational expectations but also provide information, assistance in a personalised manner. The personal connect with every guest interaction becomes the differentiating factor in Goa. Hence, a lot of training needs to be imparted to enhance the staff service. Also, Goa experiences extreme monsoon and the building exterior needs a lot of repair and maintenance support over time.
According to you, what is the main focus at Goa Marriott Resort?
Our USP is the beautiful location that we are situated in. We get many guests staying with us for celebrating special occasions (birthdays, anniversaries, honeymoon, weddings, annual day events etc.)
What are some of the marketing and promotional initiatives that Goa Marriott Resort has adopted under your direction?
We opened a new Cake Shop – Goa Baking Company (GBC) and relaunched our All-Day-Dining Restaurant Waterfront Terrace and Bar recently. We have seen a lot of guests appreciating both the outlets and the customer base frequenting the restaurants has seen a significant increase. In addition to this, we had the Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony for the first time in the hotel last year, where we had a gingerbread boat on display at the lobby and a 40 feet Yule Log for the guests present to taste. We recently launched the new loyalty program, ‘Marriott Bonvoy’ inviting the elite loyalty members for a sundowner event by the bay and thanking them for their patronage.
What are some personal interests and traits that you bring to the hospitality domain?
My traits that have made me successful are hard work, high aspiration and dedication. I believe that one should always aim high and work tirelessly towards achieving one’s goal. Success is never final – one should never be content with one success but strive to achieve the next higher goal and setting a time frame for achieving those goals. One has to put his/her heart and soul and overcome all obstacles that come their way and never give up. In addition to this – an eye for detail and genuine care for associates and guests are some of my interests that help enhance the hospitality quotient.
What, according to you, does it take to succeed in the hospitality industry?
In the hospitality industry, what is of utmost importance, is the need to be dynamic. You need to adapt to change, keeping in mind the perception of the guests. We need to take the feedback of the guests and improvise the shortcomings, if any. Most important, is to maintain a feedback tracking system, plan and act on the inadequacies. So, the crux of the matter is that if we never ask for customer feedback, we’ll never understand what drives customer satisfaction. Customer feedback enables every business to fit their needs more accurately which is the key factor in hospitality industry.
What are some of Goa Marriott’s immediate events in the pipeline?
Some of the immediate events of the year include:
1. Member’s Day – Monday and Tuesday’s 50% discounts on food in all our restaurants up to 10 pax for Club Marriott members.
2. Wine Dinner at Simply Grills and Whiskey Dinner in AZ.UR – Pairing of food with alcohol and inviting the top 20 Club Marriott members and Elite Marriott Bonvoy guests.
3. Baking Classes at Goa Baking Company – Some of the other F&B events include- Crabs & Curries (Simply Grills), Awadhi (Waterfront Terrace & Bar), Sweet & Salty (GBC), Comedy weekends @ AZUR, Easter (GBC/ Waterfront Terrace & Bar), Beer & Burgers (AZUR), Baisakhi (Waterfront Terrace & Bar), Last Catch (Simply Grills), Mother’s day (Waterfront Terrace & Bar), Sun, Sand & Flea (Flea market)
