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Thursday, May 29, 2014

Q&A: Checking In with Boston East India Hotels Director of Development and Marketing James Foster



As Boston East India Hotels Director of Development and Marketing, James Foster is responsible for overseeing marketing for the company’s hotels and villas, directing the development and public relations efforts, including planning for the global pipeline of assets under development.

Prior to joining Boston East India, James was a group marketing head and then a partner with Casa Boutique Hotels and General Manager at Casa Colvale in Goa. Under James’ leadership, Casa Colvale rose from obscurity to become one of the top vacation resorts and spas in India and the aspirational Goa destination for India’s celebrities and industrialists.

He started his career with The Appco Group, the world’s leading direct sales and marketing company with more than eight hundred locations in twenty-five countries on five continents. At the company, he pioneered loyalty card marketing for the hospitality industry and headed a group with over six hundred sales staff in eleven offices across the United Kingdom. He also worked for the company in France and as the Marketing Head for India.

A graduate of Harrow School in London, James studied law at the University of London. He is fluent in English and French and is certified under the Hilton Garden Inn University General Manager Program and has received a certificate of recognition in operations from Hilton Worldwide.

After living in India for nearly a decade, James moved to the United States in October 2013 to handle his responsibilities out of the company’s headquarters in the Boston area.

Hear what James has to say about his role with Boston East India Hotels and his background in the hotel industry:

Describe your job in five words or less.
Unpredictable, exhilarating, unconventional, fast-paced and entertaining

How long have you worked in hospitality?
I spent the first twelve years of my career working in marketing for a large London based company. I crossed over into hospitality in 2007 while living in India when I got the opportunity to become marketing head for Casa Boutique Hotels, a group of luxury boutique hotels in Goa. I was fortunate to head up some beautiful properties during my time in Goa, including Casa Colvale, which became one of the most highly rated lifestyle hotels in India under my tenure. Hospitality has been in my blood for a lot longer, my family own and manage a small hotel and golf course in the Loire Valley, one of the most scenic areas of France, a couple of hours drive from Paris.


What is the most challenging aspect of your job?
The toughest part of my job is controlling my enthusiasm for all the incredible opportunities to purchase gorgeous hotels in stunning locations here in the United States and globally. If we had unlimited capital I would be buying hotels every week, but I have to be patient and pick the opportunities that will give us the greatest potential for delivering fantastic investor returns and the best experience for our guests.

What is the best part of working for Boston East India Hotels?
Working with such an accomplished and experienced team of hospitality professionals is a real privilege and gives me the confidence and motivation to keep pushing every day to grow the company. The travel and excitement of doing hotel deals in fascinating places all over the globe is a big plus too!

What are the short-term goals for your job?
Short term, I want to keep our projects, conversion and operations teams incredibly busy over the next twelve months by closing six more hotel deals. We have a very strong pipeline of projects in the U.S., U.K. and South Asia which will quickly translate into a great portfolio of lifestyle hotels for such a young company.


What are the long-term goals for your job?
My long term goal is to help build the world’s best portfolio of lifestyle hotels under the Troca Hotel’s flag. I believe that with the team we have built over the last couple of years we have an opportunity to compete with and outperform the larger brands in the lifestyle segment and develop a world class brand.

You made a big move to the United States to join Boston East India Hotels. What is your favorite thing so far about living in the United States?
The best part of moving to the United States is there is so much to see and do. After ten years of living in India, the long winter in Boston was very exciting for my kids who had never seen snow before and we made the most of the fantastic skiing in New England. We are now looking forward to an equally fun summer with so many interesting places to visit.

Who is a Troca Traveler to you?
A Troca Traveler is someone who knows what they like and need to ensure a luxurious stay in exciting locations around the world without the need for endless marble bathrooms and cookie cutter experiences that most luxury brands offer today. The Troca Traveler wants an authentic experience and prefers to be surprised by a unique aspect of our hotels or by our people going above and beyond their expectations, rather than knowing what they will get before they walk through the door.

Do you remember the first time you spent the night in a hotel? How old were you and where was it?
My earliest hotel memory is at a small beautiful ski hotel called Les Roches Fleuries. We would stay every year and I felt like I grew up with some of the fantastic staff.

What is your favorite place to travel to?
I spent a lot of time backpacking and traveling around Southern and Eastern Africa and I can’t wait to take my kids on extended trips to that fascinating part of the world.

What is your most surefire travel tip?
Be safe but not too safe when it comes to exploring the world. There are too many incredible experiences that can be missed if you stick to the beaten track.

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Memorial Day Travel Trends: Kicking off the Summer Across the U.S.



For most, Memorial Day kicks off the summer season and as such is one of the most popular travel weekends of the year. AAA is predicting that 36 million Americans will travel this weekend — a post-recession high. From coast to coast, whether the weather cooperates or not, you can bet all will find a way outdoors or to that favorite destination that says summer is right around the corner. And, of course, the whole country remembers the fallen members of the U.S. Armed Forces.

The Maine community around Boston East India Hotels’ The Daniel joins together in celebration. The towns of Brunswick and Topsham unite on Memorial Day to honor this country’s heroes with the annual Brunswick-Topsham Memorial Day Parade. This year the parade is remembering D-Day, which celebrates its 70th anniversary on June 6.

Brunswick is also set to host Maine Gov. Paul LePage for the “Fallen Warrior” ceremony that is open to the public and will feature an address from the governor.

Many of the areas’ summer enthusiasts will take a gamble on the weather and plan a trip over to nearby Georgetown and hit up the beaches at Reid State Park or Popham Beach State Park in Phippsburg. Whether shorts and t-shirts or pants and heavy jackets and blankets are needed, the beach enthusiasts will not pass up the summer season’s first long weekend.

A recent survey by Expedia highlighted some of the best hotel deals for Memorial Day weekend and also examined some of the spots travelers are targeting.

While average U.S. flight prices are up five percent over last summer to $499 and the average daily room rate predicted for the summer is up three percent to $171, these increases are not going to be enough to keep travelers home.

The best deals for Memorial Day weekend? According to Expedia findings, in terms of the biggest price changes year-over-year, the places to be are:

  • Chicago at Hilton Hotels, starting at $79 per night 
  • Las Vegas at Wynn Resorts, starting at $359 per night
  • Reno, Nev., at MGM Properties, starting at $150 per night 
  •  Lake Buena Vista, Fla., at Hilton Hotels, starting at $99 per night 
  •  Los Angeles, at Hilton Hotels, starting at $152 per night

Some other spots that Expedia found sharp drops in hotel prices for a Friday, May 23, to Monday, May 26, stay are in Panama City, Fla.; South Padre Island, Texas; Memphis, Tenn.; Providence, R.I.; and Ocean City, Md.

Search patterns show that Las Vegas, New York, San Diego, Chicago and Miami are the top destinations that travelers are looking for on the Web to find the best hotels deals.

In the spirit of Memorial Day, Boston East India Hotels has put together a list of a few other hot spots for travel over the three-day weekend.

Washington, D.C.
Memorial Day is about remembering this country’s fallen soldiers so there is no more patriotic place to celebrate this day of remembrance than the nation’s capital. Don’t miss the National Memorial Day Parade at the National Mall, the National Memorial Day Concert or the wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery.

Atlanta
In the heart of Georgia, visitors can get some traditional Memorial Day activities such as fireworks and military tributes at Stone Mountain Park. However, the Atlanta Jazz Festival also runs over the weekend for some great music. The free festival, which is held in Piedmont Park featuring some of the biggest names in jazz, is in its 37th year and is attended by an estimated 150,000 people each day.

Miami
The March of Colors in Miami sets the tone for the weekend with a 21-gun salute at All Wars Memorial Park, followed by a parade through town. On the beach, though, partying rules the day with over 250,000 descending on the sand and surrounding clubs and bars for a weekend of music, dancing and plenty of sunbathing. The highlight of the weekend is the Best of the Best Concert on Sunday, held in downtown Bicentennial Park. The 10-hour concert features all Caribbean music and keeps the dancing going from start to finish.

Las Vegas
Perhaps not considered a traditional destination for Memorial Day weekend getaways, the three-day weekend is actually one of the city of sin’s busiest time of the year, right up there with New Year’s Eve. While gaming is always Vegas’ main draw, on Memorial Day weekend — up and down the strip — hotel pools are the hot spot for parties and special events. None is more popular than the Venus Pool Club at Caesars Palace.

So whether your Memorial Day traditions lean more toward the traditional or you might want to take a chance on something new this year, Boston East India Hotels wishes you safe travels and a great holiday weekend!

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Here's to pausing to watch the day go by...



We're a global lifestyle hotel company for sure. We're concerned about a range of issues from guest comfort and engagement innovation to our new CSR initiative. There's a lot that keeps me busy from when I enter the office early and the wee morning hours when I often leave. But when Brian Sette, our Senior Manager of Art & Culinary Concepts, told me his amazing pup Penny loved looking out the window and could do it for hours, I asked him to pull up a chair in my office to test it out. There she was. Perched on that chair. Watching the young kids walking in and out of Converse's world headquarters, across the street from us. Cheers to Penny for not letting the world go by without noticing and here's to working at a company where we can occasionally pause to watch Penny. 

Happy Sunday everyone!

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Abhijit "Beej" Das
President & CEO
Boston East India Hotels LLC
21 High Street, Suite 300
North Andover, MA 01845 USA