Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata conglomerate, has launched a new investment platform to help deliver faster growth for its affiliate company, Indian Hotels. 

The move will open up a new, quicker route to market for IHCL, as it sets its sights on ambitious growth targets in the next few years. The concept will allow Indian Hotels to expand on an asset-light basis, with an arms length investor acquiring suitable properties for it to manage and operate. 

A plan for long term financial support

During a recent quarterly results conference call, Indian Hotels CEO Puneet Chhatwal gave a hint of what was being prepared. He told analysts that Tata Group had acquired a hotel for operation under the Ginger brand, adding: “Over time, this could potentially lead to the creation of an asset platform, which could become a big strategic enabler for IHCL.” 

He noted that rather than team up with third party investors, as other hotel brand groups often do, it made more sense to parter with another part of the Tata empire, keeping more profit within the group. 

More details of that first acquisition have now been made available. The Tata Sons platform bought a 195 room property currently being built at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, the main airport for Kolkata. The hotel will open as a Ginger branded property, on completion. 

IHCL is about to pass the milestone of 400 hotels, on its way to achieving a portfolio of 700 hotels open or signed by 2030. Currently, the company has 143 projects in its pipeline. 

The company is growing its portfolio across all its brands, including Taj, Vivanta, SeleQtions, and Ginger. Additional new brands are being added, with the recent expansion by adding a new boutique brand called The Claridges Collection. 

There is also a focus on partnership and portfolio deals to build scale. One recent example is the extension of an agreement with developer Ambuja Neotia Group, adding 15 hotels to the pipeline. Ambuja Neotia Group will be delivering predominantly Taj branded properties at sites including in Sunderban, Darjeeling, Shimla and Rabong. There will also be new SeleQtions branded hotels in Kolkata and Siliguri. 

Current Taj hotels in construction include Taj Alwar, and Taj Lucknow, a 185 room new build. And in Mumbai, the group is planning the transformation of the Sea Rock Hotel in Bandra, to create instead the Taj Bandstand, a luxury landmark that will open in early 2027 with 200 rooms. 

Signing momentum

New individual signings continue at pace. Towards the end of July 2025, IHCL signed a new hotel in Pune to the Gateway brand, a 180 room property in a city often referred to as the ‘Oxford of the East’, with its strong cluster of educational institutions. 

Alongside its Indian Hotels business, the Tata Group is a true Indian conglomerate, with interests in industries including steel, automotive, infrastructure, aerospace and telecoms. This broad base provides the strength from which hotel asset investments can be made.