Talash Hotels Group: Brothers in Business - Interview with Sanjay & Ravi Kathuria
Determination. Resilience. Passion.
It’s these qualities and more that have enabled brothers Sanjay and Ravi Kathuria to make a mark on the British hotel industry over the last decade with Talash Hotels Group.
Driven by a burning ambition to replicate their uncle’s success in the trade, the pair are proud to have overcome a series of challenges to establish their position in a highly-saturated market, growing their business to boast a portfolio of 13 individual character hotels across the country.
“When we were growing up as children we used to sit on fire-exit stairs in our uncle’s hotels and have the dream of owning one ourselves”
“We were really inspired by our uncle, who used to be a hotelier,” recalls Sanjay. “When we were growing up as children we used to sit on fire-exit stairs in his hotels and have the dream of owning one ourselves.
The Talash Group tale
Both waiters in their early careers, the brothers took their first plunge into ownership in 2005 – but suffered a setback when the property they had lined up to purchase was suddenly swept up by a corporate bidder as part of a wider sale agreed by its owners. It was a blow to Sanjay and Ravi, who saw an opportunity to follow their dream cruelly snatched away.
It took 18 months to uncover another suitable project, but the development of the Falstaff Hotel in Leamington Spa didn’t reap immediate rewards for the duo. The location opened its doors in 2007, but recession hit business hard and by 2009 the Kathurias had conceded 60% of the property’s value.
“We were then forced into business support with the bank, and it was only through our negotiation and our determination that we continued to drive the business through the recession,” reveals Sanjay. “We had to cut costs, we did a number of shifts ourselves, we did kitchen work – we did everything basically. We learned everything there is to learn about running a hotel.”
These experiences proved invaluable to Sanjay and Ravi, who today own a wide range of unique accommodation but each of which are ran in line with the clear management philosophies the pair have established over the last 11 years.
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