Priyanka Saxena Ray
Handsome, suave, witty and polite – if you met Hemant Mediratta in the corridors of any Oberoi property, you would be completely touched by his warm hospitality. His personality, it was believed, was best suited to the brand he was associated with – Smart and Classy. A popular name in the travel trade industry, a pleasant sight in almost all IATO Conventions, Hemant was branded as the quintessential hospitality veteran and not the risk taking entrepreneurial kinds… So what changed?
“I believe entrepreneurship is a state of mind, which stems from a very high degree of ownership. You don’t need a designation of a business owner to be running any business. In every assignment or a job one can operate like an entrepreneur. The motivator for me is to have the freedom to create and translate your dream in a world class organisation,” he hares, adding, “I took the decision in January 2020 to turn an entrepreneur and despite being advised against doing so by industry colleagues and friends (even said no to job offers), I was ready to take this plunge. I believe it is the calling and one has to try and experiment with life. After all if you believe in yourself then destiny takes you to your chosen path.”
Since he had always been passionate about sales and marketing and that had also been his forte the last couple of decades, Hemant, through his years of experience in the field, saw a clear gap in the market where majority of the representation companies were being run by travel agents and young hoteliers who lacked experience, exposure of global markets and more importantly the luxury market. “I felt we needed an hotelier run company that understands the nuances and are culturally more adept to understanding the needs of luxury hotels. So we have a team of 14+ enthusiastic and connected sales, marketing and communication professionals covering 30+ cities across 7 countries across India and Middle East to give extensive reach and distribution. We are supported by a great advisory board comprising the “who is who” of the Indian luxury travel trade. We are also the only representation company in this part of the world to be the First Traveller Made member, which gives us unrestricted access to any luxury agents in the region,” he fills in enthusiastically.
The client tally at his company – One Rep Global is a testament to his skill and hard work not to forget his sharp insight and focussed approached that helped him and his team reach out to the potential patrons. “We have had a pretty rapid growth in the last two months getting on board some like-minded clients who shares our vision of luxury. Our client list comprises the top luxury products right from Private Jet Company to Hotels that are part of Luxury consortiums like LHW, Virtuoso, SLH and Traveller Made. Ours is probably the only company that has added so many clients in the COVID times,” adds Hemant.
The primary goal of his company One Rep Global is conducting business in new territories for a luxury hotel or product. This requires sales professionals that have segmental market expertise and can deliver the right content by being respectful of cultural nuances. Embodying this mind-set requires strong leadership, unique strategies and execution with precision. With over 200 years of collective experience, One Rep Global strives to be more than just an extension of the existing team. “We bring to life to the client’s brand values and service philosophy. In-depth knowledge, insider access, an enviable Advisory Board, extensive sales distribution and people led, customer-centric organisation are some of the strong virtues of our company,” quips the entrepreneur.
The next big step he has taken is the introduction of Antara Cruises in the India market. The lavish ‘all Suite’ cruises takes you to untouched destinations along the rivers while you experience the ‘all inclusive’ warm personalised and unmatched hospitality. Owned by Heritage River Journeys that has over 15 years of proven expertise in innovative small ship design that is socially and environmentally responsible, Antara Cruises, with over 100 team members has already set high standards in the luxury river cruising ships making it the ideal choice for top international cruising partners.
“We felt the time was right to introduce this best kept secret to Indian consumers and we have launched Bespoke Charters where you can take the entire ship of 28 cabins (56 guests) for your family and friends while you cruise on the scenic routes on Ganges starting from Kolkata. There is a very high degree of personalisation and customisation that is possible. We have received multiple queries for wedding and related events apart from milestone birthdays and anniversaries where people want to spend time with their loved ones in safe environs, making unforgettable memories. We have currently opened two fixed departures over Christmas and New Year’s which are 3 days and 4 days respectively where individual bookings can be made by guests,” concludes an enthusiastic Hemant.
He may have started alone on his entrepreneurial journey but over the course of time, like-minded people, who understood the luxury market and shared the same vision kept joining him, making the tribe bigger and bigger. Given his experience and skill, one can confidently vouch for this successful entrepreneurial journey into the future, as he gears to set new benchmarks of ‘luxury’ in India.
