INDIA
The Indian attractions industry is set to grow, but how can operators ensure success in a previously untapped country? Jennifer Harbottle gets advice from some industry experts
BOLLYWOOD BONANZA OR SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE?
n paper, India has the potential to be an attrac- tions industry superpower; its population is the sec- ond largest on the planet
(accounting for 15 per cent of the world’s population), it has one of the largest and most prosperous middle classes in the world and is ideally placed geographically between the affluent markets of Europe and South East and Northern Asia. According to numbers, 11 per cent of household income in India is spent on recreational and cultural services. This
proportion compares reasonably well to other mature markets such as the US (six per cent), UK (12 per cent) and Japan (10 per cent). A report published in May 2010 by global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company stated that urban per capita GDP in India will grow six per cent a year between 2005 and 2025 and the number of households with discre- tionary spending power could increase sevenfold to 89 million by 2025. So why aren’t there more major destina-
tion attractions in the Indian sub continent? Why does the attractions industry have
such a low profile among consumers in India? And why are the major players in the international attractions industry yet to stake their claim to this market? The Indian Association of Amusement
Parks & Industries (IAAPI) reports that there are currently 140 amusement parks in India, mainly concentrated in the south- ern part of the country. As there are more than 1.15 billion people in India, this seems a gross under-representation. We ask four stakeholders what they think is needed to help the country take its place on the world’s attractions’ stage.
HARMEET PENTAL, COMPANY DIRECTOR AND CONSUMER, DELHI, INDIA
reason is the cost to get to them, which is really high when you have to pay for air fares and hotels. The main reason though is that attractions just aren’t very good and aren’t worth the effort, particularly in the north of India where we live. Most are aimed at the lower classes, which means they’re cheap to get in, but are poorly maintained and have no infrastructure. Low ticket prices bring people in, but if
E
all you want are large volumes of visitors, it ends up compromising everything else and there isn’t the management expertise here
ach year, my family and I typically visit a domestic leisure attrac- tion only two or three times. One
to cope with large crowds. These attrac- tions don’t appeal to the middle and upper classes, who’d be willing to pay more if there were quality F&B offers, shade to keep people cool, decent restrooms and if the rides were well maintained. Also, there’s no control over how many people are admitted into an attraction, so there are terrible crowds. In North India in particular, crowds don’t have social respect; no one stands in line or follows rules and it just makes for an unpleasant experience all round. In South India, crowds behave better,
attractions are of a higher standard and the weather is more temperate, so the industry is better serviced. My favourite attraction is Islands of Adventure in Orlando. As a family we
Existing waterparks in India have been popular with the local market but need to improve to attract an international audience
46 Read Attractions Management online
attractionsmanagement.com/digital
love waterparks, so enjoy these in the States, in Singapore and Vietnam and also on Australia’s Gold Coast. With hot weather eight to nine months of the year, India is the perfect place for a waterpark, so it’d be good to see more of them open up here. But to get me and my family along, I’d have to know who owns the park and who built it. Ideally it would be an international brand name as that would instil a feeling of trust regarding safety – there’s a perception here that local companies cut corners to save money. Also, service standards are non-existent in Indian attractions, whereas a foreign company would be able to manage its staff and manage the flow of people to make it a better experience. The fact is, there’s nothing in India in
the way of attractions for the middle and upper classes, so our country loses money to overseas destinations, such as Thailand and Malaysia, which do attractions better.
Harmeet Pentel is regional director of stu- dent placement company IDP Education
AM 2 2011 ©cybertrek 2011
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78