Victor Albuquerque, Chairman and Managing Director ofAlcon-Victor Group started small, in fact working in a government departmentnot knowing what life had in store for him.
Gradually he forayed into construction and then intohospitality business and now along with his two sons “ Vinay and Varun managehospitals and hotels in the State.
Hospitality business is very close to his heart and he isconcerned that tourism in the State is in a state of morass. He predicts thatGoa will have to do something different to attract foreigners here.
“There is no scope and space for more hotels in Goa. Theland prices are unaffordable and the cost of construction has gone upexorbitantly. The market in Goa is stagnant and European markets are shrinking.All this will reflect into today’s hospitality business,” Albuquerque said.
Focusing on his hotel business, Albuquerque recalls the goodold days when he began small in 1970s.
“I earned Rs 375 as an assistant engineer in PWD. Those dayswere different. Anil Counto and me decided to start construction business inpartnership and invested Rs 5,000 each,” he recalls. “Our first project was asmall bungalow at Dona Paula which cost us Rs 67,000 to construct,” hereminisces adding, “But look at the land prices today. They are soaring andunless one has bought land at cheaper rates earlier, it is extremely difficultto purchase land and build a new hotel in Goa.”
The Euro crisis has translated into a drop in chartertourist inflow during the last two-three years. Hotel tarrifs are slumping.There are lesser British tourists now.
“Out of the two lakh foreign tourists in a season, one lakhare now Russians. The British tourists are 50,000 and the rest 50,000 are fromother countries,” says Albuquerque.
He stresses the need for a tough tourism authority toupgrade Goa as a tourism destination.
“Medical tourism is a good sector and it gives 10-15 percent occupancy during the season. Sensing the need of the hour, we started thefirst super-speciality hospital at Margao -- Apollo Hospitals that caters tosurgeries in foreign patients. Alternative treatments like Ayurveda andNaturopathy are gaining popularity among German, Swiss, Italians andAustralians. With our Devaaya Ayurveda and Nature Cure Centre at Divar, we werethe first to break the myth that Ayurveda is not only Kerala, but it could beGoa too. At Devaaya we serve strict vegetarian diet,” Albuquerque disclosed,who as a reverence for life, has turned a vegetarian for the past 25 years.
“I have not consumed alcohol for the past 11 years,” he boasts.
Albuquerque was the pioneer to start ‘rent back’ apartmentscheme in Goa.
Speaking on the franchisees he said: “Apollo and Radissonare franchisees but we are running both on our own following internationalstandards. Our new project at Cavelossim, Club Tito’s is also a franchisee.It’s an upmarket discotheque night club that will boost tourism in South Goa. Afood court at Radisson and Club Tito’s both are opening on October 12.”
