The Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) has seconded the decision made by the Hotel and Restaurant Association Gujarat (HRA Gujarat) to boycott certain online booking portals citing biased and unilateral business conduct by them. Gurbaxish Singh Kohli, President, HRAWI and Vice President FHRAI, says, “The HRAWI had sensed this monopolistic and arm-twisting tactic, germinating last year by these aggregator conglomerates. Foresight-fully having contemplated a counter move, last year HRAWI had already made an exclusive arrangement with Yatra, specifically for its members, where many hotels individually have signed and got immunity. Some hotels in Mumbai too have already delisted the online portals because of the unfair and uneven commission based business model. The online aggregators’ practice as one that works on divide and rule and monopolizing, the associations have sent out a strong message to them by declining them any part of their hotel inventory.”
