Crippled by Covid-19, hospitality industry gets back on its feet

The hospitality industry, including restaurants, hotels and resorts, saw a major decline in footfall and bookings, much of which is yet to return to normalcy.

This was the general feeling among those who were a part of the ‘Live Chef’s Competition’ event at Palace Grounds in the city on Wednesday.

In Bengaluru, dine-in facilities were restricted for the most part of 2020 and 2021, while hotels and resorts had high vacancy rates as people hesitated to travel. Most restaurants scraped by with take-out orders and investors hesitated to fund struggling businesses.

However, owners say that things are improving and should stabilise by 2023.

“Restrictions during the lockdown brought about losses to the hospitality industry and government protection was crucial for its survival. International tourists were barred and investors stopped being a source of support, but now we are slowly coming back,” said Dr I S Prasad, president, Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry, during the event.

The event also saw students from the hospitality industry who said they were worried about pursuing a career in this industry due to crunches in hiring and loss of jobs.

“Having learnt most of our skills online and with no hands-on experience, we don’t feel confident about our abilities. We could not do internships either, which form a major portion of our learning,” said Prithvi Krishna, a hotel management graduate from Christ University here.

College placements hit a low

Placements in most colleges were also low during the pandemic.

“Now, that the industry is finding its feet again, the increased digitisation of services has made businesses reduce their employee requirement. This is scary for students, but now that hotels are at least returning for placements, we are more hopeful,” Prithvi added.

Chef Raj Sethia, culinary director at Gangotree on Palace Road, said that he felt delivery apps rob consumers of the experience of hot and fresh food. “Not only do diners lose out on taste and texture, they are also forced to shell out more money,” he said, hoping that dine-in would remain the dominant choice for customers.