I connected with this dynamic lady after I saw an
article that she had written on women chefs. I asked her if she had heard of
the Indian Women in Hospitality and she replied in the affirmative. In fact she
added that she was already a member, it made my day. I was more than pleased to
see her among the other illustrious professionals on IWH. We got chatting and I
wanted to do her story- found her professional journey to be really impressive,
more than that was her willingness to keep learning and innovating. Also trying
out newer things and accepting challenges after challenges. She is a role model
to many hospitality professionals and a mentor to many others.
Here’s the inspirational story of Ms. Sangeeta Bahuguna – a foodie,
serial entrepreneur and a marketing professional. She graduated from Delhi
University and completed a professional qualification from Institute of Hotel
Management, New Delhi. She started her career with the Hyatt Regency, New
Delhi. Ms. Bahuguna has worked with hotel brands such as the Imperial, Sofitel
Surya, Piccadily, ITDC, Apra Motels and Resorts and The Ambassador Group.
Dabbled with Bollywood with the film Magazine – Tinsel Town and has the
experience of entrepreneurship; managing first her own travel company and then
an Executive Search company – Hospitality Careers.
Along with successfully managing Hospitality
Careers; she is writing on food, hotels and travel related experiences. Also on her own page – Dineout Club. It is a
foodie group on Faceook, with a strong membership base. Members are passionate
foodies and the Dineout Club arranges experiences for them at various food
outlets – existing as well as new launches, across the city As part of the food
reviews, also arrange Pop-Ups and Events and related to that, Guest List
Management including promoting the restaurants through Social Media such as
Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Instagram.
The early
life
She comes from a service class family; her parents
were well educated and were working professionals. She says that her father
was a self made man, who started working
to support his education and qualified for IAS and PCS thrice but could not
qualify in the interview so his desire was to give good education to his three
daughters and wanted them to become an IAS or a good professional in their
chosen area. He worked at the Lok Sabha (Indian parliament house) and was
highly impressed by the library there.
He made his daughter Sangeeta
study Library Science at the under grad level,
she found the course to be tough and even after completing it didn’t
feel like working in a library. Her sister suggested the Hotel Management
stream to her and after graduating from PUSA in 1984, she just didn’t look
back. Ms. Bahuguna started her career with the Hyatt Regency, New Delhi and she
loved every bit of working there and that spirit as well as enthusiasm hasn’t
changed till date. She being the youngest in the family her mother never wanted
her to start working early but she was so fascinated by the Industry that she
grabbed the opportunity and took up the assignment.
She started at the Front office in Hyatt in June’
84 and that’s the year when Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi was assassinated
in November. Riots started and the staff were not allowed to go out of the
hotel that night. Her family was worried and there was no means to inform of
her safety at home. That was the end of her stint there and she was not allowed
to work; family being over protected about her. But after situation normalized
she went to the Imperial Hotel directly as a walk in candidate and she was
absorbed immediately at the front office.
But banquets too needed someone like her, leading to a tussle between
the two departments to keep her in their operations. Finally she ended up
working for Banquet Sales and that changed her line to of work to Sales. After
two years with the Imperial, she joined Sofitel Surya but Imperial hotel
realizing what they missed, called her back with a promotion and doubling her
package as the Sales Manager.
Three years with Imperial was long enough and she
wanted to explore other avenues that would give her opportunity to learn
something new. That lead to her working with a
film magazine for a year but love for the hospitality industry brought
her back. I launched the Sales office of Ramanashree Group of hotels; a South
based chain in Delhi. After two years she felt the need to do something
challenging so started with her own company promoting various hotels at
domestic destinations. Then domestic tourism took a beating, business was low
due to various reasons one of them being natural calamities leading her to join
her first love, the hotels again.
This time it was The Ambassador Group of hotels in
the year 2002; she came onboard as the Sales Manager eventually being promoted
as the General Manager Sales & Marketing. She worked there for six years.
Her creative juices and the innovative mind wanted her to do something even
more challenging; so got into business development for a Global Hospitality-
chain of fine dining restaurants. After a successful stint there; she launched
the sales office of Piccadilly Hotels, headed the office for a year and moved
to Milestone Group of hotels as Head Sales & Marketing.
After being with hotels for nearly two and a half
decades she embarked on a parallel business and started recruitments for the
industry. She also started writing about hotels, food, travel and events
related to the hospitality and tourism Industry. She has been promoting
cuisines and expertise of chefs, writing about the stalwarts of the industry
and the unsung heroes who have been working tirelessly in the kitchens and
doing wonderfully well with their creations. Ms. Bahuguna also organises
cookouts by chefs and food events on a regular basis.
I also had a couple of questions for the lady and
she was gracious enough to answer them with utmost sincerity.
IWH: What
challenges have you as a woman in the industry?
Ms.
Bahuguna: I haven’t really faced any challenges as such being a woman,
infact being a woman it was easier to meet the higher ups of the corporate
world who were decision makers. And they were always very delighted to meet
sales people from the hotel Industry, then and was able to bring in volumes of
business for the hotels. It is tough for Sales & Marketing professionals
now as access to decision makers is not so easy and one has to deal with a
number of people in the organisation before you can actually meet the right people
for business development.
I am still a hard core hospitality professional and
love doing what I am passionate about and happy and proud to be a part of this
Industry where discipline, warmth, courtesies and hospitality are integral part
of it and is one of the best industries to be in.
IWH: Your
advice to the young professionals.
Ms.
Bahuguna: I would like to mention here for the younger generation that do
what you like then only you can give your hundred percent. Hotel Industry is as
safe as any other Industry for women, one has to be smart enough to know the
right and wrong and be able to handle situations and people.
IWH: What do
you think of IWH?
Ms.
Bahuguna: IWH is a great initiative to bring together the women
professionals of hospitality Industry which could be a great learning
experience for all of us, to share, care and grow and be inspiration for the
generation next.
We had a great chat with Ms. Bahuguna, the lady who
can say, ‘Been there done that’. She has tried her hands at many different
aspects of hospitality industry and excelled in them. I know a very few people
who would be as experimental as her. She is certainly an inspirational lady and
her story will make others to dream big and follow their hearts.
Read more at : http://www.theiwh.com/ms-sangeeta-bahuguna/
Website: http://www.theiwh.com
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