Anup and Alpa Shah led Resort Rio Goa recognised at ILC Power Brand Awards, Voted as Indian Affairs Innovative Business Leader in Hotels 2019
Anup and Alpa Shah received yet another feather in their cap in Mumbai when the jury & public voted them in the category of Indian Affairs Innovative Business Leader in Hotels 2019 at the 10th Annual India Leadership Conclave & Indian Affairs Business Leadership Awards 2019
More than 300 Business Tycoons, Social Entrepreneurs, Industry Leaders, Educationists, Policy Makers were in full attendance to witness the much awaited 10th Annual India Leadership Conclave & Indian Affairs Business Leadership Awards 2019, also known as ILC Power Brand Awards. The historic & iconic annual conclave currently in its 10th annual edition debated on the theme “Opportunities – Can India Seize India $5 trillion economy by 2025”. Leading voices & noted leaders of the country gathered at the commercial capital of india in mumbai on friday,23rd August 2019. The conclave highlighted the burning topics of india with a specific emphasis on Modi 2.0.
Prominent Awardees included Dr. P. Shyama Raju. Chairman, REVA Group of Institutions, Mr. Ashok Nair,Managing Director & General Manager,Abbott Healthcare Pvt. Ltd, Mr. Alok Ohrie,President & Managing Director, Dell Technologies India
Top achievers of the country who were in nationwide polling by Network 7 Research were recognized & honored at the ILC Power Brand Awards. Speaking on the process of selection & methodology, Satya Brahma, Founder Chairman of India Leadership Conclave said “India Leadership Conclave’s objective is very simple & clear. We don’t follow a fixed set of rules of traditional theories of selecting a nominee in the final six list either based on seniority, age or celebrity status. We go by our research, experts advice& bring to light those talent & innovators who never got noticed in mainstream media or recognized. When they see their names in the big six final list, they feel proud, for us, that is the winning moments after relentlessly following & chasing for finding the credible name!”
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Conceptualized & instituted in the year by India’s most respected journalist Satya Brahma, India Leadership Conclave Awards are are meant to highlight & celebrate those individuals & companies who’ve ascended to the top of their business against all odds. Currently celebrating its 9th successful annual editions, iconic figures such as Ratata Tata, MukeshAmbani, Naresh Goyal, Narayan Murthy, Shiv Nadar,SudhaMurthy,Priyanka Chopra, Manish Malhotra, Neeta Lulla, Late Yash Chopra, Govinda, Rani Mukerjee, Sushimita Sen, Karishma Kapoor are some of its proud recipients. Being India’s most iconic leadership awards having a tremendous impact on the credibility of the Group, India Leadership Conclave jury takes every steps to ensure fair, credible & independent selection process,.The nomination categories, eligibility criteria, selection process & evaluation criteria constitute the core areas of research. Public voting constitutes its biggest parameters. Physical interviews by Network 7 Media Group Journalists on ground on each nominee are conducted followed by Jury’s strong analytical verdict. The set of awards developed by the Board Members of the Network 7 Media Group is to propel the talent engine & encourage, motivate the innovative entrepreneurs. These leadership awards are aimed at empowering the leaders who think differently.This recognition voted by the people of india& subsequent by Jury Board reflect the Winner’s remarkable achievement & accomplishments as a leader of substance driven by passion, initiative & commitment to deliver excellence. India Leadership Conclave Awards are special as we don’t follow any traditional guidelines, defy conventions & crown winners based on innovations, merit & competence. Our decision is based on number of factors which are transparent, robust & driven by extensive research.
Shri Ashish Shelar,Hon’ble Minister of School Education, Sports & Youth Welfare, Government of Maharashtra, Padma Shri Dr. Mukesh Batra & Mr. Satya Brahma conferred awards to the shining stars of india.
The Story behind building Resort Rio Goa
Anup Shah, a London corporate lawyer of over 33 years, running his own law firm in Mayfair, London, landed in Goa on a last minute 2 week holiday in 2003 when his travel agent messed up a planned holiday to Mexico. This was a game changer when one day lounging and getting bored by the pool on his sunbed staring into nothingness he saw a sign, “Land for Sale”. This moment began his journey to buy not just that particular piece of land but to buy another 12 acres and build from scratch what is now the iconic Rio Group of Hotels comprising Resort Rio, Rio Royale, Rio Convention and Rio Boutique. Anup, with no experience of building a garden shed in his own backyard in London let alone 5 star Deluxe Hotels and with no experience of doing business in an entirely different field in another country with very different culture and business ethos, initially got together a small team consisting of an architect, an engineer and a project manager to assist him with putting on paper his vision of the Resort he wanted to build from scratch including many of its unique aspects such as the 3 and 4 bedroom villas some with their own plunge pools, the luxurious 650 sqft rooms in the main building, the superb 1100 sqft ultra-luxury suites, the beautiful Zaara Spa with its Moghul interiors, the huge lobby and the many restaurants and bars at the resort. In order to have a complete hands on approach and an input in each and every aspect, he used to fly from London to Goa on a Thursday evening, have meetings on site from Friday afternoons until Monday and fly back from Goa on Monday evenings straight to his law firm in London at 7am on Tuesday morning. This culmination of focused hard work resulted in the launch of the iconic Resort Rio in 2010 with just 42 rooms with a further 45 added a year later with an additional 42 another year on and so on. In 2016, Anup launched Rio Royale, another 5 star Deluxe Resort right next to Resort Rio conceptualised on the famous temples of Khajuraho which he and his wife had visited in 2014. And in 2018, the Rio Group launched the 35 room Rio Boutique in Verem, Goa with its classic Moroccan theme. Currently, he is focused on launching Rio Convention which will consist of one of the largest (20,000 sqft without columns) state of the art convention and banquet hall in Goa with another 50 rooms.
Anup and, his better half Alpa Shah, are “hands on” working directors and get involved in every aspect of operations. A lawyer has an eye for detail and with his tenacity, direction and sharp focus the Rio Group has grown organically from just 42 rooms to nearly 300 today and employing over 600 staff in operations, another 200 in construction with another 10,000 or so directly or indirectly benefiting in the supply chain. With no experience or background in hotels, Anup and his team have the advantage of challenging every rule of hotel management which they do not see eye to eye with. So much so that they are writing their own rules of hotel management. The ethos of the Rio Group of Hotels is “Guests do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the guests”. As a result the group has a fantastic and loyal staff base. Anup and Alpa Shah say that their staff are their true and only family and their interaction with them is exactly as one would have with one’s own close family. It is not a Boss and Employee relationship. So much so that Anup can be seen laughing and joking with his staff and he loves playing practical jokes on them! The guiding principle of Anup and Alpa Shah is to create and nurture jobs as a result of which all the profits are invested back. They have also set up their own charitable foundation and those very old or very young who they cannot employ are assisted through this foundation. And so the purpose of the Rio Group of Hotels is ultimately to do good for the society, for the time being in Goa, but hopefully soon all over India by creating jobs through constant investment and expansion, by looking after and nurturing their staff as their own family members and by assisting those less fortunate who they cannot directly employ through their charitable foundation. That is Anup and Alpa Shah’s main purpose in life. This is what drives them towards excellence. And this in turn has fuelled the massive growth of the Rio Group of Hotels from a standing start to what is today one of the Leading Independent Brand in Goa.
Anup Shah still practices law from Mayfair London and has several other businesses there. He is a director of several UK based companies. He still divides his time between London and Goa. However, his real passion is the Rio Group of Hotels. Very soon, the Rio Group will have over 325 rooms and one of the largest convention centres/banquet hall in Goa as it pursues its aim to be the largest and the best in Goa. And so what makes Anup Shah stand out from the rest:
- A corporate lawyer in London with no experience of construction takes on development of a 5* Resort in another country with very different business ethos and culture.
- With no experience of running and operating hotels takes on leading brands in their own territory and puts the Rio Group of Hotels comprising Resort Rio, Rio Royale, Rio Convention and Rio Boutique on the map.
- Builds his own hotels and operates them.
- Very soon the Rio Group of Hotels will have the largest room inventory and one of the largest convention space in Goa.
- Employs over 600 people in operations, another 200 in construction with another 10,000 or so benefiting directly or indirectly.
- The tiny village of Arpora, Goa has witnessed a massive transformation in living standards entirely due to Resort Rio and Rio Royale.
- So far all the profits have been reinvested for expansion and to create more jobs
- 99% of the people employed are from India.
- All the furniture used in the hotel is made at site and the philosophy is to use Indian produced goods in so far as possible.
- The ultimate purpose of the Rio Group of Hotels is to create jobs, give opportunities and train those less fortunate so that they can have a good start in life. Their families are also assisted in emergencies such as assistance with medical care
- Anup’s and Alpa’s charity assist those who they cannot employ such as the very old or the very young.
Ultimately Anup and Alpa Shah’s passion is Resort Rio and the Rio Group of Hotels. As they say, it is their “Little Piece of Heaven on Earth”. And it is this passion which has been the driving force behind the massive success of Rio.
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