Kapil Chopra on How To Build a Global Luxury Brand from India | From Oberoi to The Postcard: India’s Boldest Hotel Experiment ft Shrishti Sahu
Kapil shares his Playbook on How to Disrupt Luxury Hotels Globally
Hello everyone, welcome to The India Opportunity Show where you get a front-row seat to people building India’s future. We talk about unlocking the potential of the country with founders, investors, creators, and successful leaders from different fields to bring you real-life stories and behind-the-scenes of what it takes to be at the forefront of building the India Story.
Episode 9, Season 3 of The India Opportunity Show is out now! You can watch it on YouTube or listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
Today on The India Opportunity Show, I’m joined by Kapil Chopra — one of the most unconventional voices in India’s luxury hospitality industry. From serving as President of Oberoi Hotels to co-founding EazyDiner and building The Postcard Hotel, India’s most awarded new luxury brand, Kapil has consistently chosen the harder path of innovation over comfort. He has redefined what it means to create a hotel brand — no buffets, no rigid check-in and check-out times, deep cultural immersion, and a philosophy rooted in capital discipline and ‘skin in the game.’ Kapil’s journey is not just about hotels; it’s about entrepreneurship, capital allocation, and building global brands out of India. Hope you enjoy watching!
Chapters:
00:00 – Postcard vs Marriott: The Hotel Pitch
02:55 – Postcard’s Unique Revenue Share Lease Model
10:00 – Challenges of Building a New Luxury Hotel Brand
14:00 – Early Success & Profitability Strategies
20:00 – Choosing Unique Indian Destinations for Hotels
27:00 – Hotel Occupancy & Break-Even Metrics
32:00 – Guest Experience & Redefining Luxury
38:00 – Building Consumer Brands: Tea & Wine
44:00 – Wellness Retreats & Diversified Offerings
50:00 – Expanding Wildlife Lodges & Future Hotel Pipeline
55:00 – Keeping Postcard Private for Long-Term Vision
1:00:00 – Direct Customer Engagement & Bookings
1:03:00 – EasyDiner’s Funding Struggles & Turnaround
1:09:00 – EasyDiner’s Growth & Market Positioning
1:13:00 – Entrepreneurial Resilience & Consumer Insights
1:17:00 – Building for Aspirational & Top-Tier Markets
1:19:00 – Postcard vs Airbnb & The Second-Home Market
1:22:00 – Kapil’s Personal Investing Journey & Philosophy
1:27:00 – Employee Stock Ownership & Wealth Creation
1:31:00 – Personal Capital Allocation & Stock Market Views
1:37:00 – Investment Discipline & Market Outlook
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