Mrs Marina Varghese looked at the
beautifully laid out dining tables in the dining hall, the well decorated
Christmas tree in the centre and the red, green and silver decorations around
the hall, much of which had been her daughter Shannon’s ideas. The Christmas
carols being played softly in the background created a sense of serene
festivity. She was very proud of how her little boutique hotel had shaped up
with years of careful personal touches and now every year, throughout the year
it enjoyed a steady inflow of guests from around country as well as from
overseas who came to spend the year-end festive season in Kerala. The word of
mouth from past guests had helped greatly in making the hotel popular. The
feedback on the popular travel portals were indeed effective.
She checked her watch and noted that in
exactly 20 minutes the pre-lunch drinks would be served in the lounge after
which the guests would move to the restaurant for the Christmas lunch. She
needed a few minutes to sit down and catch her breath before the real bustle
started. She remembered the years of struggle when she was widowed at a tender
age with only an infant girl for company and no other support. Her husband who
had been serving in the army had been martyred in the line of duty. All she had
been left with was the family’s ancestral house and some land around it. She
had opened a small bakery and started catering to birthday parties and other
festivities alongside. It generated a regular income and before long she had
started a paying guest accommodation and started renting out the extra rooms to
working ladies. It started well and in approximately five years, she
managed to take a moderate bank loan and extend the house to make it into a
boutique hotel. She stumbled but persisted and learnt from her failure and
today she was considered a successful hotelier and an effective businessperson.
She had dared not give up for at the time when she had commenced her business,
she had constantly reminded herself that she had a daughter to bring up, educate
and inspire. She had to groom her into a competent lady. When Shannon was ten
years old, Mrs. Varghese had sent he to The Good Shepherd International School
and there she studied not only till her high school but also with the Finishing
School learning the various life skills, career skills and the professional
skills that would be of value to deal with people especially in the hospitality
business. She also did a higher degree in hotel administration to add to her
professional skills.
Shannon was now all of 22 years and
fully committed to the running of her mother’s business. Mrs. Marina
Varghese often observed her daughter quietly when she dealt with enquiries,
guests, the staff, the suppliers and corporate clients. From the shy little
girl, Shannon had turned into a charming, poised and confident young lady who
was now adept at dealing with different kinds of people and addressing their
different needs. She was very active in the local community too. helping in
Church activities to raise funds for the local orphanage and old age home. Just
the other day, Rev. D’Souza had made it a point to regale Mrs Varghese with
details of all the wonderful work that Shannon had been doing on behalf of the
church.
Although Mrs Marina Varghese still had a
tight grip on the operations of the hotel, she was happy to go along with the
many new ideas and initiatives Shannon was initiating to make the hotel more
attractive to the families who came to spend their vacation. The hotel
had about 20 rooms, a combination of double occupancy and family rooms. These
days the bookings were all completed online and much in advance. Shannon fully
understood the importance of using social media to promote the existing
business and generate new business and used it to her advantage. The location
of the hotel, the view, the well-manicured garden, the spa and Jacuzzi,
baby-sitting services for children, safe play zone for kids, organic food and
attentive staff all ensured good customer satisfaction. Mrs Varghese wanted to
build up another floor and discussed this with Shannon but as Shannon pointed
out to her, there was no limit to aspiration, however the point was to manage
well what they had and not grow beyond their capacity to manage happily, the
point was to enjoy and be satisfied with what they did and participate in the
community development activities as well. Mrs Varghese knew that Shannon
was right and she credited her Schools for instilling the right values, giving
a balanced perspective and the ability to be socially responsible. She knew
that when the time came Shannon would be able to run the hotel independently
and with efficiency and good sense. But for the present, it was time for the
Christmas lunch to commence and Mrs Varghese stopped her thoughts and went to
ring the bell.
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