IPL-2 may rake in Rs 800 cr for all core, fringe hopefuls

NEW DELHI: India’s newest multinational, with projected revenues of Rs 800 crore in just five weeks, is all set to take wing in Cape Town on Saturday. Welcome to Lalit Modi’s India Premier League, Stage II, the Great Redeemer in these tough times, if you ask the entertainment, advertising and tourism industry.

And, if you believe Peter Roebuck, the famous Australian cricket columnist, “everyone except Elvis has been slated to appear at the opening”. And, some think he has half-a-chance of turning up,

Even before the first match, between Sachin Tendulkar’s Mumbai Indians and MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings, Multi Screen Media (MSM, previously Sony Entertainment TV), which plans to rake in close to Rs 400 crore, claims to have sold 85% of advertising space.
The franchisee teams put together may earn Rs 250 crore from sponsorship deals. The travel-tourism and restaurant sectors stand to gain revenues of Rs 50 crore each. India’s Rs 300-crore restaurant and pub industry, struggling with sagging sales, is hoping that IPL will bring it the much-needed respite.

“We expect a 30-40% increase in footfall and revenues during the IPL season,” says Rohan Jaitley of Bistro Hospitality that runs Thank God It’s Friday (TGIF) pubs in India and has partnered with Adidas, which is designing its pubs across India and offering discounts and vouchers around the IPL.

Going by the experience of IPL-1, corporate sales could pick up, as executives head out to pubs after office hours to catch a drink while watching matches on the big screen. At least, that is the collective faith. Although hotels in lost out on big business after the IPL venue was shifted to South Africa, some are hoping they will partly recoup the loss from increased food and beverage revenues.

Even ITC, the official hospitality partner, which was the most hit by the venue change, believes that IPL-2 will be a booster shot. Says ITC’s hotel division COO Dipak Haksar: “We will be running promotional activities in our pubs and restaurants to woo families and corporate executives during the IPL season and footfalls will definitely increase.”

Adds Lalit Hotels’ COO Vijay Wanchoo: “We anticipate an increase of 10-15% in sales generated by restaurants and pubs, especially during the semi-finals and finals.” According to industry estimates, hotel and restaurant owners could earn Rs 45-50 crore during the IPL.

The IPL’s venue-shift hurt plans of many businesses, but not among those complaining. The industry is seeing a surge in interest for holiday packages to South Africa, with nearly 70% of the package sales coming from companies that are sponsors or planning to take their employees for ‘offsites’ to South Africa.